From Ars Technica · · 1m 50s
Amazon drops Fire branding for Google-certified Alexa Tablets
Amazon's new tablet lineup ditches custom Fire OS for full Android with Google Play Store, marking a major shift after 15 years of the Fire brand.
In brief
Amazon's new tablet lineup ditches custom Fire OS for full Android with Google Play Store, marking a major shift after 15 years of the Fire brand. Amazon replaced its Fire tablet line with Google-certified Alexa Tablets running full Android with Play Store access, a major departure from 15 years of custom Fire OS…
Amazon ends 15 years of Fire tablets
Amazon has dropped the Fire branding from its tablet lineup after 15 years, replacing it with Alexa Tablets that are now Google-certified Android devices with full Play Store access.
From custom OS to full Android
Fire tablets previously ran Android apps through Amazon's Appstore with custom Fire OS, avoiding Google integration. Amazon shut down its app store last year, prompting the shift to full Google Android.
Three new tablets at different price points
The Alexa Tablet 8 starts at two hundred thirty dollars, the Tablet 11 at three hundred thirty dollars, and the flagship Tablet 12 Pro at five hundred dollars. All feature redesigned unibody aluminum housings.
Pro model offers premium specs and accessories
The Alexa Tablet 12 Pro runs MediaTek Dimensity 8400 processor with eight gigabytes of RAM and one hundred twenty-eight gigabytes of storage. Its two thousand eight hundred by one thousand eight hundred display has one hundred twenty hertz refresh rate and five hundred nits brightness. Amazon sells a matte display upgrade for fifty dollars, keyboard for one hundred fifty dollars, and stylus for ninety dollars.
Preorders open now, shipping October 14
Amazon's new Alexa Tablets are available for preorder now and will ship on October 14. Despite higher prices than previous Fire tablets, they remain competitive with iPad Mini at six hundred dollars and iPad Air at seven hundred fifty dollars.
What matters most
Amazon replaced its Fire tablet line with Google-certified Alexa Tablets running full Android with Play Store access, a major departure from 15 years of custom Fire OS.
