Both companies have come out with several different models and devices. Some of them are geared more strictly to being simple eBook readers while others are going after the full on tablet experience. In order to gauge which device is going to be best for you we have compared the different Nook and Kindle’s that are offered at this time so that you can see what each one has to offer as well as the positives and negatives of each device.

The Kindle Fire vs. Nook Tablet

The Kindle Fire and the Nook tablet are the two high quality e-readers, but is either one of them better than the other?

Grip and Feel

The Kindle fire is a very good eReader, but some complain that it has a rubberized back that is too soft and this makes it bad for gripping. When it comes to the Nook tablet, people feel it is much easier to grip, and it uses a strip at the botton that makes it much easier to hold and grip.

The sleep button

The Kindle Fires has a sleep botton that some say is badly positioned, but of course that is going to be a matter of opinion. The Nook tablet has a sleep button that is tucked away on one of the longer sides, with the home button being positioned in the front.

The browser of the Kindle fire versus the Nook Tablet

The Nook Tablet browser seems to be faster and easier to use then the Kindle fire as reported by users.  The Kindle Fire has a decent browser as well, but it has problems gathering data fast enough. Many were hoping the Kindle Fire’s browser would rival the iPad 2 but sadly it has been said that as of now the browser is somewhat clunky and slow. The company has stated though that in the future this problem will be improved.

 The keyboard and the touchscreen

The keyboard on the Nook Tablet is very small, it has a 7 inch display and this is going to make it awfully tough to type on it. As long as you limit long period of keyboard use this may not be a concern for you. The Kindle Fire pretty much has the same problem when it comes to typing. It was very hard to achieve good accuracy on it, even when typing was done carefully. The Nook Tablet was said to make fewer errors when typing.

The reading experience of the Kindle Fire and the Nook Tablet

Magazines are difficult to read on either of these devices because the screen is simply too small. Some say that page turning on the Kindle Fire seemed more difficult than the Nook. Users said the stuttering problems that the Kindle fire seems to have do not exist on the Nook Tablet.

The Kindle fire suffers from slight choppiness all around. Once again it is said that these problems will be improved in the future but as of now they do exist.

Options in buying books

Amazon has an appstore that has over 10,000 applications. Nook Tablet has thousands as well, but it falls way under the amount available for the Kindle Fire. All of the core apps are their though, such as Netflix. People complained that the Nook Tablet charged money for certain applications that could be found on the Kindle Fire for free.

When it comes to the main concern which is books, both of them have hundreds and thousands available, if not millions. You favorite titles should be available for download quite easily. Amazon though seems to have a slightly more seamless overall app and book downloading experience.

Issues such as batter life are up for debate, in tests it was found that the Kindle Fire maintained less battery life with WiFi turned on then the Nook Tablet did. When the light was at full brightness the time was slightly reduced.

The value of the Kindle Fire or the Nook Tablet is going to depend on how you plan on using either device. Each one is going to have strengths where the other falls short. Initial reactions are that it feels as if the Kindle Fire, although beautiful looking with a gorgeous display, may need a few software updates before it really starts to shine. The Nook Tablet might be the more solid performer right now but if the Kindle Fire can improve things a bit, it seems to have more long term potential then the Nook Tablet.

Kindle Touch And Kindle Touch 3G: Features Of Both

The Kindle Touch and the Kindle Touch 3G are two very powerful e-book readers that tech savvy people cannot be without these days. Both of them have similar features, but depending on which one you get it may have slightly more capabilities than the other.

Kindle Touch

The Kindle Touch comes with advanced E Ink display technology, with multi-touch capabilities as well. It’s the perfect device for those looking to read books on the go. It isn’t heavy at all; it is made to be extremely sleek and very attractive. Its 8% percent lighter than its predecessor the Kindle 3, as well as 11% smaller, and it is able to hold up to 3000 books total.

The Kindle Touch is the only E-reader with text to speech capabilities, which will allows you to listen to books rather than having to read them. It is able to support audio books and MP3′s as well. If you are the kind of person that likes to access the Internet while you’re on the go, not to worry, the Kindle Touch comes with built-in Wi-Fi, and with the high speeds of Wi-Fi you will be able to gain access to all the books you want in less than 60 seconds.

