iPad Tempted by a $75 Fire 10 HD from Amazon but is this garbage compared to iPad 9th gen?

[Kendo]

The 32GB is currently on sale for $75 at Amazon but I will likely upgrade to 64GB for $85. I can trade in an old Echo and get a 20% discount so total cost is around $63 (they will give me $5 for the Echo).

Mainly want to get a cheap tablet to throw on the couch so I can browse the web and stream Netflix. Even though it was released in 2023, I'm betting the A13 Bionic runs circles around this thing. The Fire also has 3GB RAM.

I'm fully in the Apple ecosystem but just want a cheap throwaway tablet that I don't care gets banged up. Do you think it is worth spending $63 for an Amazon tablet or just bite the bullet and buy a 9th gen iPad for $200 which is $137 more?

 

[Jhonjhon236]

In my experience Fires are terrible. Bad screens, hot running, slow performance after only a few years, etc. Not to mention a Lot of popular apps are not available in the Amazon App Store so you have to sideload Google Play to get many apps you want. They are great as just cheap ereaders or maybe for children but annything else they are not that great.

 

[Kendo]

Ended up biting the bullet for $63. Specs aren’t horrible, especially at that price - 10.1” FHD screen at 224 ppi, 3GB RAM, and 64GB storage.

At $60, I don’t need to bother using a screen protector or worry about a case. Will simply toss in my bag for my commute to work or leave it on the living room couch. The only apps I need are streaming apps and Kindle.

Amazon gives a 20% coupon every time you trade in an Amazon device (Kindle, Fire tablet, Echo). They are giving $30 for the 2021 Fire HD 10 and with the 20% discount, it would cost $38 to upgrade. So I’m basically looking at $30 to $40 to upgrade every two years to the newest version based on current prices and trade-in values.

 

[azentropy]

As a media consumption device it is fine, anything other than that it isn't very good. Cavet is that I gave up on them several years ago so maybe they got better?

 

[sracer]

Ended up biting the bullet for $63. Specs aren’t horrible, especially at that price - 10.1” FHD screen at 224 ppi, 3GB RAM, and 64GB storage.

At $60, I don’t need to bother using a screen protector or worry about a case. Will simply toss in my bag for my commute to work or leave it on the living room couch. The only apps I need are streaming apps and Kindle.

Amazon gives a 20% coupon every time you trade in an Amazon device (Kindle, Fire tablet, Echo). They are giving $30 for the 2021 Fire HD 10 and with the 20% discount, it would cost $38 to upgrade. So I’m basically looking at $30 to $40 to upgrade every two years to the newest version based on current prices and trade-in values.

The Fire tablets are pretty terrible these days. This is coming from someone who created a few threads here on MacRumors about how to get the most out of Fire tablets. (So it's not like I'm a "hater")

The problem has been that the demands of Android apps (even the most basic ones) have increased greater than the specs.

 

[Kendo]

The Fire tablets are pretty terrible these days. This is coming from someone who created a few threads here on MacRumors about how to get the most out of Fire tablets. (So it's not like I'm a "hater")

The problem has been that the demands of Android apps (even the most basic ones) have increased greater than the specs.

Ha! I ended up reading a few of your threads. A bit sad that even the biggest proponent of Fire tablets has now lost interest.

I played around with the Fire HD 10 for a day and installed Netflix, Disney+, Max, and Paramount+. Was disappointed that Paramount+ won't even let you download media on Fire OS (their iOS and Android apps allow it).

An iPad Pro or Air would be overkill for my commute to work and I'd be paranoid carrying a $600 to $1000 tablet with me. The Fire at the $65 price point (as well as upgrading to a new model for $40 out of pocket every 2 years) is good enough for my use.

 

[sracer]

Ha! I ended up reading a few of your threads. A bit sad that even the biggest proponent of Fire tablets has now lost interest.

I played around with the Fire HD 10 for a day and installed Netflix, Disney+, Max, and Paramount+. Was disappointed that Paramount+ won't even let you download media on Fire OS (their iOS and Android apps allow it).

An iPad Pro or Air would be overkill for my commute to work and I'd be paranoid carrying a $600 to $1000 tablet with me. The Fire at the $65 price point (as well as upgrading to a new model for $40 out of pocket every 2 years) is good enough for my use.

Good to hear that it'll be good for your purposes. The price can't be beat. 👍 (The Fire HDs appeared in my feeds and even I was tempted. 😳😂 )

As for an iPad Pro or Air, I'd never recommend those. But a $199 9th gen or $299 10th gen... those have been great for me. I push my tech to the limit, and they can do can everything that I could on my iPad Pros (when I had them).

 

[jacenskylo]

Good to hear that it'll be good for your purposes. The price can't be beat. 👍 (The Fire HDs appeared in my feeds and even I was tempted. 😳😂 )

As for an iPad Pro or Air, I'd never recommend those. But a $199 9th gen or $299 10th gen... those have been great for me. I push my tech to the limit, and they can do can everything that I could on my iPad Pros (when I had them).

I do the same thing with my IPad minis

 

[scupking]

My kids have the HD 10 64gb version. They are ok but the 9th gen iPad would blow them out of the water.

 

[FreakinEurekan]

For young kids to watch Blippi - sure, Fire is fine. I wouldn’t personally own one.

 

[Royksöpp]

I wouldn’t wish the fire on my worst enemy.

 

[sparksd]

Depending on its intended use, a Fire is a reasonable option at a good price. I still have an old one somewhere in the house.

 

[MrAperture]

iPads still have an advantage over other, non-Apple tablets in a very important area, and that’s battery life and standby.