# I already own a Kindle 3 and an iPad, should I?



## Owen (Aug 24, 2011)

The title says it all really. I have an iPad which I very much enjoy and I have a basic kindle. What benefits, if any, would I have if I bought myself a fire?


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## Xopher (May 14, 2009)

Think of the Fire as an iPad Mini. If you find the iPad to be too large or heavy for some uses, then the Fire might be a better fit. Other than that, you can pretty much do anything on your iPad that the Fire would do (other than being able to take advantage of the Free App of the Day).


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## misscrabtree (Feb 1, 2010)

I wondered the same before I had the Fire.  My Kindle goes with me to the gym; my Fire goes with me to work since I can toss it in my work bag and use work's Wi-Fi; my Ipad is for home and taking on the road in the car (I have 3G).  I do break out the Kindle Fire at home sometimes to view the Amazon Prime downloads which require Flash - which I can't view on my Ipad (darn it!).  Mostly I think I like the portability of the Kindle Fire.  I'd say go for it, but I'm the gadget queen, so that's easy for me to say....


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## malligator (Jul 1, 2010)

I have an iPad and a K3. The only reason I'd add a Fire is if I bought all my media from Amazon. Since I buy all my music, movies, and apps from iTunes and my ebooks from Kindle I don't really need the Fire. That said, I'm a gadget freak so if I didn't think the the missus would cut off parts of my body I've grown accustomed to I'd probably still get a Fire just to have one.


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## Sean Patrick Fox (Dec 3, 2011)

Seems redundant to me, but if you have the $200 to spend - go for it.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

OwenAdams said:


> The title says it all really. I have an iPad which I very much enjoy and I have a basic kindle. What benefits, if any, would I have if I bought myself a fire?


I have both. I do stuff on the iPad...and use the Fire for media consumption (video, music and games). Sometimes it's the right size for what I want to do...and sometimes there's a site that requires Flash. And then there's the Prime Instant videos....

You know you want one....  Kindle Fire.

Betsy


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## Tam (Jan 7, 2010)

I'm fortunate that the Fire came along at a time in my life when I have more disposable income. When I was younger and when raising a family, we didn't buy these kind of things. I remember even when the first kindle came out - I just couldn't see spending that kind of money.

But now - I have a Xoom tablet, a K3, and a Fire. I use each for specific things. The Fire is wonderful to carry around with me in my purse on a daily basis - that Xoom could get pretty heavy at times! The Xoom is easier to write emails and would be my choice for a car trip. The Fire would definitely go on plane trips with me. 

Especially now that I have a smartphone, I definitely do not NEED this many gadgets. But I do use and enjoy them. My husband uses his plain old simple cell phone and that is his only gadget. But he has a fancy car for daily use and an antique car for hobby use - so I figure I can buy a LOT of gadgets without feeling too guilty!


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## Owen (Aug 24, 2011)

Betsy the Quilter said:


> I have both. I do stuff on the iPad...and use the Fire for media consumption (video, music and games)


Does the Fire handle media in the same way Amazon handles books? I dislike iTunes' approach where losing data can basically mean losing all your purchases.

I much prefer systems like the Kindle and PS3 where anything you buy gets added to a remote treasure trove for downloading at will. If the fire handles movies etc. like that then I'd go buy one of the suckers right now (if I weren't a poor wretch).


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

OwenAdams said:


> Does the Fire handle media in the same way Amazon handles books? I dislike iTunes' approach where losing data can basically mean losing all your purchases.
> 
> I much prefer systems like the Kindle and PS3 where anything you buy gets added to a remote treasure trove for downloading at will. If the fire handles movies etc. like that then I'd go buy one of the suckers right now (if I weren't a poor wretch).


Yes, Amazon does handle media for the Fire the same way it handles books.

(And Apple has changed, too...new content is saved to a cloud, I believe. I know my iPad apps are, not sure about video and music, though I know I can back it up to their cloud.)

Betsy


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## malligator (Jul 1, 2010)

OwenAdams said:


> Does the Fire handle media in the same way Amazon handles books? I dislike iTunes' approach where losing data can basically mean losing all your purchases.
> 
> I much prefer systems like the Kindle and PS3 where anything you buy gets added to a remote treasure trove for downloading at will. If the fire handles movies etc. like that then I'd go buy one of the suckers right now (if I weren't a poor wretch).


Everything you buy from iTunes can be (re)downloaded at will and does not count toward your 5GB of iCloud storage space.


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## The Hooded Claw (Oct 12, 2009)

I have a Kindle, iPad, smartphone, and Android tablet that is actually better than the Fire in every way but the ability to run Amazon video. The smartphone and the iPad are used daily, the Kindle almost daily. But the Android tablet just gathers dust mostly. I can't remember the last time I used it. A Fire would suffer the same fate.


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## Owen (Aug 24, 2011)

Hmmm, I didn't know iTunes stuff could be redownloaded. Is it an easy process?

I guess at this stage the fire seems a bit unnecessary for me... But then I own a ton of unnecessary rubbish.