With the Kindle Touch you will also be able to browse through books that are offered through public libraries. It has exclusive easy reach technology which will allow you to read without having to use both hands. And it comes with powerful x-ray features, which allow you to look up characters, historical figures, and also interesting phrases quickly and easily.

Kindle Touch 3G

The Kindle touch 3G is very similar to the regular Kindle Touch, with the only difference being it offers free 3G wireless Internet access. This is very significant because it means you will not have to sign any annual contracts nor will you have to pay any monthly fees as you might to with other tablet devices.

The Kindle Touch 3G allows you to download books anywhere you want, you will no longer have to search for a Wi-Fi spot before you are able to gain access to books. There are 3G wireless access points available all over the country and all over the world.

It has advanced E- ink display technology, with multi-touch similar to Kindle Touch. The design is also sleek and basically identical to the Kindle Touch. It comes with the same text-to-speech capabilities.

The only difference between these devices it the free 3G wireless access. Due to this the Kindle Touch 3G will be slightly more expensive. However, both come with the same features, and the same conveniences. If having internet everywhere is a big priority for you then the 3G option is definitely the way to go.

Kindle 3 vs The Nook Color and Nook Touch – Specifics

The first thing we need to look into in our Kindle vs Nook comparison is whether you are in the market for a color eReader. The Kindle uses E-ink only while the Nook comes in an E-ink version known as the Nook Touch as well as a color LCD version named the Nook Color. So whats the difference you ask? Well E-ink looks very similar to regular paper print. It gives the feel of reading a real book or newspaper. It is said to be easy on the eyes since there is no need for a backlight display. The downside of an E-ink device is that they are only in black and white and aren’t able to be read in the dark unless you use a light source. Many E-reader cases come with a light attached or you can just use an ordinary book light if need be.

The LCD color display found on the Nook Color on the other hand is the same type of LCD display you would find on a Tablet device like the iPad or Motorola Xoom. It is much more vibrant and beautiful of a display but it is basically just a regular computer display. It is difficult to read in the sunlight and also can be very straining on the eyes for some.

Display

So now that you know the main differences lets get into the specifics. Both the Kindle and Nook Touch have 6″ displays where as the Nook Color has a larger 7″ display. The Nook Color also has a higher screen resolution as can be expected.

Size & Weight

The Nook Color is the biggest and bulkiest of the 3 weighing close to 1 pound (15.8 oz) and being just a touch over 8 inches long. The Kindle is in the middle weighing about 8.5 oz and being 7 1/2 inches long. The Nook Touch is the smallest and most compact. It weighs 1 oz less then the Kindle and is also an inch shorter. So if portability is important to you the Kindle and the Nook Touch have a decent advantage over the Nook Color

Storage

The Kindle comes with 4gb of internal memory. The Nook Color has double that 8gb and the Nook Touch has 2Gb of internal memory. A big difference here is that both Nook devices can be upgraded up to 32gb where as the Kindle can not be. As far as eBooks go all of these devices have an incredible amount of memory. The Kindle’s 4gb can hold over 3000 books which would take one heck of a collection in order to max that out.

Battery Life

Battery life is very important when it comes to an eReader because you will be using it on the go a lot. The Kindle has 1 month of batter life compared to the Nook Colors 8 hours and the Nook Touch’s 2 months of battery life. As you can see the LCD color display really milks the battery way more then the Pearl E-ink screens. This can be another major selling point to the E-ink style readers.

3G + Wifi

All three devices offer Wifi but the Kindle 3G is the only one in which 3G service can be used to surf the internet.

Other Features

All three devices include an internet browser but there are also other features that are specific to the individual eReader.

Kindle - The Kindle has a text to speech option which allows the book to be read allowed to you. It also has the option to be used in Portrait or Landscape view as well as having a built in Mp3 player. These things really make it a great all in one device.

Nook Color - The Nook Color can be used in either Portrait or Landscape view as well, it also has an Mp3 player but does not have the text to speech option. The Nook Color also features a touch screen which the Kindle does not.

Nook Touch - The Nook Touch is also a touch screen device. It does not have text to speech capabilities or an Mp3 player though.

