Amazon Fire 7 (2022) review

Finest Costs Immediately: Amazon Hearth 7 (2022)

The Hearth 7 has all the time been Amazon’s entry-level pill. And it has all the time value $49.99/£49.99. This 2022 mannequin sees its first value rise since its introduction in 2015, virtually seven years in the past.

Amazon calls it the 12^th era mannequin, however that features all fashions again to once they have been known as Kindle Hearth. For those who depend solely these known as Hearth 7, it’s the fourth era.

None of that is related, after all, if you happen to merely need to know whether or not this finances pill is value shopping for. And that’s precisely what we’ll clarify on this overview.

Options & design

• 7in, 1024×600 pixel display screen
• 16GB RAM with microSD card slot for growth
• Fingers-free Alexa

Amazon hasn’t deviated a lot from the same old recipe for its Hearth tablets. Chunky black bezel across the display screen? Test. Plastic rear cowl? Test. Low-resolution 7in display screen? Test. Terrible 2Mp entrance and rear cameras? Test.

These may sound like criticisms – and they’re – however you may’t fairly anticipate higher while you’re paying this little for a pill. The entry-level iPad, for context, prices $329/$319, which is over 5 occasions costlier.

As ever, it’s essential to keep in mind that the Hearth 7 runs Amazon’s personal working system known as Hearth OS. It could be based mostly on Android however there isn’t a Google Play Retailer and no Google apps or companies. The entire level of Hearth tablets, so far as Amazon is anxious, is to be a store window for Amazon companies together with Prime Video, Kindle, Audible, Amazon Music and, naturally, Amazon procuring. We’ll discuss extra about software program afterward.

Jim Martin / Foundry

The 2022 Hearth 7 isn’t a recycled 2019 mannequin: it’s genuinely new, with a brand new button association that sees the facility and quantity buttons positioned collectively, a USB-C port (as an alternative of microUSB) and – usefully – a headphone jack for conventional wired headphones. You may pair Bluetooth headphones if you wish to go wi-fi, although.

Jim Martin / Foundry

The display screen and cameras are unchanged, which is a disgrace as all are extraordinarily fundamental high quality. The bezel across the display screen is extra pleasing to the attention because it’s the identical width all spherical. The front-facing digicam has been moved from the quick facet to the lengthy facet, which means you’ll want to carry the pill in a panorama orientation for video calls, versus portrait on the older mannequin.

Colors have modified, too: as an alternative of Twilight Blue there’s now Denim, and as an alternative of Plum there’s Rose. Sage has been dropped fully: the one different choice is Black.

As standard, the bottom mannequin has 16GB of storage, with roughly 9.5GB obtainable to your apps, video games and information. You may pay extra for the 32GB mannequin, which has round 25GB of usable storage. It’s attainable so as to add as much as 1TB extra through a microSD card however from earlier expertise, it’s finest to put in apps on the inner storage.

There’s a single speaker on the top-left nook (high being the facet with the digicam), and it sounds very tinny with no bass. It’s nearly satisfactory for watching movies and taking part in informal video games, however not for music.

Jim Martin / Foundry

Construct high quality is okay: Amazon says the Hearth 7 is twice as sturdy because the 2021 iPad mini. So it’s extra more likely to survive unintended drops with out the display screen cracking. For those who’re contemplating shopping for this for a kid, the Children Version comes with a bumper case that provides much more safety together with a two-year guarantee that covers unintended injury and a 12 months’s entry to Children+, Amazon’s subscription service that’s full of child-friendly movies, video games, apps, books and extra. However, the Children Version does value twice as a lot.

It gives no water resistance, so though it’ll in all probability survive the odd splash of water, it will possibly’t be submersed.

Efficiency

With a 2GHz quad-core processor and 2GB of RAM, the 2022 Hearth 7 has extra grunt than its predecessor. Not a complete lot extra, thoughts: Amazon says it’s 30% quicker which sounds good, however the Hearth 7 has all the time been described as sluggish and the elevated firepower doesn’t do so much to vary that.

Scrolling and navigating round Hearth OS 8 is a comparatively clean and responsive expertise, however you quickly start to note the dearth of tempo while you faucet on an app. The display screen will go gray and an orange circle will spin for a couple of seconds earlier than it seems. It isn’t a deal-breaker: it’s what you get while you spend $60/£60 on a pill.

Benchmarks equivalent to Geekbench 5 affirm that the newcomer is roughly 30% faster, which places it on a par with the Hearth HD 8 that makes use of the identical processor and RAM. With a multi-core rating of 515, it’s a approach behind finances telephones such because the Samsung Galaxy A13 (which scored 585), which we additionally criticised for being too gradual.

Don’t purchase the Hearth 7 for gaming, except the video games you take into consideration are undemanding puzzles, or the endless-runner sorts equivalent to Jetpack Joyride and different non-3D titles like Amongst Us. Sadly, neither of these is offered in Amazon’s Appstore, illustrating the principle disadvantage of choosing an Amazon pill: the selection of apps is rather more restricted.

