Kindle Fire vs Kindle Touch 3G

gimpy · 12-01-2011, 06:31 PM

I have a Kindle Fire and it's definitely a nice thing but seems a bit heavy for something be reading with for long periods of time, or just heavy for a tablet for that matter. I have never owned any other tablets so I may be wrong. Also do you think they will release a Kindle Fire 3G + WiFi down the road? I have a question about the Kindle Touch 3G, is it just an ereader or can you browse the internet and download APPS and stuff like you can with the Kindle Fire? Thanks guys!

SCION · 12-01-2011, 06:49 PM

Here's a detailed video of the Kindle Touch. Should answer most of your questions.

It's a simple eInk device. Totally different than the Fire.

Andy_T · 12-02-2011, 07:25 AM

Browse the internet - yes, possible (via WLan) if you don't mind the 1 second screen refresh rate.

Also, for me the decision was to go to the Fire because the eInk devices can easily be broken, e.g. by putting something on top of the display or slightly bending it. While Amazon have a great policy of replacing units with broken displays, I would love to avoid that risk, haven broken the display of my Kindle keyboard after 3 weeks of use.

Best regards,
Andy

haydnfan · 12-04-2011, 12:39 PM

I have both and can honestly say that the Fire is light enough to read comfortably for hours. Something that I could not say for the Nook Color (don't know about the Tablet though). The Touch has a primitive browser which you can fully use over wifi, but you can only access amazon, wikipedia and shelfari over 3g. The Touch has a few apps which are absolutely pitiful in comparison to Fire's app market.

ssahnan · 12-05-2011, 08:36 PM

On a side note, is wiki and shelfari included in the free whisper net?

As for the main question, they aren't comparable as devices, do very separate things but as a reader, I much more prefer my touch over the fire. The kindle app on the fire isn't even as featured as the iOS app for iPad, iPhone, etc so it loses there and then e-ink is just a dream to read books on especially when outdoors which I do frequently with kids and their activities.

haydnfan · 12-11-2011, 10:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ssahnan

On a side note, is wiki and shelfari included in the free whisper net?

Whispernet is for syncing notes, bookmarks and current location between devices. It doesn't really have anything to do with websites.

If you meant the free 3g yes both wiki and shelfari are included.

HarryT · 12-11-2011, 10:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by haydnfan

Whispernet is for syncing notes, bookmarks and current location between devices. It doesn't really have anything to do with websites.

If you meant the free 3g yes both wiki and shelfari are included.

Are you sure that "shelfari" (whatever that might be?) is? AFAIK, the only web sites that one can access via 3G on the Kindle Touch are the Kindle Store and Wikipedia. You can, of course, reach any site via WiFi.

haydnfan · 12-12-2011, 08:12 AM

The X-Ray feature uses information from shelfari. It's a social book shelf site like good reads or library thing, but now it is owned by amazon. I didn't test to make sure, I simply assumed that it was 3g accessible... I'll try it today and report back.

haydnfan · 12-14-2011, 08:05 AM

On that website (shelfari) over 3g instead of just stopping you it redirects you to an amazon login. I wonder if any heavy users have their accounts matched between the two and do use shelfari over 3g... anyway that wasn't much of a clarification but there you have it.

weatherman · 12-14-2011, 10:55 AM

My wife just got a Kindle (plain ol' non-3G non-touch) yesterday and I was amazed at how light and small it is. It made me realize just how heavy the Fire is compared to the newer e-ink devices.

That said, at about 14 oz, the Fire is on par with a thick paperback book and less than a hardcover. It's also on par with other 7" tablet devices (only the Nook Tablet is lighter, and only just by a little) and the Fire is significantly lighter than say an iPad 2. The Fire is about the same weight as my older Kindle 2 with leather cover, so for me the transition is not even noticeable.

As for the question about whether there will be a "Fire 3G" I think there absolutely will be, but it will be both more expensive and require a data fee. The only reason that the e-ink Kindles don't require a data fee is because they don't really use much data; nobody really browses on them, at the most people might spend a little time on wikipedia researching something they read in a book. The Fire is a very Internet-centric device, and Amazon would have to charge a data fee for people to download video, stream music, or browse the web.