Kindle 3 vs Nook Color and Nook Touch – Roundup

All in all when you are looking at the Kindle vs Nook debate I think you have to first start with whether you are looking for a dedicated eReader device or a tablet style reader. If you are gearing more towards the tablet style of reader then the Nook Color can be a good bargain. It doesn’t offer all the features of an iPad or Xoom but it is also about half the price and does its job well.

On the other hand if you are looking for a dedicated eReader then the real options here are the Kindle vs Nook Touch. Both are wonderful devices. The Kindle has seen a bit more success due to the whole Kindle experience Amazon has put together. The eBooks are cheap and plentiful, and downloading them is a piece of cake. The Nook’s Barnes and Noble connection also has a great package but it doesn’t seem to be as all encompassing as Amazon and the Kindle.

Either way you can’t really go wrong with either the Kindle or the Nook Touch. It just depends on what extras appeal to you more. Is an Mp3 player something you want or is the touch screen more up your alley. Other then those small differences, the Kindle vs Nook race is a very close one.

Everyone looking to buy a flat panel TV ends up asking themselves the same question; Whats better an LED, LCD or plasma TV? When you walk into the store looking for an HDTV and see these huge beautiful televisions, some with astronomical prices and some with much more modest prices, some as thin as paper while others are a few inches thick its difficult to decide which technology is right for you. These days when buying a TV you really need to know your stuff. LED vs LCD or even plasma which one is better? What does it all mean?

The Backstory on LCD and Plasma

A few years back, maybe a decade or so ago Plasma TV’s seemed to be all the rage. They were thin, they looked great and the word plasma just even had a futuristic ring to it. As cool as plasma TV’s were, they were quickly overtaken in the market by LCD TV’s. This was because LCD TV’s were just much more versatile, lighter, as well as more energy efficient. LCD displays had a much longer lifespan at the time and this really started driving buyers towards LCD displays for everything from TV’s to computer monitors. Plasma’s though have gotten remarkably better in recent years and even today a plasma TV’s picture quality is still across the board superior to the regular CCFL-LCD TV (non-LED-LCD). Regardless though LCD TV’s have taken a big portion of the market and now the main question is should you by a regular LCD TV or an LED TV.

LED VS LCD – Getting Into The Details

Regular LCD TV’s work by using a cold cathode fluorescent backlight to illuminate the liquid crystal display (LCD). An LED on the other hand uses LED lights or light emitting diodes. So the real story here is the type of backlighting.

LED TV’s are able to produce a higher picture quality then the standard LCD TV. This is because of higher contrast ratios. LED TV’s can show truer blacks and brighter whites. This is what leads to a better contrast ratio and an overall better looking picture. It makes the colors richer and just the overall picture more vibrant and impressive. Within an LED TV you may also see options for backlit LED or edge-lit LED. Usually backlit is preferred, but edge-lit LED’s still produce an amazing picture.

Due to LED TV’s using LED lights rather then the normal LCD florescent backlight, the TV’s are also able to be much thinner with better heat dissipation. Due to a regular LCD’s backlight they will never be able to match the thinness of an LED backlit TV. This is why if you go to the store, the TV’s that are almost paper thin are LED TV’s. They are able to get so thin these days it really is incredible. It also leads to a more energy efficient TV that can’t be rivaled with a regular LCD TV. Most LED TV’s are energy star certified and are able to use such little electricity that it equates to less the $15 a year with regular TV usage.

What About Plasma?

It should be mentioned that plasma TV’s have really come a long way. They still are able to produce the best picture quality due to their ability to produce the deepest blacks. Hardcore 3D enthusiasts claim that plasma TV’s are leagues better when it comes to producing a 3D picture. Plasma’s have the ability to use very high refresh rates, which in turn produce an excellent picture with very little crosstalk (3D blurriness).

The downside to a plasma TV is their energy usage and size. Although plasmas are about as thin as LCD TV’s (not LED’s though) they weigh a decent amount more and tend to use more then 10x the energy.

Lets Talk About Price

Now I know what you’re thinking… LED vs LCD, its so obvious! Everything I have stated has given an LED TV the edge but there is still one major factor. Price!

