The iPad and the Kindle are a good bit different from each other mainly in that the Kindle is pretty much strictly for reading. I has a monochrome display, limited sharing features and is a whole lot cheaper than the iPad. If you know someone who is an avid reader but isn't really interested in surfing the web or checking email, the Kindle is great. Let's talk about the different models.
The cheapest is the Wi-Fi only model
. It's $139.00 and comes in a nice graphite color. Since it's Wifi only you'll have to either connect it to your computer or be near a wireless hot-spot in order to download new books.The next version has Wi-Fi and 3G.
It runs $189.00 and is also graphite. It uses the cell phone network to allow the user to download new books anywhere they are. There's no extra cost for the cell connection. It's included in the cost of the device.Finally, there's the Kindle DX
, also graphite, it runs $379.00. The difference here is that the DX has a 9 inch screen instead of the standard 6 inch and the device is 3G only, no Wifi.Amazon also still sells older generation Kindles at various prices, but with anything like this, you're going to get the most life out of the most current model.
If you're looking for a more robust experience though, it's hard to ignore the iPad. While it may seem like a blown-up iPhone or iPod Touch, it's amazing what the extra screen real estate gets you. It's really an amazing device. If you're considering purchasing one, you have six options. There are three storage options, 16, 32 and 64GB and two connection options for each size, Wifi only and Wifi+3G
The 16GB model runs $549 for the Wifi only
and $698 for the Wifi+3G
. The 32GB model is $672 for Wifi only
and $810 for Wifi+3G. Finally, the 64GB model is $767 for the Wifi only
and $890 for the Wifi+3G
.As for recommending which model to purchase, it depends a lot on the user. The 3G option requires a single month payment to AT&T. You can purchase either 200MB of data for $15 or 2GB of data for $25. It's month to month and you don't have to sign a contract so you can choose to only pay for the 3G coverage when you know you're not going to be near a Wifi hotspot. This is nice for frequent travelers. Most airports charge for Wifi and some hotels do also. Having the 3G option gets around those fees. For someone who doesn't go on the road much though and just wants to have one to surf on the couch, a Wifi-only model should be fine.
Storage size choice also comes down to the user. Do they love movies? Then they're probably going to benefit from the larger storage offered by the 32GB or 64GB models. Do they just want to surf and watch the occasional movie on the road and listen to a little music? Then the 16GB option will probably be more than enough. Personally, if I were to buy one for myself, I would probably get the 16GB Wifi+3G. I'm not a huge movie watcher and my 16GB iPod Touch has been more than enough in the past for my music tastes but I do occasionally go on the road for work and it would be nice to have the 3G option available.
So that's the breakdown on Kindle and iPad.
--Paul
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