Jim Martin / Foundry

See also  Nokia G42 5G review

Higher examples embrace Crossy Highway and Fruit Ninja, which may be put in simply. (It’s attainable to put in Android video games, and sure Android apps such because the PCMark benchmark we use, on a Hearth pill, nevertheless it entails leaping via fairly a couple of hoops.) Roblox can also be obtainable, however doesn’t run very easily.

Battery life is the actual spotlight of this new mannequin. In our exams, it lasted virtually precisely the ten hours Amazon claims – up significantly from the 2019 mannequin that lasted round six hours.

Recharging the battery is, sadly, very gradual. Amazon features a tiny 5W USB charger which takes barely over 4 hours to refill the Hearth 7 from empty to full. There’s no quick charging choice, and also you’ll barely get 20% cost you probably have solely half-hour to cost it from empty.

Cameras

There’s little new to say: each cameras provide very poor high quality in comparison with even finances smartphones. They’ve the identical decision as earlier Hearth 7 tablets and even in good gentle, you’ll be disillusioned (as will your children) with pictures and movies.

In low gentle, don’t even hassle attempting to make use of them.

The entrance digicam is satisfactory for video calls, partly since you’ll be targeted on the opposite individuals on the decision moderately than your personal video. Usefully, in addition to Alexa calling, you will get Zoom, Skype and Fb Messenger on the Hearth 7.

Software program

The Hearth 7 runs Hearth OS 8, which is predicated on Android 11. That’s already the earlier model obtainable on many Android telephones, however right here it doesn’t actually matter.

You wouldn’t realize it was Android apart from a couple of similarities equivalent to the way in which you swipe down from the highest to see the shortcut tray and notifications. In comparison with the 2019 Hearth 7, you do get some minor further options together with extra detailed permissions for what apps can and may’t do (equivalent to utilizing the microphone and webcam), and whether or not they can do issues within the background or not (equivalent to accessing your location).

There’s additionally a ‘correct’ darkish mode. Hearth OS is darkish by default and has supplied the selection of darkish or gentle modes earlier than. Now, with official OS assist, apps ought to now comply with swimsuit and undertake whichever mode you select.

As talked about, there’s no Google Play Retailer which limits which apps you may (simply) set up on a Hearth 7. Not like Amazon Hearth TV units, the official YouTube app shouldn’t be obtainable for Hearth tablets, a relentless annoyance for customers who’ve to make use of Amazon’s net browser to look at through the YouTube web site or set up one of many unofficial YouTube apps, that are typically inferior to the actual factor.

There are many well-liked apps (suppose Spotify, Netflix), however what you received’t have a tendency to seek out are ‘service’ apps equivalent to cellular banking and sensible dwelling apps to your sensible lights, safety cameras and others.

Jim Martin / Foundry

That is the place Alexa may be useful because it’s usually attainable to allow the Alexa talent for such devices. However you’ll nonetheless want a smartphone to get these units arrange within the first place.

Alexa is hands-free on the Hearth 7, although you’ll must allow the assistant after which allow hands-free mode within the settings as each are disabled by default.

Worth & availability

The apparent place to purchase a Hearth 7 is from Amazon. The bottom 16GB mannequin prices $59.99 / £59.99, however word that it will have adverts on the lock display screen except you go for the “With out Adverts” mannequin while you buy. That provides $10 / £10 to the value.

You may also spend the identical quantity to improve to the 32GB mannequin.

For cover, you might purchase Amazon’s official case, however at $28.99 / £28.99 it provides virtually 50% to the whole value.

These can be found in the identical colors because the pill itself, although they’re known as Wild Rose and Deep Sea Blue, not Rose and Denim, for some motive. One benefit is that they’ve a built-in stand for watching movies or following recipes hands-free.

The Hearth 7 Children prices $109.99 / £109.99 and has the identical alternative of 16GB or 32GB ($20 / £20 extra) and you may select between purple, blue or purple bumper instances.

You may learn our critiques of the opposite Amazon Hearth tablets for a greater concept of how the varied fashions evaluate. For those who’re shopping for for a kid, it’s nicely value studying our roundup of one of the best children’ tablets.

Verdict

There are sufficient upgrades and enhancements right here to make the Hearth 7 nicely value the additional $10 / £10 over its predecessor. It’s nice to have longer battery life, barely improved efficiency and the USB-C port, which makes it a lot simpler to connect the charging cable.

The tiny value means you’ll need to dwell with dismal picture and video high quality from the cameras, and the low-resolution display screen.

For $30 / £30 extra, you might as an alternative get the Hearth HD 8 that has an even bigger, greater decision display screen, double the storage, higher sound and even longer battery life, however you’ll nonetheless be caught with the identical cameras and the identical limitations when it comes to app alternative.

There aren’t actually any comparable Android tablets at this value, particularly if you wish to keep on with identified manufacturers equivalent to Samsung. In case your finances received’t stretch additional than $60 / £60, that is one of the best pill you may hope for, however simply don’t anticipate an excessive amount of.