Kindle Fire HD or Samsung Galaxy Tab - advice

waterwatereverywhere

Hi,

Have never owned a tablet but hoping to buy one - looking for some general advice please.

Main needs/wants
Good internet access
Would prefer as high storage capacity as possible 32GB plus
Ability to attach/use a keyboard (wired or bluetooth)
Good screen for reading books and/or watching TV/DVDs.
(Not into gaming or anything like that.)
Good speakers to play music through.
Good battery life.

Queries
Will these have a USB port - so can use memory stick and plug other stuff into it?

Have read that Kindle is cheaper in wi-fi only option. Our main internet access is by tethering to Three on its all you can eat plan. Will this work if we go for the Kindle wi-fi only? (We've been using Three tethering on the laptop so know that the plan and speed suit is so that is not an issue).

SD card slot - will either/both have one of these?

Word/Excel etc - does this come pre-loaded and/or can it be downloaded/will it work on either/both of these?

Is Kindle more generally restricted in terms of what you can and can't download on to it?

Cheapest places to buy?!?! Have Nectar points so was thinking about using these at Argos but they don't seem to have a lot of choice and prices don't seem very competitive.

maryroberts

Hello, I stumbled upon this thread as I have the same question - surprised there are no replies? OP, did you buy a tablet and which one did you choose? Thanks!

macman

You will find the full Kindle specs on the Amazon site.
Yes, the Kindle is much more restricted and uses a heavily customised Android interface, so you can only download from the Amazon App Store, not from the Play Store. It locks you into Amazon's walled garden, which is why it's so heavily subsidised. Any ebooks with DRM will need to be purchased from Amazon-you can't read epub format books on a Kindle.
No tablet comes with Word or Excel-they're Windows/Mac programs, not Android. Basic readers are available though.
No SD card reader on the Kindle-micro USB only for Mac/PC attachment and charging.
Attaching a k/b to a tablet would be a bit pointless. The whole point is portability. if you are going to lug a k/b around with it you might as well buy a netbook or small laptop.

Kite2010

Nexus 7

Some good deals to be had on the "old" model (quick search picked up 32GB for £180 from Currys & Argos online)

99p wire turns the micro usb socket into a full-sized usb socket for use with a usb stick/sd card reader.

The Kindle Fire basically locks you into the Amazon ecosystem.

The_Magnificent_Spoon

If one of your key requirements is that you will use it for reading books, then I can honestly recommend neither. The colour tablet displays are not great for this, and the battery life is nowhere near as good as a device with a proper e-ink display.

As regards the original question, kindle fire or Samsung tab, I could not recommend the kindle fire. You can install the kindle app on any tablet and have access to the same kindle store/reader, however the fire is locked down so you can do much less than the other tablets.

Go into a Tesco extra and play with them to see which you like using the most.

sshnuke

This isn't the most logical place to look for posts on tablets which probably explains why there hasn't been much of a response. I got here by searching for "galaxy tablet" Anyways, there isn't anywhere else for this so assuming you're still looking...

Do you want the Tab 2 or newer Tab 3?

What screen size are you looking for? 7" or 8" or higher?

What's your budget?

I didn't know anything about tablets a week ago and I've spent the last couple of days researching mainly the Samsung Galaxy. If you have the time I'd recommend doing the same thing:

Take a trip to Carphone Warehouse, PC World or similar to get a feel of the tablets and get help from sales assistants who are really helpful.

Once you've narrowed down what models you want you can compare models at GSM Arena. Here's an example:

http://www.gsmarena.com/compare.php3?idPhone1=4543&idPhone2=4995

Scroll down to the bottom to change the model. Don't worry too much about all the jargon just look for your main needs/wants i.e display size, storage etc

Again, after narrowing down the models I was interested in I watched a couple of you tube videos where fab geeky types compare tablet models. There are simply loads so just type in the model e.g. kindle fire vs galaxy tab 2 7

I've found the most competitive prices to be on Amazon, Tesco, John Lewis, Carphone Warehouse and PC World. Tesco have an offer of £10 or £20 off if you spend over £125 & £250 respectively. It ends tomorrow though so might be too soon for you: http://www.tesco.com/direct/money-saving-ecoupons/?icid=homepage_main_slot1

It's a pretty good deal if you buy a Samsung and register it you get free accidental damage cover for a year. https://samsung.lifestyleservicesgroup.co.uk/ For this offer there are other participating retailers and it lasts until October.

I've just had a quick look at Sainsbury's and prices there are competitive as well so you could use your nectar points there.

re: USB ports. The easiest way to use a memory stick etc. with a Galaxy is to buy an OTG cable. just google "galaxy tab 2 otg cable" TBH when I mentioned OTG cable to sales people they didn't know what it was so probably better to check with the retailer you're buying the OTG cable from if the cable will work with the model you're planning to buy.

perhaps the OP has already purchased a tablet. if so hopefuylly the info will be useful to anyone esle passing through.

anyways. hope that all makes sense and excuse any typos.

astralbee

I have to agree with Kite2010, the Nexus 7 is remarkable value for money, even the "older" model. The new model is out in a few days and will cost about £40 more than the one, but as has already been pointed out the old one is being reduced even further to make way for new stock.

The Kindle Fire HD is something you'd buy for your grandparents who have heard about these e-book things and fancy a go... it holds your hand and leads you through the Amazon store for everything. There is no need for this, even if you want a Kindle - as the Kindle app is available in the regular Google Play store so you can buy books through them if you wish... or from Google, or anywhere else, which is the beauty of the Nexus range.

There are some "manufacturer refurbished" Nexus 7 32GB going on Ebay for £139 right now - in a few days the new model with 32GB will retail at £229. It's a bit more powerful and has a slightly higher screen resolution that only a high-spec 3D gamer would notice.

Hope this helps!