(Pocket-lint) - Amazon's Fire tablets proceed to connection a fashionable alternate to the iPad, and with the choices of Android tablets reducing implicit the past fewer years, the Fire household has offered affordable tablets that bash conscionable astir everything you need.
Amazon's astir caller update to this enactment is the Fire HD 10 and 10 Plus, sprucing up the larger tablets and afloat elaborate below. The champion prices connected the Fire tablets are often connected Prime Day oregon Black Friday, but determination are regular income done the year.
With 3 different-sized tablets successful the offering, determination is simply a determination to beryllium made astir which tablet champion suits your needs. Is the size worthy the summation successful price, and precisely what bash you get for your money?
Amazon Fire summary: Which is the champion model?
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The Amazon Fire HD 8 is large worth for money, giving you much abstraction and a amended show than the Fire 7, but inactive astatine a truly charismatic price. It sits successful an appealing position, offering portability, fantabulous artillery beingness arsenic good arsenic large sound. The latest update means plentifulness of powerfulness and much retention astatine your disposal - and it's our favourite tablet from the enactment that Amazon offers.
Alternatively there's the Fire HD 8 Plus, which adds Qi wireless charging with an optional compatible dock - truthful you tin usage it arsenic an Echo Show.
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The Amazon Fire 7 is 1 of the astir affordable tablets you'll find and it's cleanable for those who mightiness interruption it - similar kids - though bash besides see the Fire 7 Kids Edition too. The Fire 7 is the slightest almighty and inactive has an aged Micro-USB transportation connected it, portion besides offering a somewhat elongated physique compared to the newer models.
The Kids Edition gets a case, 2-year warranty and 1-year subscription to Fire for Kids+ and determination are 2 versions, 1 for ages 3-7 and 1 for 6-12 with a somewhat antithetic benignant of case. The older exemplary is called the Fire 7 Kids Pro.
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The Fire HD 10 (2021) offers a somewhat much compact plan implicit the older 2019 version, a brighter show and much power, truthful it's apt to beryllium fashionable and a worthy upgrade implicit the 2019 model.
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The Fire HD 10 Plus is the astir almighty of the Fire tablets, adding wireless charging to the substance too. This could treble up arsenic a astute show if you opt for the dock too, with Amazon besides offering a productivity mentation with a Bluetooth keyboard.
Amazon Fire tablet specs comparison
Here's a rundown of each the large specs for the tablets to comparison them.
Amazon Fire tablet design
- Fire 7: 115 x 192 x 9.6mm, 286g
- Fire HD 8: 202 x 137 x 9.7mm, 335g
- Fire HD 8 Plus: 202 x 137 x 9.7mm, 355g
- Fire HD 10 (2021): 247 x 166 x 9.2mm, 465g
- Fire HD 10 Plus: 247 x 166 x 9.2mm, 468g
The Fire tablets are designed to beryllium sturdy, offering integrative backs successful a scope of colours. The sizes and weights measurement up progressively arsenic you'd expect on with the size of the show connected offer. The Fire HD 8 and 8 Plus are the aforesaid size, but the 8 Plus is simply a small heavier.
The physique prime is precise overmuch the aforesaid crossed each the devices, with level backs and a bezel astir the show that gives you plentifulness of abstraction to grip the tablet.
The Fire 7 comes successful black, sage, plum and blue, the Fire 8 HD is disposable successful black, blue, plum and white. The Fire HD 8 Plus is lone disposable successful slate.
The Fire HD 10 and 10 Plus are a slighly antithetic signifier to the aged model. They are thinner and lighter and look better, portion the caller HD 10 offers the aforesaid colours arsenic the aged HD 10, portion the HD 10 Plus comes successful slate - truthful conscionable similar the Fire HD 8 Plus, if you spot a slate colour, it's the much precocious model.
All the tablets person a scope of cases and covers disposable to supply further protection. The Fire HD 8 Plus and the Fire HD 10 Plus are compatible with a Wireless Charging Dock, but each is simply a antithetic size circumstantial to the tablet model.
Amazon Fire tablet display
- Fire 7: 7-inch, 1024 x 600 pixels, 171ppi
- Fire HD 8 (all models): 8-inch, 1280 x 800 pixels, 189ppi
- Fire HD 10 (all models): 10.1-inch, 1920 x 1200 pixels, 224ppi
The Fire 7 has a 1024 x 600-pixel solution display, which equates to 171ppi crossed its 7-inches.
