Apple has unveiled the second generation Retina iPad mini 2 to compete with low cost, yet great performing 7-inch tablets. Google’s Nexus 7 2013 and Amazon’s Kindle Fire HDX are two of the best 7-inch tablet options available in the market, offering great hardware specs, performance and still very affordable. Is the Retina Display iPad mini 2 ready to compete with Nexus 7 2013 and Kindle Fire HDX? We’ve put together an iPad mini 2 vs Nexus 7 2013 vs HDX specs comparison table to find out.
iPad mini 2 |
Google Nexus 7 (2013) |
Kindle Fire HDX |
|
|---|---|---|---|
Body |
|||
| Form Factor | Slab | Slab | Slab |
| Dimensions | 200 x 134.7 x 7.5 mm | 200 x 114 x 8.7 mm | 186 x 128 x 9 mm |
| Weight | 331g (Wifi-only) 341g (WiFi + Cellular) |
290g (Wifi-only) 299g (WiFi + Cellular) |
303g (Wifi-only) 311g (WiFi + Cellular) |
| Colors | Space Gray, Silver | Black | Black |
Display |
|||
| Screen Size (Diagonal) | 7.9 inches | 7.0 inches | 7.0 inches |
| Resolution | 2048 x 1536 pixels | 1920 x 1200 pixels | 1920 x 1200 pixels |
| Pixel density | 326 pixels per inch (ppi) | 323 pixels per inch (ppi) | 323 pixels per inch (ppi) |
| Technology | LED-backlit IPS LCD | LED-backlit IPS LCD | IPS LCD |
| Touchscreen | Capacitive, Multi-touch, oleophobic coating |
Capacitive, Multi-touch, Scratch-resistant glass, Corning Gorilla Glass |
Capacitive, Multi-touch |
Hardware |
|||
| System chip | Apple A7 | Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro | Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 |
| Processor | Dual-core, 1.3 GHz | Quad-core, 1.5 GHz | Quad-core, 2.2 GHz |
| Storage (Built-in) | 16GB / 32GB / 64GB / 128GB | 16GB / 32GB | 16GB / 32GB / 64GB |
| Ram | 1 GB | 2 GB | 2 GB |
| Card slot | No | No | No |
Camera |
|||
| Primary | 5 MP 2592 x 1944 pixels |
5 MP 2592 x 1944 pixels |
No |
| Front-Facing Camera | 1.2 MP | 1.2 MP | HD Camera |
| Video | 1080p@30 fps | 1080p@30 fps | N/A |
Connectivity |
|||
| Cellular | 4G LTE | 4G LTE | 4G LTE |
| WiFi | Wi-Fi ( 802.11a/b/g/n) dual channel (2.4GHz and 5GHz) and MIMO |
Wi-Fi (802.11a/b/g/n) dual channel (2.4GHz and 5GHz) and MIMO |
Wi-Fi (802.11a/b/g/n) dual channel (2.4GHz and 5GHz) and MIMO |
| GPS | Assisted GPS (Cellular model) | Assisted GPS (Cellular model) | Assisted GPS (Cellular model) |
| Connector | Lightening connector | Micro USB | Micro USB |
| Bluetooth | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 |
Battery |
|||
| Music Playback | Up to 10 hours | Up to 9 hours | – |
| Video Playback | Up to 10 hours | Up to 9 hours | – |
| Web Surfing using Cellular Data | Up to 9 hours | – | Up to 11 hours |
Software |
|||
| OS | iOS 7 or newer | Android 4.3 or newer | Android 4.2.2 Fire OS 3.0 UI |
| Applications | Appstore | Play Store | Amazon Appstore |
Sensors |
|||
| Three-axis gyro Accelerometer Ambient light sensor |
Three-axis gyro Accelerometer Ambient light sensor Compass |
Three-axis gyro Accelerometer |
|
Other Features |
|||
| iMessage iCloud cloud service AirDrop iCloud Keychain Siri Facebook integration Twitter integration Photo viewer/editor iBook Apple Maps |
Stereo Speakers Google Wallet Wireless Charging Google Search Maps Gmail Organizer Document viewer Image/video editor Predictive text input SNS integration |
Organizer Document viewer Free cloud storage for all Amazon content Facebook integration Photo viewer/editor Active noise cancellation with dedicated mic |
Display
Bothe the Google Nexus 7 2013 and Kindle Fire HDX has better resolution (1200 x 1920 pixels) when compared to the original iPad mini (1024 x 768 pixels). But the Retina iPad mini changes all that as it sports a 2048 x 1536 pixels resolution and has slightly more pixels density (326ppi) than Nexus 7 2013 and Kindle Fire HDX (323ppi).
Hardware
Unlike the Kindle Fire HDX and Nexus 7 2013, the ipad mini 2 comes loaded with a 64-bit architecture chip which gives it a debatably large step up as the mobile world continues to move towards the 64-bit processor. But that doesn’t mean that HDX and Nexus 7 have slow processors. All three devices have plenty of power of their own. The Kindle Fire HDX uses the latest in the line of Qualcomm Snapdragon processors, while the Nexus 7 uses an older model – but not outdated.
The new iPad mini 2 also features MIMO – dual antennas for faster Wi-Fi. That’s a feature the Nexus 7 and Kindle Fire HDX doesn’t have.
Bigger storage option is available in iPad mini as it comes in 128GB variant as well.
Price
iPad mini 2 with Retina display comes loaded with a better display and better hardware specs than the Nexus 7 and Fire HDX, but it’s also priced at nearly twice the cost of Nexus 7 or the Kindle Fire HDX. Bothe the Android tablets starts at $230, as opposed to $400 for the Retina iPad mini 2.