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## jbcohen (Jul 29, 2011)

Well in my home there is an ipad, a kindle three and a kindle fire but they all do different things for us. The ipad is for my son and his education, it runs all sort of educational apps for him and frequently goes to school with him, I do not do anything on it. The Kindle three is my only electronic book reader. The fire does not read ebooks for me and does help out with my son's education but its primarily for me web surfing and catching up on the news. So all three things do very different things for us in the home. I do not think that all three are really necessary unless you have real unique jobs for each one as I have different jobs for each in my home.



OwenAdams said:


> The title says it all really. I have an iPad which I very much enjoy and I have a basic kindle. What benefits, if any, would I have if I bought myself a fire?


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## RavenclawPrefect (May 4, 2009)

I also have a K3 and got a Kindle Fire for Christmas.  I ordered it the day it came out and gave it to husband to give me for Christmas.  I was stunned at Christmas to then open an ipad from him as well.  Yes, he knew I had the Fire but he saw some show that comvinced him th ipad was superior.

I use the Fire for reading, streaming things to watch and to play games.  I do find the fact I can't access the Google Android App Market annoying.  I would have been perfectly happy to have just the Fire.  I am willing to take the Fire out with me, it is much easier to cart around.

I am much more willing to share the ipad with the kids.  They use it a lot.  I use it to check email and as an extension of my iphone, minus the phone app 

I do think it is redundant to have both but will also admit I like having both


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## planet_janet (Feb 23, 2010)

I have an iPad and a K2i and the only reason I would ever buy a Fire is for Prime video streaming.


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## malligator (Jul 1, 2010)

OwenAdams said:


> Hmmm, I didn't know iTunes stuff could be redownloaded. Is it an easy process?
> 
> I guess at this stage the fire seems a bit unnecessary for me... But then I own a ton of unnecessary rubbish.


Very easy. You just go into the iTunes app on your iPhone/iPad/iPod and select the Purchased tab. It'll show everything you've ever purchased and allow you to download at will. Apps are the same, but on the App Store app.


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## Bob327 (Nov 17, 2011)

I can not answer your question ..BUT I'm a old man who does not have a purse to carry anything in.  The Fire with its case fits in my front pants pocket of my jeans as well as my dress pants quite nicely so I can actually have it with me all the time.. When used with my smartphone I have access to wifi ..which makes the fire usable as long as I have a signal which I usually do...the IF I wanted to...

At home I have a few desktops  a couple of laptops and a notebook
so there is no reason for me to use a Tablet of any kind at home ...  

Purchased it specifically for its size and super portability ..and it just plain works 

Bob G


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## jbcohen (Jul 29, 2011)

What would you use the fire for that the ipad and the kindle three don't do for you already?  I think that's the big question.  Apple has made a name for itself by getting software developers to write apps for the ipad, however I find that they have a better selection for kids and since I am not a kid I do not find that a convincing argument for the ipad at all.  I think that the one thing the fire can do for you that the ipad can not is to go out into public and still remain with you.  Let's face it ipads have become a victim of their own success in the market place, they are highly recognizable and are quite apt to get stolen, not so of the fire.  I think you could take an ipad and a fire out into public and the ipad would run the risk of getting stolen and the fire not run any risk at all simple because most people have heard of an ipad but have not heard of a kindle fire.


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## ReneAZ (Jan 1, 2011)

OwenAdams said:


> The title says it all really. I have an iPad which I very much enjoy and I have a basic kindle. What benefits, if any, would I have if I bought myself a fire?


I had the same dilemna -- well, not exactly since I don't own an iPad.
I have a Kindle w/keyboard, which I use all the time and love. I have been debating for weeks whether to get a Fire or not.
I thought I would only use it to read - and I already HAVE an ereader.
But I have finally decided to jump on the bandwagon and ordered one today! I hope to take advantage of all the things it offers BESIDES reading a book! 
I will be scouring this forum so that I can take full advantage of my new toy!!

I'm sure I'll have some questions and need some help from the Fire veterans!

Rene


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## marzbe (Dec 16, 2011)

I don't own an Ipad, but I do have an Ipod touch that I used for about 2 years as my quick let me check something Internet vessel.

I cracked and bought the Fire a week ago, simply for the streaming video aspect. I found myself on my laptop almost daily watching Prime videos, a combination of Target giftcards and cash found buried in a drawer paid for it : I have turned on the laptop since, but it was only to upload my essential MP3 files to my Amazon cloud.  

Sent from my Kindle Fire using Tapatalk


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## TraceyC/FL (Mar 23, 2011)

I have no qualms about taking my iPad out in public,nor have I ever feared it would be stolen. I worrymoreaobut my blasted iPhone than it!

My biggest "fear" was back when it was new.... I confess, I didn't want to answer 10 million questions about it and demo it. I wanted to read or whatever in peace   thankfully, that has all passed!

Today i will take it with me to the surge-center and entertain myself while my teenager gets her tonsils out. Fun times.


