Fire HD 10 Tablet with Alexa Hands-Free

By Maurice L. Bays
3 May 2019

Finding the right tablet can be really hard as the market is flooded with them. Amazon really struck gold with the Fire line and this one I am looking at today the Fire HD 10 Tablet with Alexa Hands-Free is the latest model of their flagship tablet.

The Basic Facts

As I write this, what we have here is the most recent, powerful and “high tech” of all the tablets that Amazon produce. Yes, they have released tablets that are in the 10-inch range before, but this one is packing more tech than any that have come before it. Still, Amazon has managed to keep the price very affordable for consumers.

Pros:

Now available in three colors

Amazon has really beefed up the specs

Full HD screen

Double the internal storage of the previous model

Hands-free Alex

Cons:

The camera is pretty darn terrible

No aesthetical changes

The Specs of The Fire HD 10 Tablet with Alexa Hands-Free

Display: 10.1-inch full HD display

Storage Capacity: 32GB as standard, 64GB upgrade available and expandable via micro SD to 256GB.

CPU: Quad Core 1.8ghz

Ram: 2GB

Audio: Dolby Atmos Stereo speakers

Battery Life: Up 10 11 hours recorded

Let’s Look at That Screen

For budget tables, I have always felt that the Fire tablets from Amazon have had decent screens. When you put them next to the latest smartphones or other more advanced tablets though you can see how lacking they are. This model though is bringing a full 1080P screen to the mix and it does look pretty good. With over 2 million pixels, you will be impressed at how good things look on this screen.

The screen is not perfect and is not going to look as good as say the Apple iPad or the latest Samsung Smartphone. However, I did actually watch a few movies on this thing. I watched Ant-Man and Bird Box while on vacation at the in-laws and was very happy with the video quality.

The 10-inch size is going to be a huge upgrade if you have been using a 7- or 8-inch tablet. I know that it does not sound like much, but trust me when it comes to watching movies or even TV shows, you are always better going for the 10-inch screen.

Does the Sound Rock the Room?

One area that I feel some tablets really drop the ball, especially the budget models is the sound quality. Either it is very tinny or it will be really quiet forcing you to use headphones when you want to watch a movie. I was very impressed that Amazon went for full stereo speakers on this thing.

The Dolby Atmos Stereo Speakers that are on the Fire HD 10 Tablet are much louder than I was expecting and I was impressed with the overall sound quality. I also used this with Spotify at the loudest it could possibly go and it was fantastic. This is one tablet where you will not have to go and buy a set of external speakers or an amplifier for.

How Is It Built?

I would bet that if you were to put the Fire HD 10 Tablet with Alexa Hands-Free next to the previous model you would struggle to tell the difference. Amazon really has not made much if any changes to the aesthetic of the Fire HD 10. That means that it does still have that rather plasticky feel to it that the Fire range is known for. They do offer three colors, red, black and blue which is kind of cool.

In all fairness at this price range, I get it. Sure, it does not feel as high quality as the latest iPad does. On the flip side of this though, the Fire 10 is just a fraction of the price of the same sized iPad. If you are a little worried about how this would survive after a drop, I do recommend you look into getting a protective case for it.

What Kind of Apps Can It Run?

Like all of the other Fire tablets, this one here uses Amazons own OS. I have found this to be fine. You have all your apps like Netflix, Spotify and so on and there are a ton of games and other fun things for kids to do. The app store is not as jam-packed as you would find on an Android tablet, but there is more than enough to keep you happy.

While the Fire HD 10 Tablet with Alexa Hands-Free may not look different from the previous model. The insides have certainly seen some impressive changes. The 1.8GHZ quad-core CPU is certainly an upgrade as is the 2GB of ram which is double what the smaller version of the Fire offers. One thing that this Amazon OS does that kind of drives me nuts are those adds that are on the lock screen. These are very annoying, but they do allow you to pay to turn them off.

If you are like me and an Amazon Prime member then this tablet is even more awesome. You have all of your Prime video on demand services and of course, it makes ordering stuff much easier. While I think that this is a great tablet in general. I do feel that those who have an Amazon Prime membership are getting that little bit extra out of it.

As far as the internal storage goes, you have two options. There is the 32GB model which is $149.99 and the 64GB model which is $189.99. There is a micro SD slot and this can support cards up to 256GB. With how cheap external storage is this day you might be better getting the 32GB model and then a large capacity micro SD card.

How Many Movies Can I Watch? (The Battery Life)

One feature that the latest model of the Fire HD 10 has which Amazon is not bragging about as much as they should is the battery. They have used a new kind of battery in this model and you get around 2 hours extra battery life out of it.

Now granted talking about battery life is tough as the volume, the screen brightness and the app you are using can all have an effect. However, it is said that this can offer as much as 11 hours video playback which is very impressive. It is pretty much giving you a full day of use before you have to charge it.

This extended battery life is great if you have kids and are going on a long road trip. You know that you do not have to worry about it running out of battery life after just a couple of hours. I am actually surprised that Amazon is not talking about this fantastic battery life more than they are.

Alexa, Talk to Me!

Now, this is not the first tablet in the Fire range to have Alexa functionality. The previous models had a special button that you would press and then you could ask Alexa whatever you wanted. The Fire HD 10 Tablet with Alexa Hands-Free though as you would expect does away with the button press.

Now as long as you are in range you just shout to Alexa what you want and it does it. I had a lot of fun with this telling Alexa to play a song, put on a video or whatever. Now the range is not as far as the Amazon Echo, but it can easily pick you up across the room, even if the TV is on.

Having Alexa on the tablet and the fact that it is hands-free is a big selling point. While it is fun, I must admit that I do think this tablet has far more going for it than just having a hands-free Alexa. Still, it is a lot of fun to mess around with and if you are working, being able to tell Alexa to play something is way handier than you would think.

Let’s Talk About Money!

As I said the base model of this tablet is $149.99 and I really do think that is a great price for a tablet of this quality. I think the price is even better if you are an Amazon Prime member. I am not so sure that doubling the internal storage is worth the extra 40 bucks in all honesty. Still, the Fire HD 10 Tablet 10 is a tablet I have a hard time imagining anyone will ever say is not excellent value for money.

Final Thoughts on The Fire HD 10 Tablet

While it may be what some would call “basic” I really do think that the Fire HD 10 Tablet with Alexia Hands-Free is the best tablet Amazon has put out so far. While it is nice that it has the hands-free Alexia functionality. It is more the internal changes that they have made which make this a great purchase.

The improved battery, the better-quality screen, and the faster processor make this one of the best budget priced tablets around. If you are in the market for a device to watch some movies on while in bed, surf the internet, but stuff and listen to music. You will have a hard time finding a better deal than this.

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Fire HD 10 Tablet with Alexa Hands-Free

Front Line:

Finding the right tablet can be really hard as the market is flooded with them. Amazon really struck gold with the Fire line and this one I am looking at today the Fire HD 10...

About The Author

Maurice L. Bays

Lead Analyst Cameras

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