The 8-inch exemplary has a 1280 x 800-pixel resolution, which comes retired astatine 189ppi. Again, this is simply a boosted show compared to erstwhile versions of this tablet truthful has tenable opposition and clarity, with a flimsy boost successful pixel density implicit the Fire 7, though there's precise small quality different than the size.
The 10-inch exemplary makes a bigger measurement to 1920 x 1200 pixels, which is 224ppi. This is rather a spot sharper than some the smaller tablets arsenic good arsenic giving you 2 inches much connected the diagonal. If it's a larger size you crave, past spell for the Fire HD 10.
This is besides a Full HD display, offering greater imaginable to amusement you richer details truthful the acquisition is amended arsenic a effect - particularly erstwhile watching video. All the Fire HD 10 models (old and new) person the aforesaid size and solution display.
Amazon Fire tablet hardware
- Fire 7: 1.3GHz quad-core, 1GB RAM, 16/32GB retention + microSD (512GB)
- Fire HD 8: 2.0GHz quad-core, 2GB RAM, 32/64GB retention + microSD (1TB)
- Fire HD 8 Plus: 2.0GHz quad-core, 3GB RAM, 32/64GB retention + microSD (1TB)
- Fire HD 10 (2021): 2.0GHz octo-core, 3GB RAM, 32/64GB retention + microSD (1TB)
- Fire HD 10 Plus: 2.0GHz octo-core, 4GB RAM, 32/64GB retention + microSD (1TB)
When it comes to the interior specs, there's a quality successful the powerfulness that you'll get from the Fire tablets, with progressive show increases arsenic you get larger.
The Fire 7 has a 1.3GHz quad-core processor with 1GB RAM. The Fire HD 8 and the Fire HD 8 Plus some person a 2.0GHz quad-core processor, with 2 oregon 3GB RAM, and are noticably faster than the Fire 7. The Fire HD 10 models person an octa-core 2.0GHz chip, with the 2021 models expanding to 3 oregon 4GB RAM.
All models person microSD enactment for retention enlargement from 512GB up to 1TB - that's a batch of downloads! These tablets capable precise fast, truthful a microSD card is good worthy hunting down.
In presumption of interior memory, the Fire 7 is offered astatine 16GB and 32GB, portion the HD 8 models and HD 10 models travel successful astatine 32 oregon 64GB.
The artillery beingness connected the Fire 7 is cited arsenic 7 hours; the Fire HD 8 and 8 Plus assertion 12 hours of artillery life, portion the HD 10 models claims 12 hours. The Fire HD 8 models and the Fire HD 10 person USB-C, portion the Fire 7 inactive has Micro-USB for charging.
The Fire HD 8 Plus and Fire HD 10 Plus makes itself antithetic by besides offering wireless charging. This works with Qi-standard chargers (5W) and volition enactment with the Wireless Charging Dock. There are antithetic docks for the 8 Plus and 10 Plus models, the erstwhile rated astatine 10W, the second astatine 15W, which it beauteous accelerated wireless charging.
All the tablets connection dual-band Wi-Fi, there's nary 4G LTE offering connected immoderate of the models. The Fire 7 has a mono speaker, portion the HD 8 models and HD 10 some connection "Dolby Atmos" stereo speakers, meaning dependable prime is amended connected the larger models, with much much pronounced stereo separation and amended precocious measurement fidelity erstwhile watching videos.
In presumption of camera performance, each the occurrence models person 2-megapixel cameras connected the beforehand and the rear.
Amazon Fire software
- Fire OS
- Alexa disposable connected each devices
The Fire tablets each tally Amazon's skewed mentation of Android for a unsocial acquisition that's bespoke to Amazon's needs. You're served by the Amazon Appstore, with seamless integration with Amazon's content, Kindle Books, arsenic good arsenic Music and Video. For Prime members, there's a full satellite of contented that you person entree to, and that's earlier you get to bash your shopping.
These tablets besides pat into Alexa's skills. You'll beryllium capable to power your location and inquire questions of Alexa done your tablet and get the answers served up arsenic cards, oregon via voice.
All these devices besides enactment Alexa hands-free. With this, you tin conscionable talk to the tablet and Alexa volition respond. That means you tin usage it successful the room for example, without having to usage your hands successful the aforesaid mode you'd usage the Amazon Echo.
You tin besides crook these tablets into an Echo Show, acknowledgment to the Show Mode. For the Fire HD 8 Plus and Fire HD 10 Plus, there's a Wireless Charging Dock that volition alteration this. For immoderate older Fire tablets, determination has been a Show Mode Dock, though this present appears to beryllium hard to find.
Writing by Chris Hall and Britta O'Boyle. Originally published connected 17 September 2015.