With the release of the Kindle Fire this week, I thought I would see what the competition was like. If I'm going to spend $200 on a tablet, what about spending a little more, to get something more geek-friendly?

I know that as of Android 3.1, there is now support for Android devices to act as a USB host, for connecting to devices or hacking on the Arduino. In my search, I came across the Toshiba Thrive, which has full-sized USB ports, and more. Then I started to write this post, and I realized Toshiba is getting ready to release a 7-inch version that is less geek-friendly, so I decided to include that in my comparison to have a more head-to-head feel with the Amazon tablet.

Comparison... go!

Kindle Fire	Toshiba Thrive 10.1	Toshiba Thrive 7"
$199	$350 (or so)	$380 (or so)
7" IPS screen	10.1" Toshiba Adaptive Display	7" AutoBrite Display
1024x600 resolution	1280x800 resolution
169ppi	149 ppi	215 ppi
Dual-core 1.2GHz	Dual-core 1.0GHz
512MB RAM	1GB RAM
8GB	8GB, 16GB, 32GB	16GB, 32GB
Small and light	Big and Bulky	Thin and light
8hr battery life	8hr battery life, replaceable battery	??? not replacable
Custom Android Interface	Stock Android 3.1
Amazon AppStore	Any Android App Store
Amazon Silk Browser	Any Android Browser
micro-USB (out) and 3.5mm headphone	Full-size USB (host), mini USB (in/out?), 3.5mm headphone, Full-size HDMI	mini USB, 3.5mm headphone, microHDMI
no expansion slot, free cloud drive	Full-size SD card up to 128GB	microSD card
no camera	5mp rear and 2mp front cameras	5mp rear and 2mp front cameras with LED Flash
no microphone	microphone
Wi-Fi G and N, no 3G
no GPS	GPS
no bluetooth	bluetooth

My Choice

In short, the Thrive is a geek's tablet, and I'm a geek. ...and no iPad for me, so don't even mention it.

For someone else, I would take a look at the Kindle, mostly because of the price. If you want to connect to a television, or have more storage, then I would take a good look at the Toshiba. If it's a gift for a non-techie family member, then I think there is no doubt which one to get, unless you are worried about Amazon selling out of the Fire.

On Keyboards

My search today began by looking at the ASUS Eee Pad Transformer, since their keyboard dock adds a full-sized SD slot and two full-sized USB ports, but the price turned me off. One plus there is the long battery life after you add the dock, but that was not a big enough selling point (considering the replaceable Toshiba Thrive Battery). You can also grab a Tablet Keyboard to fill in the gap, and the USB issue can be solved by the Toshiba Thrive Multi-Dock to add an HDMI port and two more full-sized USB ports. Pretty nice.