Fire HD 8 vs. iPad Mini 2: Small Tablets Compared

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Amazon's 8-inch Fire HD 8 (starting at $150) is now available for pre-order, promising a lot bang for your tablet buck. The most similar tablet available from Apple is the 7.9-inch iPad mini 2 (starting at $269), and some shoppers may find themselves torn between the two. 

That $119 difference in price will mean a lot to customers on a budget, but the iPad mini 2 has a bit more to offer in terms of specs. While the Fire HD 8's screen is virtually identical in size to the mini 2's, its 1280 x 800 resolution packs far less pixels than that of the mini's 7.9-inch, 2048 x 1536 display.

MORE: Fire OS 5 Adds Some Spark to Amazon’s New Fire Tablets

The Fire HD 8 has only 8GB of local storage; that's half of the already small 16GB that the iPad mini 2 starts out with, though Amazon's slate has a microSD port for adding space. On our battery test, the iPad mini 2 lasted 11 hours and 6 minutes, which is 28 percent longer than the 8 hours Amazon claims its Fire HD 8 will last.

The Fire HD 8 runs Fire OS 5 "Bellini," the company's version of Android 5.0 Lollipop with a revamped interface that puts Amazon services at its center. The mini 2 ships with iOS 9, which brings new multitasking features, an aggregated News app and public transit directions to Apple's mobile operating system, among other new features.  

Like the other Fire tablets, the HD 8 comes with 24/7/365 technical assistance via Mayday Screen Sharing, as well as one free month of the company's Prime service. As with most other Apple products, the iPad mini 2 includes a one-year warranty. 

Tablet Guide

Henry T. Casey