iPad or Kindle Fire HDX?

JJ Husker

JJ Husker

Donor
I could use some advice from some of you more experienced techie types.

I want to get a tablet for a few specific purposes as follows, listed in order of importance;

1- I need to start accepting credit card payments at my business. We don't get very many wanting to pay by CC but I would like to be able to do it at as low cost as possible. The square card reader seems to fit the bill so the tablet needs to be compatible with a Square card reader, swipe or chip, or another type of CC reader with cheap processing fees.

2- The tablet needs to handle my iTunes library. My iPod is getting old and I am heavily invested in iTunes songs and experience. I know there other less costly ways to get and play digital music but I'm lazy and very satisfied with iTunes and my iPod. I am not sure how big of a hassle it would be to transfer my iTunes songs onto a Kindle Fire. Would really appreciate some knowledge on this specific aspect.

3- I would like to have an eReader and know I would be satisfied with the Amazon Kindle platform.

4- Web surfing and posting on good ole HuskerBoard.

5- Watching the occasional movie.

6- Bonus, if it supports something like the Gear VR but definitely not a necessity.

So, with the little bit of research I've done, I'm thinking a Kindle Fire HDX 8.9" would be my first choice (price, size and Kindle capability) but I would also definitely be okay with an iPad Mini 4 or iPad Air if that's what it takes to do the best job with my top 2 requirements.

I have absolutely zero experience with either device. What say you HB?

 
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I'm pretty well convinced the iPad would obviously be the best for number 2, and that the Kindle Fire would be best for numbers 3, 4 & 5. I also think the iPad would be most compatible with the Square Card reader but it wouldn't surprise me if it worked acceptably with the Kindle.

I really like the size (bigger than the Mini and smaller than the Air) and lower price of the Kindle. Functionality is a lot more important to me than saving a few bucks. I just don't know enough to make an educated decision.

BTW, will be going WiFi only with any of them. I don't need or want cellular on it. Availabilty of games and other software is not a big concern for me.

 
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The more I think about it, if the only draw back to the Kindle is the iTunes management aspect, I sure could live without that. I would just need to replace my iPod when the time comes. Downside to that is I probably shouldn't run that expense through my business. I can easily justify the business purpose for the tablet though.

 
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JJ, you might want to consider Barnes & Noble Nook HD+ (9"). It will take care of your needs #2 through #6. You'll have to check if it's compatible for square card. Checking around quickly and there is info out there that it can be used as a CC payment.

I reviewed a lot of tablets a few years ago and went with Nook HD+ 9" and glad I did. I wanted a basic reader with basic functions (at a good price) to try out before eventually upgrading, and after awhile, I never found a need to get "a better one". I got mine used on ebay for $80 with a protective case. And it's 32gb storage. Just check around and you will find great deals on it.

With Kindle, you are limited to amazon. With nook, you can get barnes & noble and even amazon. It's android which is good for apps IMO (I have an iPhone, and that's good too), but the Nook can do iTunes as well. It has a phone jack, WIFI, email, INTExplorer, is a great reader, wonderful display for sharp, clear videos/movies. I'm pleased. Just something to consider checking into before deciding.

Ebay

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nkw=nook+hd%2B

Nook tablet CC processing

http://www.paymentmax.com/2012/08/nook-tablet-credit-card-processing/

Devices Compatible with Square Contactless and Chip Card Reader

https://squareup.com/help/us/en/article/5584-devices-compatible-with-square-contactless-and-chip-card-reader

 
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Forgot to mention one thing. Now if I was going to be on my tablet a ton, then I would probably go with Samsung or Ipad. But for my simple needs, to use it as an addition to Laptop, Desktop, phone, it's a good basic little tablet for under a hundred bucks. chuckleshuffle

 
JJHusker1 said:
1- I need to start accepting credit card payments at my business. We don't get very many wanting to pay by CC but I would like to be able to do it at as low cost as possible. The square card reader seems to fit the bill so the tablet needs to be compatible with a Square card reader, swipe or chip, or another type of CC reader with cheap processing fees. iPad would be best here, a regular Android tablet (e.g. Samsung, Google) would be second. iPad and Android would work best--Amazon's OS (even though it's a bastardized version of Android) isn't nearly as reliable as the other two, so from a business sense, I would presume you'd want a platform/OS that's stable, right?

2- The tablet needs to handle my iTunes library. My iPod is getting old and I am heavily invested in iTunes songs and experience. I know there other less costly ways to get and play digital music but I'm lazy and very satisfied with iTunes and my iPod. I am not sure how big of a hassle it would be to transfer my iTunes songs onto a Kindle Fire. Would really appreciate some knowledge on this specific aspect. Yup, you're right that your iTunes library would work best with your iPad (for Movies, Music, and TV). However, if you go the Fire or Android route look at using the DoubleTwist app to import your music and playlists from iTunes onto your non-Apple device.

