Flaunting a nice slim profile, the new Fire HD 8 is the thinnest Fire tablet from Amazon to date. It features a large HD display for enjoyable content viewing and is powered by a decent quad-core processor. The Fire HD 8 tablet is decked out to deliver solid entertainment to the entire family.
Where to Buy Amazon Fire HD 8
Amazon.com$149.99 View Offer
Build and Screen
Amazon Fire HD 8 shows off an attractive slim body, measuring only 7.7 millimetres in thickness. Although the tablet is hardly the slimmest available on the market, it holds that honour among slates that have been produced by its maker to date.
Amazon Fire HD 8 features a rugged build, having reportedly passed through the durability-focused tumble test 200 times. Amazon says this means the Fire HD 8 is nearly two times more durable that Apple’s iPad Air 2.
The device crams in an 8-inch diagonal touchscreen with an HD resolution of 1280 x 800 pixels. The IPS display has a pixel density of 189 ppi – not the best you can get on a tablet of this size, but it should still offer enjoyable viewing.
Camera and Storage
A 5-megapixel primary camera is provided on Amazon Fire HD 8 to enable you capture some decent images. The shooter can be used to record Full HD (1080p) videos. Buyers also get a 720-pixel camera on the front for selfies and Skype. Internal storage is 8 GB, expandable up to 128 GB via the provided microSD slot.
Performance and OS
Amazon Fire HD 8 should deliver fast and responsive performance being equipped with a quad-core MediaTek processor, which has two cores running at 1.5 GHz and another two at 1.2 GHz. The chip is backed up by a paltry 1 GB of RAM.
The slate runs on the latest Fire OS 5 Bellini software for the best of experience currently possible on the Amazon platform. The OS lets you download content to your microSD card for offline viewing.
Other Features
Amazon promises up to eight hours of mixed use on a single battery charge. The Fire HD 8 supports a Family Library feature to allow you link your Amazon account to that of a family member for content sharing across devices.
Amazon Fire HD 8 offers Word Runner for highly enjoyable and faster reading. Advanced Streaming and Prediction (ASAP) makes TV shows and movies on Amazon ready for viewing instantly.
Pricing & Availability
Amazon Fire HD 8 tablet is now available for pre-order at the Amazon.com website and will start shipping from September 30, 2015. Price starts at $149.99.
Amazon Fire HD 8 Specs
Here are a few specs of the Amazon Fire HD 8 Tablet:
General Features
- Platform: Fire OS 5 (based on Android)
- Processor: quad-core Processor, 1.2GHz dual-core and 1.5GHz dual-core (MediaTek)
- GPU: –
- Memory: 1GB RAM
- Colours: Black, Magenta, Blue, or Tangerine
- Dimension: 214 x 128 x 7.7 mm
- Weight: 311 g
- SIM Type: N/A
- SIM Count: N/A
Display
- Display: 8.0-inch IPS Touch Display, 1280 x 800 pixels (189ppi)
- Display Protection: –
Camera
- Rear Camera: 5 MP Camera, 1080p HD Video
- Rear Camera Features:
- Front Camera: 720p HD Camera
Storage
- Built-in Storage: 8GB or 16GB Storage
- Memory Card Support: Up to 128GB
- Bundled Cloud Storage: Unlimited Cloud Storage for Amazon Content
Network Support
- 2G GSM: No
- 2G CDMA 1X: No
- 3G WCDMA: No
- 3G CDMA EVDO: No
- 4G LTE: No
Internet & Connectivity
- GPRS: No
- EDGE: No
- 3G/WCDMA/HSPA: No
- HSPA+: No
- CDMA EVDO: No
- 4G LTE: No
- WLAN: Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band
- Wi-Fi Hotspot: Yes
- Bluetooth: Yes with A2DP, LE
- NFC: No
- Infrared Blaster: No
- USB Port: Yes, microUSB 2.0
Messaging
- SMS/MMS: No
- Instant Messaging: Yes
- Push Emails: Yes
- Email Protocol: –
Entertainment
- Music Player: Yes, mp3, WAV, FLAC, eACC+
- Video Player: Yes, MPEG4, H.263, H.264, XviD
- Book & File Support: Yes, Kindle (AZW), KF8, TXT, PDF, unprotected MOBI, PRC natively, Audible Enhanced format (AAX), DOC, DOCX
- FM Radio: No
- Loudspeaker: Yes
- 3.5mm Jack: Yes, Stereo jack
Navigation
- Navigation: Yes, Wi-Fi based
- Maps: Yes
Sensors & Control
- Digital Compass: No
- Accelerometer: Yes
- Proximity Sensor: Yes
- Light Sensor: Yes
- Barometer: No
- Pedometer: No
- Gyroscope: Yes
- Fingerprint Scanner: No
- Iris Scanner: No
- Intelligent Digital Assistant: –
- Motion Sensing / Gesture Control: –
- Voice Control: –
Other Features
- Customer Service: On-device Mayday Screen Sharing +email, web, and phone
- Video Streaming: Yes (via Wi-Fi)
- Active Noise Cancellation: No
- Wireless Charging: No
- Water Resistant: No
- Dust Resistant: –
- Image Editor: –
- Video Editor: No (download at store)
- Document Viewer: –
- Document Editor: No (download at store)
Battery
- Battery: –
- Use Time: up to 8 hours of mixed use
