Can You Draw On Amazon Fire

If you buy something from a Verge link, Phonation Media may earn a commission. See our ethics statement.

Amazon's lineup of Fire tablets has settled into a familiar routine: they are bachelor in small, medium, and large; they are priced far lower than comparable iPads; and they are mostly expert for reading and watching movies or TV, with content likely supplied by Amazon itself. The company doesn't update them as often as their competitors, sometimes going a few years betwixt upgrades. This year, the large model, the Fire Hard disk 10, has gotten a refresh, bringing a redesigned trunk, improve performance, and a host of new configurations you can cull from when buying information technology.

Despite the update, much remains the aforementioned. The Fire HD x is a good, inexpensive tablet for consuming content from Amazon, including Kindle books, Prime number Video movies and Television shows, and Audible audiobooks. It likewise has access to other pop streaming services, like Netflix, Disney Plus, Hulu, and HBO Max. The Kids editions are keen for parents who desire to limit what content their children have access to or how long they can apply a screen each 24-hour interval. But if you're looking for a tablet to supercede your laptop or go serious piece of work done, the Fire HD 10 is non information technology.

The Fire HD x family unit (yep, it'due south a whole iii-row SUV full of options now) now includes the $150 standard model, the $180 Burn down Hard disk ten Plus, a $200 Hard disk drive 10 Kids model, and a $200 Hd ten Kids Pro selection. (Those are all the full MSRP prices; Amazon ofttimes discounts its products, and y'all should probably just expect for a sale if you're planning to purchase 1.) Of these, three of them — the Burn down HD 10, the Fire Hd 10 Kids, and the Fire HD ten Kids Pro — have the same hardware; the Fire Hd ten Plus adds an extra gigabyte of RAM, a soft-touch finish, and wireless charging.

The Hd 10 and x Plus are bachelor with either 32GB or 64GB of storage; the Kids models are only available with 32GB. All of them have back up for microSD card storage expansion up to 1TB. The Fire HD 10 is bachelor in four muted color options, while the 10 Plus merely comes in black and the Kids versions come with a variety of colorful cases. Lastly, the HD 10 and x Plus include Amazon's lock screen ads by default; y'all can pay $xv more to remove them either when you buy the tablet or afterwards the fact.

Not only has Amazon expanded the configuration options available for the Fire HD ten, merely it's too increased the number of accessories you can opt for. The large new thing is a $50 detachable keyboard instance that works with either the Burn down HD 10 or x Plus. You tin can become it in a "Productivity Bundle" that includes the tablet, the keyboard case, and a twelvemonth of Microsoft 365 for $220 or $250, depending on which Burn Hard disk 10 you lot choose. It's clearly Amazon's reply to the iPad Pro and other tablets that aim to exist more than just laid-back consumption devices. You can also opt for a $40 wireless charging dock made by Anker that's specifically designed for the Fire Hard disk drive ten Plus and turns it into an Alexa smart display. And so there'south the usual suite of $40 color-matched snap-on cases that work with either model and provide protection and a vertical or horizontal kickstand.

It'south a whole lot of choices for what most would consider to be a simple, almost impulse purchase. I'll go into more depth below, just if yous are looking to buy i and desire the TL;DR, my recommendation is to become the 32GB Burn HD 10 in whatever color you lot prefer and a separate microSD card to expand its storage.

Amazon Fire Hd 10

*The Burn down HD x is the default model and the 1 most people should opt for.*

This yr's Fire Hard disk 10 lineup comes with an appreciated improvement to the design released in 2022: the bezels around the screen are now uniform, making it easier to hold and giving information technology a more modern look than before. The bezels on the long side are actually slightly bigger, but the bezels on the brusque sides are smaller than they were, with the net effect being a noticeably smaller overall footprint. Amazon has likewise rounded the corners more, giving information technology a more iPad-like silhouette, and it's nigh viii per centum lighter, tipping the scales at just over a pound. It'south still got a hard plastic chassis that feels a fleck cheap, but the finish fortunately masks any fingerprints. I wish Amazon had found a way to add together some kind of fingerprint scanner or biometric authentication considering typing in a PIN lawmaking every time you need to unlock the tablet feels like you've time-traveled back a decade.

