Review of the latest addition to the Amazon Fire family, the Fire 8 HD, which surprised us for a multitude of factors, unexpected and very welcome. Find out with us
Full review of the tablet aimed at reading (and not only) by Amazon, il Fire 8 HD. I must admit that I was rather skeptical about the actual practicality of using a tablet of this kind, due to the obvious technological limitations due to an extremely competitive list price, and yet, I had to completely rethink. Here I tell you in detail my experience with the Amazon Fire 8 HD.
Technical sheet | Amazon Fire 8HD review
- Display: 8″ IPS, 60Hz, 800 x 1280 pixel
- SoC: Mediatek MT8169A, Hexa-core (6×2.0 GHz Cortex-A55)
- GPU: Mali-G52 2EE MC2
- RAM: 2GB
- Internal memory: 32/64GB
- Rear camera: 5 MP
- Front camera: 2 MP
- Connectivity: Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band, Bluetooth 5.2, A2DP, LE
- Drums: 15W wired charging
- Audio: 2 stereo speakers
- Dimensions: 201.9 x 137.4 x 9.6 mm
- Weight: 337g
- Other: accelerometer, ambient light sensor
- Operating system: Android 11 con Fire OS 8
Packaging and build quality | Amazon Fire 8HD review
The sales package is quite standard, albeit complete with everything you need. We find here thepower supply, the USB-C cable and the manuals on duty. As far as the design is concerned, the tablet features a classic look and a structure that is all about favor ergonomics, one of the most significant aspects for this type of product and related target audience. To pay the price are obviously the materials and the sensation returned to the touch, which is therefore not ‘premium’; but this is not a disadvantage, on the contrary!
The tablet therefore offers a pleasant and suitable reading experience, whether it is indoors or even better outdoors thanks to its handling. Finally, there are the typical power and volume buttons, arranged on the right side, near the charging entrance. Small note for the frames, really hugebut nothing to complain about given the list price.
Hardware e display | Review Amazon Fire 8 HD
The real surprise of this device was in the hardware part, limited on paper but efficient in practice. The tablet features a SoC Mediatek MT8169A and alone 2 GB in RAM. The experience has been more than decent for any type of use; naturally forget about gaming or technical drawing, but any other social or multimedia use will be more than satisfactory. The performances are above expectations, but where the tablet gives its best is obviously in reading: pleasant to say the least.
This is also thanks to the excellent panel, which despite the not too high resolution (800 x 1280 pixel), is perfectly visible under direct sunlight. The only real comment that can be made is in the oleophobic treatment, not up to the task required, neither frontally nor rearwardly. Then we have two cameras, one front and one rear that do their job, but without too many pretensions. Last, but not least, the sound sector, equipped with a stereo sound not exaggeratedly high but balanced and of quality.
Software and autonomy | Amazon Fire 8HD review
Where, on the other hand, an extra effort could certainly be made is in the software, which despite having everything you need, demonstrates a certainty general disorganization (as indeed all Amazon devices, ex: Fire Stick). Organizing the home screen will be difficult when not impossible, in fact some sections cannot be customized and will force you to view predefined contents chosen by the software.
The same goes for the Amazon store, supplied, but not as we are used to seeing in traditional stores. So you might come across some great absence, like the Telegram app (and be careful not to get scammed by clone apps, I was about to install Telegarm!). In any case, the software is not specified in the settings, even if graphically it would appear to be a Android 11 hugely customized. Finally, the autonomy issue is the icing on the cake of a device that is worth every euro spent. You can easily use it for whole days without any kind of problem, and in standby the consumption is practically nil!
Conclusions
Amazon hits the mark with a well-made product, which does what it should and shows no particular weaknesses. At the asking price it is a real one best-buy! And for those who want a larger screen diagonal, there is also the 10-inch variant. Keep an eye out for it in the many promotions on Amazon! Before saying goodbye, we invite you to follow the mobile section of techgameworld.com for further news and video reviews. See you soon!
The perfect travel companion!
Plus points
- Ergonomics
- Display
- Autonomy
Points against
- Disorganized software
- App store just enough