So it has been suggested I write this, as I am probably one of a very few people who has owned all three of...

Kindle Fire HD 7"
Samsung Galaxy Tab 2.0 7"
Nexus 7"

Here is how that happened, for what it is worth. I decided that I wanted a tablet. After reading some reviews, the verdict seemed to be split between the Nexus and the Kindle. So I went to Best Buy to play with them myself.

Well, BB doesn't carry Nexus, because their contract with the evil fruit cult prohibits it (that's what they said... doesn't seem to stop WalMart or Staples though)... So, having always been happy with my old Kindles, I just bought the Kindle Fire HD (they can sell this because it is an "ereader" not a tablet, so it doesn't p!ss apple off.)

I had this device for about three weeks. Let's talk about it here...

Kindle Fire HD

Hardware wise, wonderful device. Frankly, from a pure hardware standpoint, I probably like it the best of all. It has a truly beautiful screen, and it is much more readable in direct sunlight than the Nexus 7's screen is. The Kindle is a bit wider, which makes it a little clunky for one handed reading IMHO. It also has two speakers to the one for the other two devices, although truthfully, I didn't notice a stark difference in the sound among any of them.

Also, while Google Play seems to be coming along nicely, it simply can't compete with Amazon for pure selection in terms of books, music, tv, and movies. Of course, it doesn't have to....

Another great feature is the free stuff you get for being an Amazon Prime member... you get one free "lend" book a month, and a very robust library of movies and tv you can watch for free, all for $80 a year.

Finally, the fact that the Kindle had an HDMI output was nice, as you can buy stuff on it, and instantly watch it on your t.v., no muss, no fuss.

But here is the reason I took it back... Amazon got greedy. Real greedy.

First off, the "launcher" if you can dignify that piece of garbage with the term, is a joke. Carosuel is the most mickey mouse, childish piece of software ever. To top that off, they use it to advertise to you constantly, both in the lock screen, and in the home screen. No widgets, no customization.

Next, you have browses. The one that comes stock is Silk, Amazon's own browser. It pretty much sucks. It will not support pretty much any video of any kind.

Well, I got around that problem by sideloading Dolphin to it. No problem.

Well, then you can't have Google play, which sucks, because this is the reverse of the media situation... Google has Amazon vastly outgunned here.

And you can't change the keyboard, so no swype typing... its all hunt and peck.

I ended up rooting this thing, and installing a real launcher, a real keyboard, etc. Then it just acted all buggy. Even KINDLE app wouldn't work right on it anymore, so I threw my hands up and returned it.

I now knew I wanted a nexus, but the problem was, best buy doesn't sell those... so...

I took my kindle back. They would only give me store credit. After playing with one for two hours, I used said credit on a...

Samsung Galaxy Tab 2.0

Now, I never took this one out of the box, as we will see, but here are my "messing around with it in the store" comments...

1. It is noticably thicker than the other two.
2. It has a rear camera, if you care, which I don't.
3. It easily has the worst screen of the three.
4. It has an HD card slot, which is nice.

But I had my heart set on a nexus, so I took the Samsung to a store that sold both (Staples) claimed it was a gift and that I had no receipt, and swapped it for a Nexus...

Google Nexus 7

All in all, I finally ended up in the right place. Google has gained and earned my business in the future... my tablets and phones will be Nexus from now on.

I love the wide open Android on this tablet, and that I can do whatever I want to it.

The only thing...

I am a little skeeved about build quality here. While I like the fact that it is thinner and lighter than either of the other two... it does feel a little flimsy comparatively. And I have now had TWO nexus 7's, and both have had the "screen lift" issue, the first one Really bad. I removed the cover of that one, and it was missing two of the four screws that hold the screen in place.

I understand that this is an entry level "budget" tablet. I would hope that, in future, Google expands the Nexus brand and makes some higher end models... This is my first foray into the tablet world, and I really see no reason to ever have a laptop or desktop at home again, and I don't buy apple (I swore them off years ago for their general d!ckishness).

Anyway, final thoughts...

The Samsung is simply outclassed by the other two specs wise. It is also the oldest of the three, so should be expected.

As for the other two...

If I were buying a tablet for a child or a non-tech inclined adult that primarily wanted a media device/web toy, I would get them a Kindle. It is easy to use, idiotproof, and frankly, the Prime feature plus the HDMI output make it a wonderful media device.

But anyone who is used to being able to actually do what they want with a device, instead of being told what they can do, will throw the Kindle out the friggin window. Amazon really needs to learn the saying "Pigs get fat, Hogs get slaughtered." If they had made the kindle more open, I would probably still own it, and would still be buying most if not all of my media from them. Instead, they p!ssed me off, and I now own a rival product, and will buy my books and media from Google where possible.

Frankly, Google just seems to understand that, in the long term, treating your customers like a jerk is not a good idea. Amazon, sadly, does not. Neither does apple. That is why I no longer do business with either much.

I do wish Google would work on beefing up their media offerings, and roll out some sort of program similar to Prime. That was a nice feature.

I'm gonna get me one of these...

http://shop.portenzo.com/bookcase-for-nexus/?ProductCode=bookcase-for-nexus&utm_source=AdRoll&utm_medium=Banners&utm_campaign=Retargeting

I would LOVE to have the map print fancy one, but I can't see spending $150 on a friggin case. The plain one looks dope enough.

So I google screen lift,  and it says you can pop the cover of fun the back,  and tightening the screws inside. I pop of the cover,  and Lo and behold,  two of the screws that hold the screen in place are missing.

You just can't find good underage slave labor anymore. What's a teach company to do?

The apps I can't live without...

News readers - Pulse, Currents, Flipboard, Huffington Post (I'm a news addict).

Stumbleupon. I love this app.

Chess.com app. I'm a chess junkie.

White Noise - Helps me sleep.

Pocket

Kindle

That's about it.

Yeah, I thought of that, and made the margins as small as possible, and so far, so good. Weird.

I have literally had my Nexus 7 out of the box for 26 hour now, and I already notice that it "clicks" when I press the left bezel, like it is coming loose.

This trouble me... someone who has had this thing a while, how is the build quality? I like the fact that it is lighter than my Kindle Fire HD was, but I will admit that it feels less... solid... am I just having new buyer paranoia here?

So I am reading a book in my kindle app. It reads fine in Landscape, but in Portrait (the way I prefer to read) it cuts words off of the bottom of the page every few pages. If I rotate it to landscape it is fine.

Thoughts?