Within those slimmed-down bezels is a 10.one-inch 1080p brandish that the company claims is x percent brighter than the prior model. It's a good screen, especially for this price point: information technology'due south plenty sharp, has good colour and saturation, and works well indoors. Information technology'due south all the same not not bad in straight sunlight — ten pct brightness crash-land or not — and it won't compare to the best displays from Samsung or Apple, but I don't retrieve anyone buying this tablet will complain nigh the screen's quality.

There is no active stylus support on whatever of the Fire Hard disk 10 models, so none of them are cracking options if you plan to accept notes on the screen or create artwork. If that's a feature you want, yous'll have to pay a lot more for one of Samsung'south or Apple'southward tablets.

Amazon moved the forepart-facing photographic camera from the brusque border, like it is on iPads, to the long edge, then video calls in landscape orientation are much less awkward. The ii-megapixel photographic camera still isn't very skillful, with lots of paradigm racket, smeared details, and low color saturation. The same tin can be said for the upgraded 5-megapixel camera on the back. It might work fine for scanning the occasional certificate, but the phone you have in your pocket almost certainly has a better camera attached to it.

Inside the new Fire Hd 10 is the same 2GHz octacore MediaTek MT8183 processor that was used in the prior model. But this time, it'southward paired with 3GB of RAM (a l percent increase), which provides a noticeable comeback in the tablet's performance. Apps open quicker, navigating between home screens and menus is faster, and it's more often than not less annoying to utilise than information technology was before. It'south nonetheless past no means a fast tablet (4K video stutters in the browser), but it doesn't make it its own way nearly as much as the last model.

Amazon claims up to 12 hours of battery life betwixt charges, and though I didn't do a formal rundown examination, my experience leads me to believe that'due south accurate. The Fire HD ten can easily handle a few consecutive movies, and it doesn't lose much bombardment life when information technology'southward sitting idle, different Apple's latest iPads. A USB-C port is there for charging, but it doesn't charge quickly at all. Amazon says information technology will take four hours to completely recharge the tablet using the included 9W charging brick. You lot tin can shorten that time by using a faster charger; it took most two hours to fully accuse with a 30W USB-C charger.

Amazon did not alter the speaker situation, which consists of ii speakers on the summit edge (when you're holding the tablet in landscape orientation), and I wish information technology had, every bit it'south the weakest part of the pic experience with the Burn Hard disk x. The speakers become loud enough, but they don't sound nearly every bit full or clear every bit those on other tablets and aren't as pleasant to listen to. Fortunately, there'due south still a iii.5mm jack and Bluetooth support for using the headphones of your choice.

*The best feature on the Fire HD 10 remains its brandish, which is better than expected from a $150 tablet.*

The other affair Amazon hasn't changed in a long time is the software. The Burn down Hd 10 runs the company's Fire OS fork of Android, the latest version of which is based on the years-old Android 9 platform. That makes it feel dated compared to a current Android phone. There'south no gesture-based interface, for example, but the old home, back, and recents apps buttons at the bottom, nor is there a light mode and nighttime mode that switches automatically in the software or some of the other niceties nosotros've go accustomed to in more than recent versions of Android.

Amazon also uses the dwelling house screen to promote content, apps, videos, and more than in a spammy style. The For You tab, which is meant to be a personalized page, is basically one big advertisement for apps and videos yous don't own. Once yous are in an actual app, these annoyances fade away, merely it's not a fun route getting at that place.

The bigger software problem remains: Amazon does not have access to the Google Play Shop and is therefore lacking many of the apps you are familiar with on a phone (think Gmail, YouTube, Google Maps, Google Docs, etc). Amazon'due south own Appstore has never been well-stocked, and information technology is even worse than information technology used to be in terms of having the latest, almost popular apps and games available. In fact, Amazon's own Luna subscription gaming service doesn't work on information technology. That's less of a problem if all you want to do on the tablet is watch movies or Tv set shows, but if you're trying to go stuff done, it's hard to practice it without the apps you need. (I'll cover this more in the section on the HD 10 Plus.)

