Will Amazon Fire 8 Tablets Go on Sale Again Before Christmas
Verdict
The Amazon Burn down HD 8 is a fine tablet, and for £89.99 it's something of an impulse buy. If you're after a cheap tablet, maybe for the kids, or something solely for watching media on your commute this is a proficient pick.
Pros
- Affordable
- I really like the UI
- Like shooting fish in a barrel access to Amazon's content
Cons
- It's a bit slow
- The Plus model is a ameliorate buy
- No Google services
Central Specifications
- Review Price: £89.99
- viii-inch 1,280 ten 800 LCD IPS screen
- sixteen/32GB storage
- 2-megapixel selfie photographic camera
- 2-megapixel rear photographic camera
- 2GB RAM
- Alexa
The Amazon Fire Hd eight is one of the best budget tablets you can purchase from a recognisable brand. It costs £89.99 and features all the basic features you would expect.
The Burn HD 8 is perfect for those who want a cheap, basic tablet primarily for media consumption and reading. It offers more features than the Kindle Paperwhite or Kindle Oasis e-readers and it's a lot more compact than the very big Fire HD 10 .
It'south a groovy way to binge Prime content, use Alexa and just have a cheap tablet for day-to-day use. The only minor niggle is that for £xx/$20 more than you can get the Burn down HD 8 Plus, which has a little more RAM and comes with wireless charging.
Amazon Fire HD 8 – Pattern
1 of the best things about the Amazon Fire HD 8 is that while it is a cheap tablet, it doesn't appear instantly dated like many others in this cost bracket. It isn't thick or heavy, and it's very durable. This is a tablet I wouldn't mind chucking in a pocketbook without a case or giving to impuissant kids (or clumsy adults).
I'yard looking at the white version of the Amazon Burn Hard disk drive 8. It's a pleasant look and has a textured terminate that both looks and feels better than glossy plastic. The tablet is also available in a wide assortment of hues.
The Fire Hd 8 succeeds in a manner that sounds like an insult: it isn't rubbish. Yet, I've used many sub-£100 tablets over the years that are, frankly, rubbish – and a constant reminder that you opted to cheap out.
Amazon has tried to brand a tablet that isn't going to disappoint buyers quickly. I don't think many of you will experience allow down by its build, or become irritated past the amount of storage infinite you lot take to play with.
Amazon Fire HD 8 – Screen
The screen is i of the weaker parts of the HD 8 and it hasn't seen any major updates. The specs are basic, as is the instance with all the lower-toll Burn tablets. What is virtually axiomatic is that for a tablet primarily aimed at media employ it'south not a fantastic device to picket Prime number content on.
The screen is very cogitating, making blacks appear quite grey and the fairly depression resolution (1280 ten 800) doesn't look super-precipitous fifty-fifty when spread out over the small 8-inch canvas.
How good colours appear volition depend on how liberal you are with the brightness slider. The contrast-sapping screen way makes colours appear quite low-free energy until you jack up the backlight.
The Amazon Fire Hard disk viii brandish can also struggle in brilliant environments, as the actual brightness levels aren't quite strong enough to combat particularly stiff rays. This should only really exist a problem if y'all're planning on using the tablet to read exterior – if this is your main use then I would advise plumping for a Kindle Paperwhite instead.
But, overall the screen is fine, and for the toll you can't really expect more.
Amazon Fire HD eight – Software
The Amazon Fire Hd 8 runs Burn OS, which is based on the same software as the other slates in our best Android tablets list but looks and feels completely dissimilar. If you've used an Amazon tablet before, so zippo significant has changed. But it's worth a quick primer if you're new to the Burn range as it tin put people used to regular Android off completely.
Fire OS is very service-driven. It's made up of a bunch of homescreens, most of which push other Amazon-endemic platforms. At that place'southward Instant Video, the Kindle Store, Amazon.co.united kingdom, Audible, and more.
