Tech

Amazon Fire 7 (2022) review: Good enough for the basics


Advantages

  • Good price
  • Doubles as Alexa smart display
  • Battery life
  • USB-C

Defect

  • Performance requires patience
  • Display is ok
  • Cameras aren’t all that impressive

The last time Amazon updated the Fire 7 tablet was in 2019, which is a first when it comes to the technology. Then in May, Amazon announced one Fire 7 update, add a USB-C port, move the front-facing camera, and increase performance and battery life. Those changes come with a price increase, with the base model Fire 7 going from $49.99 to $59.99.

Amazon started shipping the Fire 7 at the end of June, which is around the time Amazon sent me a review sample to test it out. I used it for casual reading, playing a video game or two, and watching videos. And, in that respect, it’s done very well.

Specifications

Processor MediaTek MT8168V / NO
Display 7-inch, 1024 x 600 IPS
Memory 2GB
Warehouse 8/16GB, microSD support up to 1TB
Camera 2MP rear, 2MP front
Battery Up to 10 hours
Connection 802.11ac, Bluetooth 5.0,
Operating system Fire OS
Color Black, Denim, Rose

Modern but basic tablet

The design of the Fire 7 won’t attract much attention when you use it in public. It’s a basic plastic case with a glass top that’s designed to get the job done. It comes in three different colors – black, denim and pink. The front-facing camera has been moved to the center of the screen when the Fire 7 is in landscape orientation, which makes video calls from small tablets easier. The front and rear cameras are both 2-megapixel sensors. Photos and videos look good, but not great.

Nearly all ports and buttons are on the right edge of the case when the tablet is tilted. There’s a power button, volume up/down buttons, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and – my favorite part – a USB-C port for charging the tablet. The removal of micro USB on Amazon devices is something the company is working on, and the addition of USB-C on a $60 tablet is something worth pointing out.

Also: Using the wrong USB-C cable can damage your technology. How to avoid that

On the bottom edge of the Fire 7 is a microSD card slot that allows you to increase the storage from 16GB or 32GB to 1TB.

The screen measures 7 inches, as the name suggests, and has a resolution of 1024 x 600. It’s not the sharpest display, but that’s to be expected at this price point.

The most remarkable thing about the Fire 7’s design is how small it is. It’s something you can easily carry around in your purse or backpack without noticing it’s actually there. For detail orientation, the Fire 7 measures 7.11 x 4.63 x 0.38 inches and weighs 9.9 ounces.

Amazon Fire 7

Jason Cipriani / ZDNet

Performance improvement is just good enough

Amazon’s Fire 7 tablet has always had good enough performance to pass. With the 2022 release, that approach remains intact. Amazon is using a quad-core processor with 2GB of memory in the Fire 7, the company says, adding a 30% increase in performance over the 2019 model.

The 2GB memory alone is double that of the previous model, and it’s a notable addition, especially when it comes to gaming. However, the overall performance with the Fire 7 is what will teach you patience.

When navigating between different sections and aspects of the interface, such as opening the Kindle Store, Amazon Appstore and then viewing the Library tab, the tablet is sometimes quick and responsive. But then you hit the search box and there’s a longer-than-expected delay for the Fire 7’s keyboard to show up.

There’s a dedicated gaming mode built into the Fire 7’s operating system that automatically turns on when it detects you’ve opened a game (any game you’ve installed from the Appstore will activate it). Game Mode optimizes the device’s memory, hides notifications, and disables the Alexa feature. Even with Game Mode, it can take a minute or two before the game is playable.

From what I can tell, as long as an application remains in memory, the performance increase is noticeable. But if you, for example, exit the Silk Browser after browsing the web for a few minutes and then return to it an hour or two after using the Fire 7 for another task, the next launch of Silk it will take a few more seconds to load.

In other words, the Fire 7’s performance is good enough as long as you’re in a single app and don’t expect it to be a multitasking workhorse.

Amazon touts 10 hours of battery life for the Fire 7, another metric of improvement over the 2019 model. And, while I can’t confirm that 10 hours can be used, I can say that the battery life is decent. one of the areas of the Fire 7 where I don’t have any complaints. I had plenty of battery left after streaming a few hours of free live TV in the Freevee app, browsing the web, and trying to play Roblox.

Amazon Fire 7

Jason Cipriani / ZDNet

About the software… and Alexa!

One of the biggest complaints about any Amazon device is the lack of Google apps and services. The Fire 7 runs Amazon’s Fire operating system, which is based on Android, but Amazon has profoundly changed and customized the way it works. As such, it hasn’t gone through Google’s certification process, and therefore you won’t find apps like Google Maps, Gmail, or YouTube pre-installed or available in the Amazon Appstore.

Despite the lack of support for Google apps, you can find most of the big-name apps in the Amazon Appstore – like Spotify, Disney+, Facebook, and Zoom. It’s not ideal for someone who has invested heavily in apps from the Google Play Store or for someone like me who relies on a password manager that isn’t in the Appstore.

One of the benefits of customizing the operating system on the Fire 7 is that Amazon can build Alexa directly into the device. That means you can use the tablet as a makeshift Echo Show device. There is a switch to turn Alexa on or off in the quick settings panel. When it’s on, you can say “Alexa” followed by a command or question the same way you would if you had an Echo smart display or a dedicated Echo speaker.

Along with the ability to ask Alexa questions, you can view and manage your Alexa-connected smart home devices like cameras, lights, and outlets with your voice or by tapping the Devices button. dedicated in the bottom navigation bar.

Key point

Amazon Fire 7

Jason Cipriani / ZDNet

Amazon’s Fire 7 Tabletagain a well-rounded experience as long as you factor in cost when setting expectations. It’s not the fastest device you’ll use, and its speed can frustrate you at times. But, with patience, it’s a solid tablet, colorful Kindle, dedicated Alexa smart display, and smart home controller combined.



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