3- I would like to have an eReader and know I would be satisfied with the Amazon Kindle platform. The Amazon Kindle eReader app is available for Apple, Android, and Amazon's own line of devices, so you can do your e-reading on any device. Same thing if you buy into the Nook ecosystem...but just stay away from buying a Nook, since Barnes and Noble is a couple years away from corporate death.

4- Web surfing and posting on good ole HuskerBoard. I would say any Android or Amazon Fire device (Since they do Flash), but since websites are systematically ditching Flash because of vulnerabilities and exploits, you're good with any of the devices. I would suggest buying in to either Firefox or Google Chrome and their surrounding ecosystems so you can have a single bookmark list for all devices you use.

5- Watching the occasional movie. Any will suffice if you're talking streaming media, though the iPad and Android tablets are generally better than the Amazon ones (unless you pay for the high-end models). If you're talking bought digital media (e.g. from iTunes), then you're best to stick with the partner you brought (or in this case, bought from).

6- Bonus, if it supports something like the Gear VR but definitely not a necessity. That's going to be more of an Android phone thing. And unless you're dying to be on the cutting edge with VR, it's best to wait until the market sorts out the competing standards and platforms.
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Made replies to your post in red above. I would honestly suggest, in order of preference to your needs, iPad Mini 2, iPad Air/Samsung Galaxy/Google Pixel tablet, Amazon Fire HD tablet (make sure you price for the one w/o advertisements).

Experience: Own iPad, iPhone, Amazon Fire tablets, Samsung Galaxy tablet, friends with Nook (that are now hating them and getting a Samsung or Google Android tablet, and just downloading the Nook app).

 
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I don't have any experience with a Fire but I really like my iPad.

1 - I don't have any need to take credit cards myself but have seen a lot of businesses going with iPads for cash registers now. So I'm sure it would work - might depend on what program you want/have to use.

2 - Would obviously work well on iPad.

3 - My wife uses her iPad to read all the time. Uses the Amazon app. I can't read so I can't help you out here.

4 - I use this all the time. My wife actually reads. I just surf the web. We balance each other out that way.

5 - I watch a little bit but my kids watch Netflix all the time. I've also watched movies on Amazon Prime. Works well.

6 - Can't help you out here.

So I can't say that the iPad is better. But it would seem to do everything you need.

 
Yeah, I've seen a lot of businesses use iPads. Never a Kindle Fire.

I've actually never seen anyone, ever, use a Kindle Fire. There are reasons the price is so different; I don't think they are even in the same class of product. I think you'd have to compare the iPad to a Surface. By default I favor Apple, a lot of friends love using them
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Are we talking about two separate devices, for personal and business use?

 
Thanks everybody for the excellent comments and advice. I think you've all convinced me to not be a tight a$$ by trying to save $100 or so. Kindle Fire is out. It got eliminated anyway once I looked into the Square Card reader as Kindle is not supported.

It will basically be for business use for accepting CC payments but I thought I also could maximize personal use for iTunes etc. But the more I think about that, I primarily use my iPod plugged into my vehicle for music only. I probably don't want to deal with a place to set the larger iPad in my vehicle. So I will continue to maintain an iPod for that purpose. That eliminates my #2 criteria for this tablet.

So now I just have to decide between iPad and maybe some Samsung or Android type tablet. My phone is a Galaxy S5 (soon to be an S7 likely) and I have been very happy with Android and Samsung for a long time. I have no desire to ever move to the iPhone. Pretty sure I'm headed towards an iPad for this purchase but I am going to look deeper into an Android tablet first.

Once again, thank you everyone. I'm just old enough that some of these tech decisions strain me a bit. You mostly younger and more tech savvy guys are a lot more in touch than I am. It is appreciated.

 
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GM_Tood said:
Why not just use your mobile phone for Square?
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Sssshhhh!Yes I could do that but then I wouldn't have an excuse to get a new toy.

Actually my phone is starting to have some issues. It will need replaced soon (because of course it just finally got paid off with Verizon). I'm kind of old school with my phone philosophy. I use it for a lot of things but I don't want to bog it down with work related stuff. When I leave the office, I LEAVE work behind. I even refuse to have my email etc. forwarded or mirrored to my phone. If it can't be dealt with while I'm at work, it just has to wait.

I did consider buying a new Galaxy S7 instead of the tablet but my S5 is still getting the job done. Plus I don't want to start the domino effect at home. All 4 of us have S5's and the kids are already whining about phne upgrades. They need to learn to take care of their sh#t. They are all 2 years old and mine is like new but the kids look like they've been used as a puck for street hockey.

 
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Cdog923 said:
Do Kindles still restrict you from using the Google Play store? My wife has an older Fire, and that's what has kept us from buying a new one.
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Yeah, I believe so. Kindle devices don't play well, or at all, with Google or really anything other than Amazon stuff. However, the Kindle app does seem to work very well with Android. I guess Amazon didn't protect their hardware sales as well as Apple has. I think Kindle/Amazon is very good but only with Amazon content and software.

 
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