In full general, the Fire Hard disk drive ten is the default model and the one I'd recommend virtually people buy if they are looking for an inexpensive tablet for watching movies or reading books. You tin can admittedly go a meliorate tablet that's more capable and has more options for apps, but you lot will have to pay considerably more for it.

Amazon Fire HD ten Plus Productivity Packet

*The Productivity Bundle includes a detachable keyboard and a year of Microsoft 365, so y'all can use apps like Word in split up-screen on the Fire HD x.*

As noted above, the Fire Hd 10 Plus is the same equally the standard model, only with 4GB of RAM instead of 3GB, a soft-touch on finish, and wireless charging. None of these things are worth the extra cost: the RAM didn't make an appreciable difference in performance because Amazon's software is the bottleneck for productivity; the soft-touch on finish is slightly grippier, but anyone who puts a case on the tablet won't even experience it; and the wireless charging is convenient just deadening, and finding a charger that'southward large enough for the tablet and non awkward to apply is a scrap of a challenge. (Amazon tells me the Anker stand I tested information technology with is currently unavailable.)

I tested the Fire Hd 10 Plus with the $250 Productivity Bundle, which includes a detachable keyboard case and a year of admission to Microsoft's Role apps. It'due south Amazon's acknowledgment that people are using tablets for more than than just media consumption, especially as many workers and students were stuck at dwelling during the pandemic and had to do everything remotely.

The keyboard case is made by Fintie, but it's designed to the specifications of the Fire HD x. Half of it is a detachable Bluetooth keyboard that pairs wirelessly with the tablet. The other one-half is a snap-on case that connects to the keyboard via magnets to class a familiar clamshell look. I similar that you can easily detach the keyboard when you don't want to use information technology, just information technology'd be nicer if it didn't utilise Bluetooth and instead communicated direct with the tablet like nearly other designs do.

The keyboard is small, has no backlight, and the keys themselves are plasticky. It'south not the worst affair I've always typed on, simply it'south far from the best, and I would simply want to use it for brusque emails and not much more. Information technology does have a useful function row for media controls, brightness, and volume, plus there'southward a shortcut to open the Fire Hard disk ten's separate-screen mode and so y'all can utilise two apps at the same time. There is no trackpad or pointing device, however.

Just the hardware is not the main thing holding the Fire Hard disk drive 10 Plus back — information technology'due south the software, or, more accurately, the lack of information technology.

Amazon has worked with Microsoft to get its suite of Office apps into the Amazon Appstore, including Outlook, Word, Excel, and Teams. There's besides Zoom for video calls. Simply if your work demands any other productivity apps, you're going to accept a hard time finding them.

Here's a list of productivity apps I employ daily for work that are nowhere to exist found on the Burn down Hard disk 10 Plus (or whatsoever other Amazon tablet):

Slack
Asana
Google Meet
Feedly (the poorly rated tertiary-party app I tried crashed on login)
Todoist
SwiftKey
NY Times (the app in the Amazon store is just a bookmark to the website)
Bitwarden (Also missing are LastPass, 1Password, and Dashlane. Logging in to apps with my passwords requires juggling my phone and the tablet, and it's a huge pain.)
Two-factor authentication apps
Pocket (Pocket used to be in the Amazon Appstore, just the company has removed information technology and now instructs Burn down tablet owners to sideload the app from its website.)

Y'all tin can get around this trouble by sideloading the Google Play Store and its related services onto the Fire HD, simply that requires disabling security features, downloading software from sites that don't have potency to distribute it, and installing information technology in a specific society. Frankly, it's not something most people are going to practice, and if Amazon wants to market something chosen a "Productivity Packet," it needs to do a much better chore at making its tablet more useful for work tasks.

Should you find all the apps you need in the Appstore, y'all'll still see wonky problems trying to utilise them in divide-screen way. I was able to pull upwards the Office app and a browser window at the same fourth dimension, but in order to create a new Word md, I had to exit the split-screen mode. The tablet's relatively small screen and widescreen aspect ratio besides brand things quite small to work with when you have ii apps open.