12-01-2011, 06:31 PM	#1
gimpy Junior Member Posts: 5 Karma: 10 Join Date: Feb 2011 Device: Literati	Kindle Fire vs Kindle Touch 3G I have a Kindle Fire and it's definitely a nice thing but seems a bit heavy for something be reading with for long periods of time, or just heavy for a tablet for that matter. I have never owned any other tablets so I may be wrong. Also do you think they will release a Kindle Fire 3G + WiFi down the road? I have a question about the Kindle Touch 3G, is it just an ereader or can you browse the internet and download APPS and stuff like you can with the Kindle Fire? Thanks guys!

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12-01-2011, 06:49 PM	#2
SCION Séduisant Posts: 4,706 Karma: 2107018 Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Texas, USA Device: Boox Note Air2+; Kobo Libra2; Kindle Scribe, Oasis3; iPad Mini6	Here's a detailed video of the Kindle Touch. Should answer most of your questions. It's a simple eInk device. Totally different than the Fire.

12-02-2011, 07:25 AM	#3
Andy_T Evangelist Posts: 431 Karma: 5121676 Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Hannover, Germany Device: iPod touch, iPhone, iPad, Kindle KB, NT, Fire, PW II	Browse the internet - yes, possible (via WLan) if you don't mind the 1 second screen refresh rate. Also, for me the decision was to go to the Fire because the eInk devices can easily be broken, e.g. by putting something on top of the display or slightly bending it. While Amazon have a great policy of replacing units with broken displays, I would love to avoid that risk, haven broken the display of my Kindle keyboard after 3 weeks of use. Best regards, Andy

12-04-2011, 12:39 PM	#4
haydnfan Guru Posts: 649 Karma: 5632362 Join Date: Dec 2011 Device: Kindle PW 4, Oasis 2	I have both and can honestly say that the Fire is light enough to read comfortably for hours. Something that I could not say for the Nook Color (don't know about the Tablet though). The Touch has a primitive browser which you can fully use over wifi, but you can only access amazon, wikipedia and shelfari over 3g. The Touch has a few apps which are absolutely pitiful in comparison to Fire's app market.

12-05-2011, 08:36 PM	#5
ssahnan Enthusiast Posts: 47 Karma: 50 Join Date: Nov 2011 Device: kindle3g, kindle touch, kindle fire, kindle ipad 1 and 2, kindle iphon	On a side note, is wiki and shelfari included in the free whisper net? As for the main question, they aren't comparable as devices, do very separate things but as a reader, I much more prefer my touch over the fire. The kindle app on the fire isn't even as featured as the iOS app for iPad, iPhone, etc so it loses there and then e-ink is just a dream to read books on especially when outdoors which I do frequently with kids and their activities.

12-12-2011, 08:12 AM	#8
haydnfan Guru Posts: 649 Karma: 5632362 Join Date: Dec 2011 Device: Kindle PW 4, Oasis 2	The X-Ray feature uses information from shelfari. It's a social book shelf site like good reads or library thing, but now it is owned by amazon. I didn't test to make sure, I simply assumed that it was 3g accessible... I'll try it today and report back.

12-14-2011, 08:05 AM	#9
haydnfan Guru Posts: 649 Karma: 5632362 Join Date: Dec 2011 Device: Kindle PW 4, Oasis 2	On that website (shelfari) over 3g instead of just stopping you it redirects you to an amazon login. I wonder if any heavy users have their accounts matched between the two and do use shelfari over 3g... anyway that wasn't much of a clarification but there you have it.

12-14-2011, 10:55 AM	#10
weatherman Addict Posts: 385 Karma: 1010052 Join Date: Apr 2008 Device: (previous: Kindle 2, Kindle Fire) Kindle 4 WiFi, K3K, KPW	My wife just got a Kindle (plain ol' non-3G non-touch) yesterday and I was amazed at how light and small it is. It made me realize just how heavy the Fire is compared to the newer e-ink devices. That said, at about 14 oz, the Fire is on par with a thick paperback book and less than a hardcover. It's also on par with other 7" tablet devices (only the Nook Tablet is lighter, and only just by a little) and the Fire is significantly lighter than say an iPad 2. The Fire is about the same weight as my older Kindle 2 with leather cover, so for me the transition is not even noticeable. As for the question about whether there will be a "Fire 3G" I think there absolutely will be, but it will be both more expensive and require a data fee. The only reason that the e-ink Kindles don't require a data fee is because they don't really use much data; nobody really browses on them, at the most people might spend a little time on wikipedia researching something they read in a book. The Fire is a very Internet-centric device, and Amazon would have to charge a data fee for people to download video, stream music, or browse the web.

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