Amazon Fire 7 (2022) vs. Amazon Fire HD 8: Which should you buy?
Whenever you’re looking for an affordable tablet,Amazon’s range of Fire slatesis bound to come up. That’s because even the two cheapest Fire tablets—the Fire 7 and theFire HD 8—offer a package thatmany Android tabletsfind hard to match, especially at their prices. But when deciding between the two, plenty of differences help separate their purposes and intended niches. These contrasting approaches will help you determine if it’s worth saving some cash with the shiny, new Fire 7 or going for the larger Fire HD 8 for its extra perks.
Amazon Fire 7 (2022)
Amazon Fire HD 8 (2020)
7-inch IPS LCD, 1024 x 600, 171 PPI
8-inch IPS LCD,1280 x 800, 189 PPI
2GHz quad-core MediaTek MT8168
2GB (3GB on Plus)
16/32GB, expandable
32/64GB, expandable
Fire OS 8 based on Android 11
Fire OS 7.3 based on Android 9 Pie
2MP (front), 2MP (rear)
Up to 10 hours, 5W charger included
Up to 12 hours, 5W charger included,supports 15W charging
USB Type-C, 3.5mm headphone jack
Connectivity
Wi-Fi 5, Bluetooth 5
Dimensions
180.7 mm x 117.6. x 9.7mm, 282g
202 x 137 x 9.7mm, 355g
Starting $59
Starting $89
Black, blue, pink
Black, white, blue, maroon
The display resolution matters
While the screen sizes are right there in the name, the more important thing to consider here is the resolution, especially with thenew Fire 7. The lack of the ‘HD’ tag in its name points to a sub-720p resolution of 1024 x 600 pixels, offering a pixel density of 171 PPI. None of those figures are up to the 2022 standards. As a result, the text won’t look sharp on a close inspection, and there’s no way to enjoy your Netflix shows in high definition on this tablet.
The larger Fire HD 8 isn’t quite far ahead of its smaller sibling either with 189 PPI, but the difference is noticeable. It also gets you an extra diagonal inch of display estate and an HD resolution (1280 x 800), which should be good enough for entertainment. The text still won’t look as good, but you can at least get by with some occasional reading.
Audio is another area where the Fire HD 8 scores better than the Fire 7. The 8-inch model gets a pair of stereo speakers, both mounted on the top edge in landscape mode. But with the Fire 7, you’ll have to make do with a mono speaker.
The Amazon Fire HD 10
If display size and sharpness matter a lot to you, you’d be better off with theAmazon Fire HD 10instead, which gets you a larger 10-inch screen with a full HD resolution.
Matching performance
Amazon doesn’t publicly give away the processor make and model of its tablets, but itsdeveloper portaltells us that the 2022 Fire 7 uses the same quad-core MediaTek processor as the Fire HD 8. Considering both tablets also come with 2GB of RAM, you’re looking at identical performance capabilities.
In our experience, the Fire HD 8 turned out perfectly capable of running your everyday apps, from Prime Video to Kindle. The app loading time wasn’t substantial either, considering the hardware’s caliber. While RAM is plenty for running a single app (or at most two), the limited capacity could be a bottleneck if you tend to keep a lot of apps open in the background.
Since the Fire 7 shares the same internals, you can expect a similar performance experience. However, where the cheapest Amazon tablet falls flat is the onboard storage. It starts at 16GB, of which only 9.5GB is user-accessible. Sure, you can pop in a microSD card for extra space, but not everything can be offloaded to external storage. This could turn into a major inconvenience down the line if you plan on keeping the device for long.
Your only option is the pricier 32GB option for the Fire 7. With the Fire HD 8, you get 32GB as base storage, with a more spacious 64GB option also available.
The 2022 iteration of Fire OS
The cheaper Fire 7 takes the lead in the software department as it’s the first and (so far) only Amazon tablet to come with thelatest Fire OS 8. The new Amazon OS is based on Android 11 and brings many improvements like dark mode and better app permission management.