LED TV’s are the most expensive on the market. Usually the prices go in this order : plasma, regular LCD and then LED TV’s. This becomes a big consideration in the LED vs LCD debate and really is dependent on what you are looking for and what your budget is. Although LED TV’s have all these great advantages, regular LCD TV’s still look pretty darn great these days and come with a much cheaper price tag. Especially when you start getting into the over 50 inch and above size range. Certain LED TV’s can cost upwards of $5000 when you can get a comparable size LCD TV for less then half of that. Not all LED TV’s are this expensive but regardless you will be paying more for one then you would for a regular LCD TV. Plasma’s on the other hand will cost almost 3/4 to 1/2 of what an LCD TV will cost you, but you may end up paying more for it in the end due to a higher electric bill.

LED vs LCD – Which One is Best For You?

So when shopping for a new TV and wondering if you should get an LED or an LCD TV, just think about these points. If you want the thinnest, most energy efficient TV with a picture quality that rivals plasma and budget is not a huge concern, then absolutely go LED. They are the Rolls Royce of TV’s these days. If you do have a budget though, you will be able to get a bigger TV, possibly with more features at a cheaper price if you go regular LCD or even plasma. LCD’s look so good also that you might not even notice a huge difference if you are not a big visual technology hound. Either way at this point in time LED, LCD or even with a plasma TV you can’t really go wrong. The technology is so good all around anyway.

If you are interested in learning more about this type of backlighting technology, Sony has produced a great video describing it all in great detail.

We all know Apple started the touchscreen smartphone revolution when it released its initial iphone a few years back. The design and implementation was innovative. Since then many manufacturers have tried to catch up to Apple’s sleek, fast and cool design but the only true competitor has been Google with the Droid and more recently Droid X versions. The question that most phone buyers are asking though is, which one is better a Droid vs an iPhone?

iPhone 4s vs. Droid Razr + Droid Bionic

It seems like everyday a different Smartphone is coming out, and this makes it pretty tough to know which one to get. You want to know what you want to have included with your phone rather than simply going with whatever is popular at the moment.

Some of the best Smartphone’s on the market right now would include the Droid Bionic, the iPhone 4S, and the Droid Razr. Below I am going to talk about the individual selling points of these three Smartphone’s.

The individual features of each phone

The Droid Razr and the iPhone 4S have GPS navigation ability. Both of them have playback ability, microphones imbedded in them, a touchscreen keypad which makes for easy use, an accelerometer, a digital compass, and a gyroscope.

The Droid Bionic has the same features with the only difference being it has an FM receiver, but it does not have a gyroscope. So if you enjoy listening to FM radio programs, it may be a better idea to get the Droid Bionic rather than the Droid Razr or the iPhone 4S.

Display ability of each phone

Droid Razr: It has a 4.3 inch super Amoled display with a 960*540 resolution. It also has an ambient light sensor, proximity sensor, and scratch protection.

iPhone 4S: It comes with a 3.5 inch IPS LCD display with a 960*640 resolution.

Droid Bionic: It comes with a 4.3 inch display with a 960*540 resolution.

Built in cameras with each phone

The camera quality is about the same for all three phones. Each one comes with 8 megapixel cameras with a maximum video capture resolution on 1080p. If I had to pick one I would say the iPhone 4S, only because it is known to have a better image stabilization feature.

Internet abilities of each phone

The Droid Bionic and the Droid Razr are better than the iPhone 4S, because of them are 4G LTE-enabled. It does not have infrared technology though like Razr.

The Droid Razr also comes with Bluetooth infrared, mobile hotspot tethering, HDMI and Micro usb ports. It also has a 3.5mm headphone jack.

The iPhone does not have infrared, HDMI, or a micro usb, and this greatly limits it ability to stream media to high definition screens.

Operating systems of each phone

The Droid Razr comes with a Android Gingerbread operating system and it works on a 1.2 GHz dual-core CPU.

The iPhone 4S comes with iOS with an Apple A5.

The Droid Bionic comes with the same Android Gingerbread operating system as does the Razr.

The best way for you to determine which Smartphone is for you would be to make sure you talk with the sales rep at whatever store you buy it from or customer support if you get it online.