It's the equivalent of Google getting rid of the homescreens and instead just giving you pages featuring unlike parts of the Google Play Store. The reason the Amazon Fire HD 8 is then affordable all of a sudden becomes clear: Amazon makes nearly of its money elsewhere, badgering you into spending money with these services.
Some might find this approach annoying and I will acknowledge that if you lot don't use any of Amazon'due south many services then information technology won't be pleasant. However, if you do then I really appreciate the blueprint. Your content is ever forepart and center and easily accessible. All your books, video from Prime or audiobooks are laid out with big artwork and without having to swoop into separate apps. Information technology really helps the Fire HD 8 feel like a media tablet, rather than ane for productivity.
The larger result is the app shop. Instead of Google Play, the Fire Hard disk drive 8 has Amazon'southward App Store. The option here is decent and very focussed towards media apps, merely information technology lacks any of Google's services. If y'all want a tablet that'll play prissy for Docs, Maps, Drive and more look elsewhere.
Alexa is likewise here – the fantabulous personal assistant that lives inside the Echo and Fire TV . Information technology has all the skills yous would expect – setting timers, playing songs, controlling your smart home – hands-free Alexa is supported too.
Amazon Fire HD 8 – Performance
The Amazon Fire Hard disk drive 8 isn't very quick. Scrolling is rarely smooth and in that location's noticeable lag all over the place. I did eventually get used to it only it is very much in that location.
The Amazon Burn down Hard disk 8 has a MediaTek processor at its heart, which is somewhat comparable to the depression-finish CPUs from Snapdragon. It has 2GB RAM, which is every bit trivial as an Android-based tablet can accept without disposed to feel annoyingly slow. For an actress £20 yous can bump it upward to 3GB with the Plus model which I probably would suggest.
The 16GB model is no longer available this twelvemonth and the base unit at present has 32GB storage. In that location is a 64GB variant bachelor as well (£119/$119) and MicroSD card back up remains if you would rather bump storage that style.
For a minor and inexpensive tablet, the Amazon Fire Hd 8 sounds pretty decent. Audio is loud, articulate and there's a headphone jack for private listening.
There's a two-megapixel unit on the rear of the device and a 2-megapixel camera on the front, and these are equally basic as mobile device cameras can get. The resulting images barely hold up to viewing on the Amazon Burn HD 8'south screen, allow alone any zooming in or having a closer look on your laptop.
Amazon Fire HD 8 – Battery Life
Amazon says this year'southward Burn HD 8 lasts for up to 12 hours of 'reading, browsing the web and watching video', which is a nice comeback over the 10 hours of the previous model.
This largely holds upwardly. At 50% brandish brightness, an 60 minutes of Netflix consumes 7% of the battery, which is a great upshot. Crank the battery up farther though and this will double. Due to the adequately tedious screen, I tended to take the screen set to max brightness when I was doing anything in a well-lit room.
A very welcome modify is the switch to USB-C, replacing the tired microUSB port. This means yous tin can now use whatsoever USB-C cablevision to charge the tablet.
Why purchase the Amazon Fire Hard disk drive 8?
While it isn't the best tablet around, the Amazon Fire HD 8 is a fine device, and for £89.99 it'south something of an impulse purchase. If you're after a cheap tablet, perhaps for the kids, or something solely for watching media on your commute this is a good pick.
Its screen is fair, the build quality is fine and there'due south plenty of storage. While it doesn't experience incredibly fast, information technology has enough power to run Amazon'southward UI and play most available games. Plus having Alexa on a tablet is a nice affect.
FAQs
Tin y'all picket Netflix on Amazon Fire Hd eight?
At that place is a Netflix app for the Fire Hd viii
Is the Kindle Fire HD viii waterproof?
The Burn HD 8 is non waterproof
Can you Skype on Amazon Burn down HD eight?
There is a Skype app for the Fire HD 8
Specifications
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Source: https://www.trustedreviews.com/reviews/amazon-fire-hd-8