Top positive review
5.0 out of 5 starsBuy it if you have Amazon Prime
Reviewed in the United States on January 30, 2018
Recommendation:
#1. Buy it if you have Amazon Prime. It is the best tablet for the price if you are using Amazon content.
#2. However, if you can, wait until it goes on sale for about $50, which it seems to do every few months.
(that makes it cheaper than on eBay!)
The good.
(1) Small, very comfortable to hold /handle.
(I forgot how nicely eight-inch tablet fit in one hand)
(2) Nice Screen, fair sound.
The screen is bright and clear. Sound (2 stereo speakers) is clear, but not the loudest. This tablet’s speakers can get drowned out if there is much background noise.
(3) Micro SD Card works instantly. Pop it in and the software is smart enough to assist in off-loading media and ((if you want) programs
(4) Battery life is very good -I have gotten 10- 12 hours reading and some movies, mostly reading. Standby for five days does not seem to reduce power by anything significant or noticeable. You can leave it for a week uncharged -or use it for a week on one charge if you mostly read, use it for a few hours of videos, and also some light web-surfing or music.
5) It feels sturdy. Not waterproof, but I think It can be dropped on a table, or from a table to the floor and it won’t break (most of the time) -holds up nicely. (I suspect one can break the glass if dropped on a very hard surface or from a noticeable height). It is not/not IP68 rated
(6) Access to all your Amazon media is seamless and quick. This tablet is quick and responsive in the single task and switching between two functions (reading/video, music/reading, etc).
(7) It has Amazon Echo “Alexa/Amazon”) built in, delivering the Echo functionality at the push of a button (sort of like a Tablet version of Tap).
The bad
(1) It’s running an Amazon skin of Android.
a. If you want to load Google Store and all your Google store apps, it is a technical and time-consuming chore. (I used to do that regularly, this time I have not even bothered.) [BTW, if you want to root it while doing all this -I think one needs to ensure the Fire HD8 does NOT update when you first get it out of the box -the older ROM may be more adjustable or amenable to tweaks than the updates.]
b. One must adapt to the Amazon interface. It is set up to deliver Amazon content. It makes the tablet into a very focused (very good) Amazon content providing machine, but the launcher is not like typical Android "first pages/organization approaches.
c. That’s ok for me (I have another “real” tablet), but if you want to customize your Fire HD 8 with first screens that practically cook breakfast & literally take notes --like typical Android tablets, you will have to go through many steps and the results won’t be quite the same.
(2) The Amazon App store still is a bit thin.
- It has most basic apps & appears to have improved since last time I looked (a year ago!). They have added useful things like a Netflicks app, several TV/ISP apps, and even Google Maps, Google calendar and Gmail. Still, it's annoying not to have quick access to what you already bought on Play; and if you do have some special app from Play, you will have to go through the chore of loading Play, or cross-load the app manually.
(3) The Amazon-recommended cover.
It is sharp, fits well, but does not work well as a stand. Good tablet cover, yes, but as a tablet stand not so much (also over-priced).
(4) Maybe it’s me, but the Fire HD 8 button placement –all on one short side, takes getting used to.
Background: I have had quite a few Kindle readers & Fires/ Fires HDX, etc. Until now I had not had the 7th gen a fire HD 8. bought it to have a couple of tablets around the house. This is the best “second tablet” I can think of. My other tablet is a Samsung Tab S2 that does media, can fill in as a laptop for work, cooks 😊, cleans 😊 , and is the model of what a full sized tablet should be!