Fire OS 7.3 on the Fire HD 8
Meanwhile, the Fire HD 8 still runs the older Fire OS 7.3 version. Amazon hasn’t yet announced its plan to roll out the new software version to older hardware. Since Fire OS is Amazon’s custom, de-Googled version of Android, the difference between the two Fire OS versions isn’t drastic. All apps from the Appstore and the preinstalled Amazon services are going to work equally well on either device.
No matter the Fire OS version, you can tinker with your Fire tablet toadd Google Play Services and Play Storeto further expand its capabilities and gain access to a ton of Google apps and much more.
2-megapixel greatness
For a budget tablet of this class, cameras usually aren’t the focal point. On both the Fire 7 and the Fire HD 8, you get a basic pair of 2MP cameras, front and back. The rear cameras can take passable photos, but you aren’t likely to use them often since evenbudget phonesthese days come with decent cameras.
As for the front-facing 2MP camera and its 720p video, taking work and personal video calls won’t be a problem. Just don’t think about taking selfies with it.
A small battery and a smaller charger
Once again, Amazon refrains from sharing the exact battery capacities for its tablets. While we could figure it out to be 4850mAh for the Fire HD 8, the battery size remains unknown for the Fire 7. However, it’s safe to assume that the Fire 7 houses a slightly smaller battery given its physical size and the fact that Amazon is quoting only 10 hours of screen time versus 12 hours for the Fire HD 8.
For us, the Fire HD 8 lasted between 3 and 4 days, with close to 2 hours of streaming media content daily. The time for the Fire 7 should be slightly less than what we got with the Fire HD 8.
Despite their differences in battery capacities, both devices come bundled with a rather slow 5W charger. As a result, it takes 4-5 hours to charge these tablets completely. With the Fire HD 8, you at least have the option to (separately buy and) use a 15W adapter for faster charge times, but you’re stuck with the slow charger on the cheaper Fire 7.
The only silver lining here is that Amazon continues to bundle a charger, even with its cheapest tablet.
The shrinking price gap
Until the latest model, the Fire 7 has always cost $49 for its base model. But the price has gone up by $10 with the 2022 Fire 7 upgrade. While the price change isn’t a big deal in itself, the $59 Fire 7 is now another step closer to the Fire HD 8, which still starts at $89.
However, if you want to avoid the cramped storage of the base 16GB model of the Fire 7, the 32GB option will cost you $79. When you’re this close, you’d be better off going for the Fire HD 8, which is well worth the slight difference.
Note that these prices are for the ad-supported variant, and you’ll have to pay an additional $15 toremove the lock-screen adsfrom either Fire tablet.
Another thing worth noting is that since the Fire 7 (2022) has just come out, it likely won’t be discounted during theupcoming Prime Day sale. It’s the Fire HD 8 that will see heavy discounts, making it an even better value proposition.
Amazon Fire 7 (2022) vs. Amazon Fire HD 8: Which one should you buy?
Even though the Fire HD 8 is slightly behind in terms of software, it takes the lead in nearly all other areas. The 8-inch Amazon slate not only has a better-looking screen but more ample storage from the base model itself and the option to fast charge. These additional conveniences alone make it worth paying the $30 difference.
That’s not to say the cheaper Fire 7 should be ignored at all costs. The Amazon Fire 7 is still a capable option if you are on a tight, inflexible budget. It won’t disappoint you if you want something barely bigger than your phone to carry around in small pockets. Its screen may not be the sharpest, but it’s still decent for some casual gaming, yourkid’s playtime, and as an Alexa screen.
If neither of these devices makes the cut for you, you’d be better off getting the Fire HD 10,which has its own perks over the Fire HD 8.
Buy the Amazon Fire HD 8 (2020)
See at AmazonSee at Best Buy
Buy the Amazon Fire 7 (2022)
From faster storage to better speakers
Things get red hot for Magenta
$135 is its lowest price in months
More visual changes
All for better imaging
A great choice for those looking for value
