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Choosing The Right Tablet: iPad, Kindle Or Nook?

BOSTON (CBS) - It seems everyone wants a tablet this year, but the most popular tablet, the iPad, can be a bit too expensive for many people.

"We have some Apple products and love them, however, I can't afford the iPad," one man told us.

That is exactly why some people are turning to the new supped-up e-readers like the Barnes and Noble Nook and the Amazon Kindle Fire.

They are half the price of the iPad, but experts at CNET say they don't have the capability of an iPad.

WBZ-TV's Paula Ebben reports.

"You are looking at products that have really chopped away a lot of features to hit a price point," explained Donald Bell of CNET.

Amazon's Kindle Fire is $199. The Nook is $249. Both have 7-inch screens and only use Wi-Fi for web surfing. Neither has a camera. But, there are some differences.

The Nook offers more than twice the storage of the Kindle Fire.

"You're getting 16 gigabytes of storage if you really want a lot of videos and photos," Bell said.

You can get music on both, but according to Bell, it's easier on the Kindle Fire.

"They have their own mp3 store that's very popular," he said. "They also have a cloud service that lets you upload your entire music library."

You can also download videos you buy at Amazon. With the Nook you are limited to streaming rentals from Netflix or Hulu.

When it comes to customer service, you can call or get help online for the Kindle.

If you have a Nook, you can just stop into a store.

"We'll sit down with you and get you where you need to be," said Andrew Widman of Barnes and Noble.

Ultimately, the choice for many will come down to what they can afford.

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