*The Fire Hd 10 Plus supports wireless charging and tin human action as an Alexa-powered smart display when it'due south on a dock.*

The Fire HD ten Plus and the Productivity Package are just a token acknowledgment of the trend to utilise tablets for work. The Fire Hard disk x Plus is not a good device for getting work done. It'south inexpensive, just y'all'll most likely exist able to get a lot more washed with a Chromebook or Chrome Bone tablet, such equally the excellent Lenovo Chromebook Duet, for not much more money.

Amazon Fire HD x Kids and HD x Kids Pro

*The Kids line of the Fire Hard disk 10 now has two different models for different age groups.*

As with prior Kids versions, the new models come with a year's subscription to Amazon's Kids Plus content service, a two-year warranty against damage, and a kid-friendly case.

Despite their names, the Kids and Kids Pro models are, in fact, the same hardware, just wrapped in a different instance. The Kids model, which Amazon says is designed for ages 3 to seven, comes with a mesomorphic, spongy safety case that'southward easier for footling hands to hold on to and will protect the tablet from tumbles and drops. The Kids Pro model is meant for children ages vi to 12 and comes with a slimmer plastic case that'south more akin to a standard tablet case. As mentioned before, both cases tin be had in a variety of colors and designs and come up with built-in kickstands that double equally carrying handles.

The other departure is found in the software interface. The dwelling house screen and app filigree on the Hard disk drive ten Kids is the same as before, but the HD ten Kids Pro features a cleaner interface that's more than similar to a phone, with a search bar at the top and more grown-upward-looking app icons. Amazon started rolling out this new interface final fall, and it'southward adamant by the age range y'all select for your child's profile, not the hardware; y'all could put the new interface on the standard Kids tablet if you so desire.

*The Kids model cases take a congenital-in kickstand that doubles as a handle.*

I'm not a child, and so I handed the Fire HD x Kids and Hd 10 Kids Pro tablets to my six- and ix-year-olds to go their take on them. They've been using 2022-era Fire Hd 8 Kids tablets for a few years, then they have a good perspective on how the new models might be different from older tablets.

Both kids appreciated the larger screen and better sound from the 10-inch tablet compared to their older eight-inch models. Also popular was the built-in kickstand on the case that let them put the tablet down when watching a video. Both kids noticed and remarked upon how much faster it was downloading games and launching episodes of SpongeBob SquarePants — my ix-twelvemonth-quondam said they were able to download "ten apps in like three seconds." (Kids may exist prone to exaggeration.) Given how tiresome and frustrating their old tablets are whenever I take to use them for anything, I think parents considering upgrading to new models should probably but go ahead and practice it. I too appreciated having a USB-C port for charging, which is a lot easier to deal with and works more reliably than the Micro USB port on their old tablets.

*The Kids edition for younger children has a chunky, spongy example; the model for older kids has a slimmer plastic one.*

Equally much as I dislike using the Burn down tablets for my own entertainment or work, I exercise similar the Kids editions for my kids. Unlike an iPad, the Kids Plus software allows me to easily restrict the content available to them to age-appropriate levels. I don't have to worry about in-app purchases or ads for scammy games popping upward. I can selectively adjust how much fourth dimension they have playing games, reading books, or watching video before the tablet locks them out for the residue of the twenty-four hour period.

The interface available for younger kids doesn't have a spider web browser at all, and I can command whether the camera can be used. For older kids, a web browser with built-in content filters is available, though that besides can be turned off past the parent. Apps that aren't available in Amazon'due south Kids Plus library can be selectively requested and enabled for the kids' profiles.

Parents tin can command all of this, including the screen time limits, from a web dashboard on whatever device, making it very piece of cake to manage. It's something you can set up and then just paw to your kid and not worry about what they are accessing or who they might be communicating with. If yous have multiple kids sharing a single tablet, each can take their own personalized profile accessible right from the lock screen. It's baffling that Apple hasn't done anything along these lines for the iPad.

All the same, when it comes time to practice schoolwork, the Kids edition tablets take the aforementioned problems as the standard models. These aren't great schoolwork companions — they are really merely for entertainment (and mayhap a piddling bit of edutainment in the mix).

Photography by Dan Seifert / The Verge