A matter of difference.

I'm a complete simpleton when it comes to technology. I have a PC and that's about it. I've been thinking I wouildn't mind something smaller and portable..
Could someone tell me please what the difference is between a notebook, a tablet and a kindle.
Thanks.

Re: A matter of difference.

Good question and I'd like to know the answer too
I have a kindle which is great - an electronic book, simple to download your chosen books onto ......

Re: A matter of difference.

My daughter has a kindle too Patsy but she can also Google on it & use the internet.
I hope somebody will explain.

Re: A matter of difference.

Oooer - must be a different model to mine
Look forward to the answers ......

Re: A matter of difference.

It's called a Kindle Fire I think..

Re: A matter of difference.

No fire in my kindle

Re: A matter of difference.

A Notebook is basically just a portable version of a desktop computer (your PC) which runs an operating system like Windows 7 (or <spit> Apple) which can multitask has a keyboard and screen and usually a large mechanical hard drive which stores its operating system and programs (apps) and a fair amount of memory to perform many tasks. The battery lasts a couple of hours. This is the most powerful and flexible of the three.

A Tablet is a much more basic computer with a touch screen. it has no mechanical keyboard and limited functionality but is very thin and relatively light. It has no mechanical parts at all and limited memory. The operating system is either Android (Google) or Apple with Windows making a late run its operating system and programs are stored with in its memory. However for a great number of people it is all they need for answering emails, playing a few lightweight games and exploring the internet. The battery lasts about 10 hours.

A Kindle is a type of electronic book tied to Amazon stores - there are better ones available and arguably they are being replaced by tablets. The battery lasts for weeks.

That is speaking very generally and not entirely accurately as each breed has variations.

Re: A matter of difference.

A delightfully clear explanation - thanks Bruce - I had been wondering as well.

Re: A matter of difference.

I just remembered I had this rather old photo on Picassa web.

The three things on the top row from the left are notebooks of various sizes and ages. The red one is a 10" Netbook (ie a small, portable notebook which predated tablets) The final thing in that row on the extreme right is a now aging Android tablet.

In the centre of the bottom row is an older Sony Ereader (PRS 650 model) which is like a Kindle but can use ebooks from any source. The rest of the items are irrelevant to this subject.

I am overseas at the moment and using the red Netbook to write this.

Re: A matter of difference.

Thank you very much Bruce. Seeing as they're portable, where do they get the internet from? Do they have to go where there's Wi-Fi?