Amazon Fire 7 2022 review
The smallest and cheapest on Amazon. The Amazon Fire 7 2022 review tablet gets a much-needed upgrade in design, speed, battery life, and software, but at a price increase.
The Fire 12 7th Gen starts at £59.99 ($59.99), £10 more than the previous version, but still offers the best value for money in the budget tablet market.
All of Amazon’s tablets have a proven formula: simple, durable designs, reasonably priced screens, fast-enough chips, and their own version of Android that offers a long lifespan for much less than leading rivals.
The tablet body is made from 35% recycled plastic and feels smooth and wear-resistant. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian
The new Fire 7 inherits the sleeker, modern, and slimmer design of the recent Fire HD 8 and HD 10 tablets. The 7-inch screen is better than it looks on paper, but it’s not HD, and it pales in comparison. higher price competition. It’s fine for casual TV shows and movies, but it doesn’t have an automatic brightness adjustment, so you’ll have to manually turn it off at night or in bright light.
The mono speaker sounds surprisingly good for viewing in person, but it’s too quiet to block out noise from cooking or the like. There’s a headphone jack at the top for wired listening, but the tablet supports Bluetooth 5 and should work with any wireless headset you have.
specs
display: 7-inch LCD (1024 x 600) (171 dpi)
Processor: 2GHz quad core
hit: RAM 2GB
storage: 16GB; MicroSD slot also available
Operating System: Android 11. Based on Fire OS 8
Camera: 2MP front and rear cameras
Connectivity: Wi-Fi 5, Bluetooth 5, USB-C, Headphones
Dimensions: 180.7 x 117.6 x 9.7mm
Weight: 282 grams
Faster with longer battery life
Buttons and charging port on the side of the Amazon Fire 7 tablet. The new Fire 7 has a modern USB-C port for charging, replacing its predecessor’s micro USB port with a standard headphone jack. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian
The tablet has a new processor and more RAM, making it up to 30% faster than its predecessor. It’s still not what you’d call fast, but the interface is responsive enough and videos load instantly. Apps can be a bit slow at times, but the game ran fine.
The base model has 16GB of storage, of which 9.5GB is available for apps and media, but it also has a microSD card slot to add more space cheaply.
Battery life is excellent, with at least 10 hours of video viewing, which is certainly enough for a compact tablet, and three hours longer than its predecessor. It charges very slowly though, taking four hours to fully charge with the included 5W power adapter and only about 30 minutes faster with the more powerful charger.
Fire OS 8.3
An episode of Miss Marvel on Disney+ playing on the Fire 7 tablet. Most of the major streaming media apps are available on the Amazon App Store, including Disney+. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian
Fire 7 is the first Amazon tablet to run a new and updated version of its Fire OS software, now based on the latest Android 11, which brings with it enhanced security and privacy options. It lacks Google Play store and services, and relies on Amazon’s app store and services. Amazon typically backs its tablets with at least several years of software and security updates compared to its lower-cost Android rivals.
The interface is similar to previous versions of Fire OS, with a simple home screen for apps and media, a personal “For You” section, and a “Library” section with all your books, games, movies, and other proprietary media. Kindle. It also has Alexa built in to control devices and answer questions.
Amazon’s App Store has most of the media consumption apps you’d want in the UK, but they’re not available on BT Sport, Paramount+, Google’s YouTube, Chrome and Maps, and Apple’s Music and TV. Zoom, Skype, and Alexa are available for video calls, while the store has a pretty wide range of games, though many of them suck. Note Fortnight is not compatible with Fire 7.
You need an Amazon account to use the tablet, as well as a Prime membership that gives you access to Prime Video to get the most out of it. Note Device encryption is not enabled out of the box, so I recommend turning it on when you set it up to protect your data in the event of theft.
sustainability
The top edge of the Fire 7 tablet houses the speaker grill. The mono speaker at the top of the tablet is well positioned to avoid blockage when holding it in your hand. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian
Amazon doesn’t provide an expected battery life, but it should last more than 500 full charge cycles with at least 80% of its original capacity. The Fire 7 is generally repairable and consists of 35% post-consumer recycled plastic. The company offers exchange and recycling plans and publishes information about its various sustainability efforts.
worth
Amazon Fire 7 costs £59.99 ($59.99) with lock screen ads and 16GB of storage or £69.99 ($79.99) with 32GB. Removing ads from the lock screen costs an additional £10 ($15).
The Kids Edition of the Fire 7 with a sturdy case, a two-year replacement warranty and one year of Kids+ subscription service, Amazon’s hub for kids’ apps, games and media, costs £109.99.
For comparison, the Fire HD 8 is £89.99, the Fire HD 10 is £149.99, and Apple’s 10.2-inch iPad is £319.
Decision
The Amazon Fire 7 is still an entry-level tablet for simple browsing, reading, and media consumption.
The new, more modern design, the faster chip, the longer battery life, and the new version of Android are all welcome updates. But it won’t thrill you, it’s missing Google and some apps, and it can’t beat the iPad.
But that is not the point. It gets the job done for the least amount of money possible with much longer software support than budget competitors at this price point. Despite the £10 price increase, the Fire 7 is still an incredible value at just £60. It will appeal to anyone who wants to spend as little as possible to get online and watch videos.
