It’s strange to think of the iPad as old, but it is indeed a tried-and-true device in its second generation. Here’s how it ranks against the up-and-comers from Kindle, Nook and Kobo.
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Apple iPad |
Kindle Fire |
Barnes & Noble Nook Tablet |
Kobo Vox |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
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. |
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LINK |
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AVAILABILITY |
Now |
Available now. (Originally available for pre-order for November 15, 2011) |
Available for pre-order for November 18, 2011 release; U.S. only |
Now |
|
PRICING |
WiFi: |
$199 |
$249 |
$199.99 |
|
SIZE |
9.5″ x 7.31″ x 0.34″ |
7.5″ x 4.7″ x 0.45″ |
8.1″ x 5.0″ x 0.48″ |
7.57″ x 5.06″ x 0.53″ |
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WEIGHT |
WiFi: 1.33 pounds |
14.6 ounces |
14.1 ounces |
14.2 ounces |
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SCREEN SIZE |
9.7″ diagonal |
7″ |
7″ |
7″ diagonal |
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DISPLAY |
LED-backlit glossy widescreen |
Vibrant Color IPS |
VividView Color Screen |
Vivid Color Screen |
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TOUCHSCREEN/ROTATE |
Yes/Yes |
Yes/Yes |
Yes/Yes |
Yes/No |
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STORAGE/EXPANDABLE |
16GB; 32GB; 64GB/No |
8 GB/No/Free unlimited cloud storage for Amazon content |
16 GB/Up to 32 GB (microSD) |
8 GB/Up to 32 GB (microSD) |
|
3G/WIRELESS |
Yes/Yes |
WiFi |
WiFi |
WiFi |
|
INTERNATIONAL |
Available in 22 countries |
No |
No |
Available in Canada |
|
NATIVE FORMATS |
EPUB; PDF; Audible; Kindle (through app); iTunes; additional formats N/A |
Kindle (AZW), TXT, PDF, unprotected MOBI, PRC natively, Audible (Audible Enhanced (AA, AAX)), DOC, DOCX, JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP, non-DRM AAC, MP3, MIDI, OGG, WAV, MP4, VP8. |
EPUB, PDF, XLS, DOC, PPT, TXT, DOCM, XLSM, PPTM, PPSX, PPSM, DOCX, XLX, PPTX, JPG, GIF, PNG, BMP, MP3, AAC, AMR, WAV, OGG, MP4, Flash |
EPUB, Enhanced EPUB, PDF, JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP, TIFF, TXT, HTML, RTF, MOBI, CBZ, CBR |
|
AVAILABLE CONTENT |
Over 200,000 books; over 140,000 apps; browser, e-mail, iBooks, FaceTime, Photo Booth, Reminders, iTunes, Maps, YouTube, GameCenter, apps |
Over 1 million books; 1.8 million public domain books; newspapers; magazines; blogs; 11,000 videos free for Amazon Prime members $79/year; movies, TV shows, apps, games, songs |
Over 2.5 million titles, magazines, Nook Book Enhanced Collection, kids’ books. HD Video, Netflix, Hulu Plus, Pandora, e-mail, apps, some games |
Over 2.2 million books, 1 million titles are free; over 15,000 apps; e-books are available through OverDrive (Adobe format). Comes pre-loaded with 3 glossy color books, 12 magazines and 7 newspapers. Open access to Android 2.3, web, e-mail and apps |
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BOOKSTORE |
iBookstore |
Kindle Store |
Nook Book Store |
Kobo Store |
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FREE E-READING APPLICATIONS |
iPhone/iPod Touch |
iOS, Blackberry, Android, PC, Mac |
iOS, Blackberry, Android, PC, Mac |
iOS, Blackberry, Android, PC, Mac |
|
BOOK SHARING/LIBRARY LENDING |
No/No |
14 days on eligible titles. Can also borrow Kindle boooks from 11K-plus local libraries through OverDrive. |
Yes/Yes. Read any Nook book in B&N stores free up to 1 hour/day |
No/Yes |
|
SOCIAL NETWORKING FEATURES |
None |
Share passages via Facebook and Twitter; view other users’ annotations and notes |
Nook Friends reading recommendations and activity feed; can see what B&N readers “like” when shopping on Nook Color |
Reading Life technology with Facebook and Twitter integration, badges and awards; ability to share passages with friends via Kobo Pulse |
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PAIDCONTENT COVERAGE |
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BATTERY LIFE |
Up to 10 hours of surfing the web on WiFi, watching video, or listening to music |
Up to 8 hours of continuous reading or 7.5 hours of video playback, with WiFi off |
WiFi off: Up to 11.5 hours of reading or 9 hours of video |
Up to 7 hours |
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CAMERA |
Back camera: Video recording, HD (720p) up to 30 frames per second with audio; still camera with 5x digital zoom |
None |
None |
None |
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VIDEO VIEWING |
Can broadcast live to your HDTV and speakers via wireless AirPlay |
Supports HD video |
Supports HD video |
Video player |
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BROWSER |
Safari |
Amazon Silk |
Native browser enhanced with video via Adobe Flash Player |
Native browser |
Source: Based on company information, additional reporting.
Produced by: Amanda Natividad
Edited by: Staci D. Kramer
Additional Reporting by: Laura Hazard Owen
Published: November 14, 2011 // Last updated: 3:53 PM ET, November 14, 2011
We’ll update the chart as warranted.





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