Never buy a phone simply because of the brand name, which is the mistake that a lot of people make and then they end up being unhappy with a phone that does a lot of things they do not need.

iPhone 4 vs. Droid X

Looks

When looking at both phones you will definitely notice the “cool” factor they both have. They both are sleek and look great. The iPhone 4 is a bit smaller and lighter and sports a slightly sleeker overall appearance. The iPhone also comes in a white version which some may be a a make or break deal for some people.

Display

Both phones have outstanding displays. The iPhone 4 comes with the Retina Display, which is a term coined by Apple. Really all it means is a really high resolution screen. The resolution on iPhone is better but the droid offers a bigger screen at 4.3 inches.

Memory

The iPhone 4 comes in either a 16gb version or 32gb version. This is not upgradable after your purchase. The Droid uses Micro SD storage which you can bigger cards and constantly expand your memory. The both offer onboard Flash storage. Although either the 16gb or 32gb storage capabilities are more then enough for most, having more memory might be an important factor for you.

Camera + Video

The Droid X offers an 8 megapixel as compared to the iPhone’s 5 megapixel. Many test have shown though that the iPhone still produces a slightly clearer picture but I would recommend doing a search and being the judge of that for yourself. The iPhone also offers a front facing camera. Although the picture quality is not nearly as good it still can come in handy for taking pictures of yourself.

Both the Droid X and iPhone 4 offer 720p HD video recording capabilities. The both phones have 2 microphones but the Droid X comes equipped with a 3rd microphone to allow for better audio recording when filming.

Battery

This is one area where there isn’t much debate for the Droid vs iPhone comparison. Apple’s iPhone and most other products that Apple has on the market have far superior batter life then their competitors.

Operating System (OS), Apps and Usability

The biggest and most important factor in the Droid vs iPhone debate is usability. This really comes down to the operating system and applications you are able to run. This is what put both the iPhone and Droid ahead of the rest to begin with.

The iPhone runs on the Apple operating system iOS and the Droid runs on Google’s Android operating system. Both are clearly the top 2 smartphone operating systems on the market. When going head to head though you can see that Apple’s iOS is just a bit smoother, sleeker and easier to use. Apple also has a much bigger App store by a long shot. The Android app store is growing tremendously each and everyday and already has apps for basically everything you’d need, but Apple’s head start on this part of the market has lead to just a larger overall collection of apps available.

Another area the iPhone seems to shine is the inclusion of a full iPod within the iPhone software. This is a great addition and works seamlessly with iTunes as you might imagine. The iPod is what put Apple back on the map about a decade ago and to this day has had no real competition. It still has a huge hold on the market share for MP3 players, so having it included in your phone is a great thing. One downside though is for those with huge music libraries you still will only have 32gb to work with at most. This may be a problem for some.

The iPhone also has been proven to have faster download speeds despite specs. When web browsing the iPhone will deliver your pages slightly quicker then the Droid.

The Droid on the other hand has some huge features that the iPhone does not. For starters the addition of an HDMI and DLNS connectors is great. Possibly the biggest factor the droid has over the iPhone is Adobe Flash. Apple has taken a hard stance on never bringing Flash to the iPhone or the iPad and that doesn’t look like it’ll change anytime soon. The Droid offers flash support and thats a big plus!

Also the droid offers the option to be a Wifi hotspot. Although this option is usually a paid feature, as of now this is not a feature of the iPhone although it is rumored to be coming. Another small win for the droid comes with the option to use the Swype function when typing on the touch keyboard.

Heres a good video that provides a detailed look at the the Droid X and iPhone 4

All in all its a win win when you are thinking either a Droid vs an iPhone as your next mobile phone device. Both are great phones and are at the top of their class. They both offer a similar feature set at a great price. They are both also now available from the two biggest mobile phone carriers Verizon and AT&T. Your needs and whats is best for you will really be the determining factor in the Droid vs iPhone debate.

The iPad was a smash hit with consumers. Although initial critic reaction was mixed, some saying it would never take off due to it being just a gigantic iPhone, those critics were definitely wrong. There has been no real competitor that has gotten any significant piece of the market share in the tablet world. The Galaxy Tab and The Motorola Xoom have put up a fight, but as of now still haven’t even come close to dethroning the iPad.

