We also look at how responsive the screen is and how long the battery lasts when playing videos.Īll product information provided by the manufacturer is correct at time of publication. We evaluate the camera performance, along with the speaker sound quality and sharpness of movies and videos. When testing tablets, we test the boot-up time and processing speed to find out if opening apps, playing games and web browsing can be done with less lag. Just like other Amazon Fire tablets, you’ll see adverts and sponsored screensavers when your device goes to sleep and when you wake it up again. There are speedier tablets on the market and the camera takes disappointing snaps that lack detail. We also love the ‘picture-in-picture’ feature that lets you watch Prime Video, Twitch or Netflix at the same time as browsing the web, checking email, reviewing your calendar, or visiting Facebook. As measured in tumble tests, Fire HD 8 Plus is twice as durable as. New design is thinner and lighter than previous gen and has a screen made with strengthened aluminosilicate glass. The parental controls are robust and the tablet's optional wireless charger props it up, so you can easily see it from across the room. Fire HD 8 Plus offers everything you get with a Fire HD 8 and more - wireless charging, 9W power adapter, 3 GB RAM, 2 MP front-facing and 5 MP rear-facing cameras. It has hands-free access to Alexa - you just need to call Amazon’s voice assistant and it'll spring to life - and a ‘show mode’ that displays images and text related to Alexa’s answers on the screen. It's just as compact as the model before and the battery lasts more than nine hours when watching videos and nearly 12 when being used for lots of other tasks.

It's simple to use and its storage space can be expanded with a MicroSD card slot, too. GHI expert verdictīest suited to those that want an affordable tablet to watch movies and play games on, the Amazon Fire HD Plus is smoother than it's predecessor and quicker to charge. This 8-inch tablet still has 32GB of storage space, but now comes with a more powerful charger that takes the power from 0% to 100% in four hours rather than five.

Cameras: 2MP rear camera and 2MP front cameraĪvailable from: .uk Related StoryĪmazon has launched a beefed-up version of its Fire HD 8 tablet that has more RAM, which makes it smoother for watching movies, playing games and surfing the web on.On the other hand, if you want to avoid excessive slowdowns and enjoy media in full HD, you'll prefer the Fire HD 10.Date tested: June 2020 Key Specifications SAVE UP TO 60 on a full-featured tablet (not a toy) for kids ages 37, 1 year of Amazon Kids+, and a Kid-Proof Case with built-in stand, versus items purchased separately. For more portability or something for kids, the Fire HD 8 is the way to go. If you keep realistic expectations, neither of these low-cost devices should disappoint.

Just don't look at it as a productivity tablet there are better Android tablets out there for that kind of use. Its screen size is ideal for watching shows or reading a book while in your bed or keeping it as a shareable tablet in the living room. The larger Fire HD 10 with its full HD screen is a more high-powered entertainment device. It's also as affordable as any decent tablet gets. It won't take up a lot of space in your backpack and is perfect for repurposing as an Alexa screen whenever you aren't using the tablet. It's compact but still offers ample display estate for playing games or going through interactive stories. For kids and their tiny hands, the Fire HD 8 makes more sense. If you're not a fan of Amazon's apps or don't want to subscribe, then a Fire HD tablet might not be right for you.Ĭonsidering the Fire HD 10 and the Fire HD 8 run similar software and have hardware that is good enough for everyday apps, the decision to pick one of the two boils down to the devices' sizes and displays. To that end, you'll need an Amazon Prime subscription or you won't get the most out of the tablet. Amazon apps are relatively lightweight across the board, and all Fire tablets work great with all of them. Of course, you will still run up against hardware limitations with plenty of Google apps, so keep a realistic view of what kind of software you plan to side-load onto a Fire HD tablet.Ĭonversely, Amazon tailors its ecosystem to work well on even midrange and entry-level hardware. There's a way to get Google Play Services and the Google Play Store up and running on Fire tablets, making them more well-rounded devices. But not all apps will work as expected without Google Play Services. Because the OS is based on Android, you can technically install. Since the hardware is basically a venue for Amazon to promote its various digital services, you get everything the company offers - Alexa, Audible, Kindle, Prime Video, Prime Music you name it.

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