The Fire HD 10 hopes to replicate Amazon’s success with low-cost but feature rich media
consumption devices, now with an improved, higher resolution screen. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs for the Guardian
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Samuel Gibbs
Tuesday 19 September 2017 14.00 BST Last modified on Tuesday 19 September 2017 14.31 BST
Amazon has unveiled a new, improved and cheaper large-screen Fire HD 10 Android tablet, now featuring hands-free Alexa integration, a much better screen and longer battery life.
The 2017 Fire HD 10 continues Amazon’s recent moves in tablets, cutting prices, adding features and increasing the durability of its line that is aimed squarely at media consumption rather than content creation or work. The company’s £50 Fire 7 and £80 Fire HD 8 have both become popular thanks to being low cost but feature rich.
Eric Saarnio, head of Amazon devices in the EU, said: “We’ve really worked hard to deliver a tablet from the ground up that’s perfect for entertainment.
“We’re growing year-on-year in tablet sales because we think we’ve landed on a winning formula, which is a combination of premium tablets at non-premium prices, focusing on entertainment and delivering tablets that the whole family can enjoy. The Fire HD 10 is our latest addition to the family.”
The new Fire 10 HD has a much improved new 10.1in full HD screen, as well as Dolby Atmos stereo speakers and a greater amount of storage by default, despite costing £20 less than its predecessor at £150. It also has twice the amount of memory and a 30% faster processor, which Amazon says should provide improved performance over 2015 Fire HD 10, which was found to be lacklustre in certain respects.
amazon fire hd 10 on a table
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The Fire HD 10 has the same durable-feeling rounded plastic edges and back as the Fire 7 and HD 8. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs for the Guardian
The 2017 Fire HD 10 will also last longer between charges, with an additional two hours battery life over the previous generation bringing the total to 10 hours of “mixed use” according to Amazon, and still has a microSD card slot for adding more storage if 32 or 64GB is not enough.
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The tablet also comes with a new and improved version of Amazon’s Fire OS, which includes deeper integration with the company’s popular Alexa virtual assistant and smarter content suggestion based on watching habits.
Users can now activate on an always-listening mode for Alexa, instead of having to press and hold a button to talk to the virtual assistant, which can search for content on the device or through connected services, control playback and volume of media as well as answer questions and display results on the screen.
The Fire 10 HD stands in stark contrast to rival Apple’s iPads, which recently saw a price increase. Amazon hopes to undercut Apple and other tablet manufacturers, in some cases by as much as half the cost, for a tablet that offers a lot for the money, a formula that means the company is one of very few to increase tablet sales.
Whether an extra two inches of diagonal screen size is worth an extra £70 over Amazon’s 8in tablet remains to be seen, but the Amazon Fire HD 10 is one of very few 10in Android tablets and has few mainstream rivals costing under £150.
the back of the fire hd 10 tablet in blue
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The Fire HD 10 comes in red, black and blue. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs for the Guardian
Amazon Fire 7 tablet review: still a lot of tablet for just £50
Amazon Fire HD 8 review: easily the best tablet you can buy for £80
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https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/sep/19/fire-hd-10-amazon-cuts-price-doubles-storage-10in-tablet-android-alexa-screen-battery-150-pounds