So now with the iPad 2 being just as much of a success lets take a look at the iPad vs iPad 2 and see what differences there are.

You can check out whats new in this video or of course at Apple.com

iPad vs iPad 2 – Physical Design

Weight and Thickness

The most immediate difference you’ll notice when looking at the iPad vs iPad 2 is the slight design differences. Although the iPad 2 has the same length and width as the original, the iPad 2 comes in weighing less while also being significantly thinner. Its gone from measuring just a touch under 13 1/2 mm thick to now being just slightly over 8 1/2 mm. This is pretty dramatic difference when you are talking about measurements that are that small and Apple should be commended for this, its quite an accomplishment. You can obviously see how their experience with the Macbook Air design has rubbed off on the iPad 2. The weight has also dropped over 100g which is significant as well. Both of these changes are noticeable and give the iPad 2 a sleeker feel and look.

Display

One aspect where I think a few Apple crazies like myself were disappointed is when it came to the display of the new iPad 2. After the iPhone 4 was given the Retina Display there was a lot of rumblings in the Apple rumor world that the iPad 2 would be getting a high resolution display itself. This wasn’t the case and it looks like this will have to wait until the iPad 3 comes out. The iPad 2 sports the same 9.7 inch 1024 x 768 LED display as the original. Although it is beautiful this is one aspect where the iPad vs iPad 2 comparison equals out.

Hard Drive/Storage

Another place where things stayed the same was hard drive space/storage. Its the same 16gb, 32gb, 64gb as the original iPad. Once again you’d figure Apple would have bumped this up a bit, but once again it looks like that may wait until the next generation iPad as well.

CPU

The processor has gotten a big upgrade and is something that you can’t overlook in the iPad vs iPad 2 discussion. The original iPad processor was a single core 1ghz A4 processor. The iPad 2 has a dual-core A5 processor. This is doubling the processor power and is a huge upgrade.

Memory

The original iPad came with 256mb of memory. The iPad 2 has doubled the memory to equal the iPhone4 at 512mb. This was once again a slight disappoint for us Apple fanboys, we were hoping for at least 1gb of memory on this model, especially after seeing the iPhone 4 having 512mb and being so much smaller. Once again this looks like the iPad 3 will be the model that gets the big memory boost. Not to say that the memory being doubled is not a vast improvement over the original.

Extras

There are many things that stayed the same like the bluetooth and Wifi capabilities. The cellular capabilities have been improved a bit. Also the iPad 2 has added a rear camera and a front facing camera like the iPhone 4. The rear facing camera offers 720p video recording which is a nice addition.

Ipad vs iPad 2 – Usage

The most important thing when comparing iPad vs iPad 2 is how do they compare when you actually use the device. All the tech specs can sound great but is their any noticeable gains in the real world. The answer is absolutely! You can definitely tell the difference when you use the iPad 2 over the iPad. Things react a bit quicker, the overall feel is smoother. Apps that are resource intense run better and the additions of the rear and front facing camera’s are definitely big. This was something that was very much missing from the original iPad.

You will also notice that the iPad 2 just feels sleeker and “cooler” in your hands. The thinness of the device is really striking and makes the original iPad feel a bit old and bulky.

Conclusion

It is clear that the iPad 2 is an upgrade over the first iPad. The price has remained the same and its specs are definitely superior. One can’t help to feel though that the iPad 2 is more of a bridge between the iPad and what will be the iPad 3. Much like the iPhone 3Gs had minor enhancements to the iPhone 3g and the iPhone 4 was when Apple really did a big overhaul, that is exactly how the iPad 2 seems.

It just appears that the iPad 3 will have a much better display, more memory and more hard drive space. The only place it seems the iPad 2 made a really big leap was in physical appearance, processor speed and the camera additions. If you are looking at this iPad comparison as someone who has the original iPad and may be looking to upgrade, then I would personally suggest you wait for the iPad 3. If you are a first time iPad buyer looking at the iPad vs Ipad 2 for a buying decision then price becomes a factor. The original iPad has dropped in price and can be had for a great deal these days, but the iPad 2 is definitely the better device. My opinion overall is wait a few months for the iPad 3, but if you have to have your tablet now then the iPad 2 won’t disappoint.