Amazon is currently offering two models of the Kindle Fire. One is the Kindle Fire HD (7″ and 8.9″) and the other is the Kindle Fire HDX (7″ and 8.9″). HDX is the newer version, which is basically an upgrade to Kindle Fire HD, whereas the new Kindle Fire HD is an update on the previous lower end Kindle Fire model with a few tweaks.
Kindle Fire HDX 7″
Advantages of Kindle Fire HDX over Kindle Fire HD:
- Screen resolution is 1920*1200 HD @ 323PPI (vs 1280*800 HD display @ 216PPI).
- 2.2Ghz Quad-core processor and 2GB RAM (vs 1.5Ghz Dual-core processor and 1GB RAM)
- Front-facing HD camera (vs No camera)
- 16/32/64 GB storage options (vs 8/16GB options in Kindle Fire HD). You can read this post to quickly decide which size to get.
- Longer battery life. You get 11-12 hours for mixed use, and 17 hours in reading mode (vs 10 hours)
- Dual-antenna Wi-Fi (vs Single-antenna Wi-Fi)
- Dual microphone (vs No microphone)
- Mayday button (vs None)
- Option for 4G and GPS function (no such option in Kindle Fire HD)
- 303 grams / 10.7 oz (vs 345 grams / 12.2 oz)
Features available on both HDX and HD models:
- Dolby Audio Stereo Speakers
- Text-to-speech, to read books aloud to you
- X-Ray for Movies, TV, books
- Email, Web Surfing, Social Media (Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, etc.), Videos, Photos, Music, Books, Magazines, Audiobooks, Apps, Games, etc.
- Kindle Fire for work
- One free month of Amazon Prime
- Come with power adapter (previous Kindle Fire 2012 models don’t come with Power Adapter, now all new models come with the adapter)
The Kindle Fire HDX does have a few limitations (same applies to the Kindle Fire HD):
- No direct access to Google Play Store (though you can get most Google Play apps via sideloading)
- No rear-facing camera (its only on the 8.9″ model for HDX)
- No SD card slot
Kindle Fire HDX vs HD, from an actual owner of both (quick comparison between the two):
http://www.amazon.com/review/R2KVHBC7NMNOGU/?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=B00DOPNO4M…
http://www.gsmarena.com/compare.php3?idPhone1=5726&idPhone2=5727
Kindle Fire HD 7″
The Kindle Fire HDX is basically an upgrade to the Kindle Fire HD 2012, whereas the Kindle Fire HD 2013 is an upgrade to Kindle Fire 2nd Gen. So, being an upgrade from the Kindle Fire 2nd Gen, the Kindle Fire HD 2 is pretty good, as it gets an HD screen for almost the same price at which the Kindle Fire was being sold.
It offers a good selection of features, like the dual core processor, 1GB RAM, 1280*800 HD display, over 100K apps from the Amazon app store, and you can use it for watching movies, playing games, watching TV shows, listening to music, and can use different apps for different purposes: web surfing, read blogs, use Twitter/Facebook and other social sites, etc.
In short, it can do most of the basic stuff that the Kindle Fire HDX can do, but obviously the HDX has better speed and memory, with a front-facing camera, Mayday button, etc. You may find some further information about the Fire HD and HDX here.
Conclusion
The price difference between Kindle Fire HD 16Gb and Kindle Fire HDX 16Gb is around 60 bucks. So, if you have the budget, I recommend getting the HDX version, as it gives you such an awesome amount of features, as I mentioned above. But, if you are on tight budget, then Kindle Fire HD would give you all the features you need for a low price.