UPDATED 02:37 EDT / SEPTEMBER 04 2015

NEWS

New Barnes & Noble Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK vs. Amazon Kindle Fire HDX

On Thursday, Barnes & Noble Inc. and Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. unveiled the latest iteration of the Galaxy Tab NOOK series of e-reader-cum-tablet, the Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK.

The Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK is a co-branded version of the recently launched 8-inch Wi-Fi-only Galaxy Tab S2 with a few bells and whistles tailoring it to eBook consumption.

Although now nearly two years old, the third-generation Kindle Fire, the Kindle Fire HDX, is the most likely competitor to Barnes & Noble’s latest offering.

The Kindle Fire HDX is available in two sizes, one with a 7-inch display, the other 8.9-inch display, and an optional LTE version, but the underlying specs are the same. For this comparison, we’ll use the Kindle Fire HDX 8.9-inch version.

Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK vs. Kindle Fire HDX:

Design and dimensions

Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK: Touted as the “thinnest, lightest, ultra-fast device”, the Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK sports a metal frame with curved edges and a glass front. Measuring in at 134.8 x 198.6 x 5.6mm, the Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK weighs just 265 grams (9.4oz).

Kindle Fire HDX: To keep things light, the device’s capacitive touch layer is directly integrated into the glass display, with a unique magnesium unibody from a single piece of machined magnesium and a blend of glass and nylon. The Fire HDX 8.9-inch has a larger screen, so it’s no surprise that it measures in at 158 x 231 x 7.8mm and weighs 374 grams (13.2oz) in the Wi-Fi-only version. The 4G version tips the scales at 384 grams (13.5oz).

Display

Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK: 8-inch Super AMOLED display with 2048 x 1536 QXGA at 320 ppi.

Kindle Fire HDX: 8.9-inch display with 2560 × 1600 resolution at 339 ppi, 100 percent sRGB for perfect color display.

Processor

Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK: Exynos 5433 SoC with four Cortex A57 cores at 1.9GHz, and four Cortex A53 cores at 1.3GHz with 3GB of RAM.

Kindle Fire HDX: 2.2GHz Quad-core Snapdragon 800 CPU, with Adreno 330 GPU and 2GB of RAM.

Samsung galaxy Tab S2 NOOK Library view

Samsung galaxy Tab S2 NOOK Library view

Operating System

Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK: Android 5.0 Lollipop layered with reader-focused tools and icons like the Nook Shop and Search functions and a shortcut to take readers to their current book. .

Kindle Fire HDX: Fire OS 3.0 “Mojito” on top of Android.

Storage options

Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK: 32GB built-in memory, expandable up to 128GB via microSD card.

Kindle Fire HDX: 16GB (8.8GB available to user) or 32GB (25.6GB available to user) or 64 GB (54.3GB available to user) of internal storage.

Battery

Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK: 4,000mAh good for up to 14 hours of continuous video play. No break down on reading time provided.

Kindle Fire HDX: Up to 12 hours mixed use, up to 18 hours when reading.

Connectivity

Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK: Built-in Wi-Fi with free Wi-Fi at Barnes & Noble stores.

Kindle Fire HDX: Dual band, dual antenna, (MIMO) Wi-Fi, optional 4G.

Camera

Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK: 8MP AF rear camera, 2.1MP front camera, QHD video recording (2560 x 1440) at 30 fps and UHD video playback (3840 x 2160) at 30fps.

Kindle Fire HDX: Front-facing 720p HD Camera. 8MP rear-facing camera with LED flash, Electronic Image Stabilization, and a wide-aperture 5P f/2.2 lens.

Reading comics on the Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK

Reading comics on the Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK

External ports

Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK: micro USB port, microSD slot.

Kindle Fire HDX: USB 2.0 (micro-B connector) port for connection to a PC or Macintosh computer or to charge your device with the included PowerFast charger.

Sensors

Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK: Accelerometer, finger scanner, gyroscope, compass, Hall Sensor, RGB sensor, GPS, GLONASS.

Kindle Fire HDX: Ambient light sensor, accelerometer, gyroscope, GPS (4G).

Price and availability

Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK: Available in Barnes & Noble stores across the U.S. and online at www.nook.com for $399.99.

Kindle Fire HDX: Starts at $379, available on via Amazon.com.

Other features

Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK: Integrated fingerprint scanner for secure access, Multi-Window splits the screen to run two apps simultaneously, and Pop-Up Window helps consumers seamlessly move from one app to the next. It comes pre-loaded with Microsoft Office Solutions, including Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote – making it suitable for work as well.

Kindle Fire HDX: Accessibility features such as Screen Reader, Explore by Touch, and Screen Magnifier. Dolby Audio, Dual Stereo Speakers and Mayday button for quick tech support from Amazon experts.

Images via Barnes & Noble

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