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## jbcohen (Jul 29, 2011)

Ah, tonsil extraction - every child's worst nightmare and every parent's financial worry.  Its the bane of all of our existences.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

ReneAZ said:


> I had the same dilemna -- well, not exactly since I don't own an iPad.
> I have a Kindle w/keyboard, which I use all the time and love. I have been debating for weeks whether to get a Fire or not.
> I thought I would only use it to read - and I already HAVE an ereader.
> But I have finally decided to jump on the bandwagon and ordered one today! I hope to take advantage of all the things it offers BESIDES reading a book!
> ...


Woohoo, ReneeAZ! Congratulations!!! Let us know when you get it!

Betsy


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## ReneAZ (Jan 1, 2011)

Betsy the Quilter said:


> Woohoo, ReneeAZ! Congratulations!!! Let us know when you get it!
> 
> Betsy


Hi Betsy! I just ordered it Yesterday! And it says it was shipped already, and will be delivered TOMORROW!!!! woo hoo - so excited
(I thought it would be fast - as I live in the Phoenix area, a big Amazon distribution center)

Gee, I'm more excited than I thought I would be 

Rene


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## Owen (Aug 24, 2011)

Well, I thought about it and in the end I decided that between the Kindle Keyboard and the iPad, I just couldn't think of a niche the fire would fill. As awesome as it looks.

Sure, a lighter, smaller tablet _would_ be nice but not nice enough to justify the purchase.

Thanks all for the advice though.


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## Sandpiper (Oct 28, 2008)

OwenAdams said:


> The title says it all really. I have an iPad which I very much enjoy and I have a basic kindle. What benefits, if any, would I have if I bought myself a fire?


I have a K3, DXG, and iPad 1. I got an K Touch and Fire . . . because I wanted them.


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## ReneAZ (Jan 1, 2011)

Betsy the Quilter said:


> Woohoo, ReneeAZ! Congratulations!!! Let us know when you get it!
> 
> Betsy


Well, got my Fire last night, played around with it for about 2 hours and gotta say - I LOVE it!
I don't know if it's the newness of it and finding all these cool things, but I really didn't think I would love it so much.

Will take time to get used to the touch (an old Kindle keyboard lady here  but it is a lot of fun.
Have two minor comments at this point
First, it seems to take a long time (relatively speaking of course  for it to come up. A blank screen with "Kindle Fire" seems to take a while to go away.

As I have read elsewhere, the location of the "on" button is a problem at times - I rest it on my stomach, and it turns off! 
Will have to work on that one! (I know I can turn the screen - in fact, just a little, unmeaning, turn and the screen bounces in all directions!! 

All in all, I'm very happy with it. Plan to watch "The Tudors" this weekend.

I'm sure I'll have questions as I get into it more,
Rene


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

ReneAZ said:


> Have two minor comments at this point
> First, it seems to take a long time (relatively speaking of course  for it to come up. A blank screen with "Kindle Fire" seems to take a while to go away.


You won't generally need to turn it off, though. Just pressing the button for a second puts it to sleep and it can be fairly quickly woken up from that state. Pressing and holding turns it all the way off and then, yes, it takes a bit longer to start up in that case.



> As I have read elsewhere, the location of the "on" button is a problem at times - I rest it on my stomach, and it turns off!
> Will have to work on that one! (I know I can turn the screen - in fact, just a little, unmeaning, turn and the screen bounces in all directions!!


If you turn it upside down the button is on the top so you don't have the same problem. Or put it into a case that will protect it a bit. You can lock the screen too. . .tap the gear icon in the upper right and 'lock' is the icon at the left. That way it won't spin when you tilt it a bit. You can lock it in which ever direction you wish.


> I'm sure I'll have questions as I get into it more,
> Rene


Lots of answers here!


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## JimC1946 (Aug 6, 2009)

I have an iPad 1, and I love it with a passion, but after using my Kindle Fire for almost two months, I've put the iPad up for sale. Despite a few tradeoffs in features, I prefer to go with the Fire. With the firmware upgrades that Amazon has already made, the Fire is a much finer device than it was when I got it, and Amazon's media content is so massive, that I really don't think I'll have many regrets.


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## jason10mm (Apr 7, 2009)

I have all three ( and an iPhone). The fire is much more portable than the iPad, do I like it for that reason. The android market, at least the amazon one, is way undeserved compared to the iOS stuff and the fire has some wonky issues like intermittent browser hangups and that useless carousel, but the form factor is nice. My wife tended to monopolize the iPad so the fire is nice as a replacement for me. I like using it more than surfing with the netbook. 

But objectively the fire does not have a practical use not already covered by the phone, kindle, iPad combo. The fire is too small for presentations unlike the iPad, the current software is too janky, and the app selection is subpar. It can be a decent substitute for an iPad especially given the huge price difference, but it is a poor complement. I got the fire as a gift. I think the fire2 will have much more functionality and I'll probably drift over to the android market as I generally dislike iTunes and the apple price premium, but I'm not kidding myself into thinking the fire is anything other than a toy.


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