Amazon on October 8 unveiled its "Alexa Tablet" lineup: the company's first tablets to run native Android with full Google Play Store access, retiring the Fire brand after 15 years. The three models start at $229.99, $329.99, and $499.99. Preorders are open now, shipping October 14 in the US, Mexico, and Canada, and October 19 across Europe.
Since 2011, Amazon tablets have run Fire OS with Amazon's own Appstore, walled off from Google's ecosystem — installing YouTube or Gmail meant sideloading. The new lineup runs Android 16, so YouTube, Netflix, Gmail, and Google Docs install directly from Google Play, alongside Amazon's own apps (Prime Video, Kindle, Audible, Luna). Amazon confirmed Fire tablet production is ending, but existing devices will stay supported for at least four years after the final shipment.
The 12-inch 12 Pro is the flagship: a 280 PPI, 120Hz, 3:2 display, with an optional Nanomatte anti-glare version built with Corning ($549.99); a 4nm 8-core chip with up to 16GB of RAM — Amazon claims nearly 3x processing and 9x graphics performance versus its previous tablets; 16 hours of video playback, Wi-Fi 6E, quad Dolby Atmos speakers, and a 6.5mm aluminum unibody. The other two target value: the 11-inch model offers a 2.5K 90Hz display, 8GB of RAM, and 15-hour battery life from $329.99; the 8.7-inch tablet weighs just 329 grams and starts at $229.99.
All three ship with Alexa+ built in: say "Alexa" or tap the Ask Alexa button without leaving the current app. An optional "On-Screen Intelligence" feature can interpret what's on the tablet to analyze information or help plan activities. The screen-related features are off by default and require deliberate opt-in, with a visual indicator whenever Alexa is active. The tablets also add a dedicated Kindle action for the first time.
Compared with Fire tablets that once sold for just over $100, pricing has clearly moved up: the entry model at $229.99 costs what a high-end Fire used to. The 12 Pro gets a magnetic keyboard ($149.99) and a USI 2.0 pen ($89.99, 4,096 pressure levels, tilt detection, magnetic docking, wireless charging) — fully kitted, the setup reaches about $740, squarely in iPad Air territory.
The strategy is blunt: Fire tablets were cheap but crippled by the app gap; with Google Play closing that gap, the hardware can aim higher. Amazon's internal pitch, shared with TechRadar, is that the 12 Pro "doesn't, in any way, force you to compromise" — a direct bid for iPad Air buyers. Whether the bet pays off depends on whether shoppers will pay iPad-grade money for an Android tablet with Alexa inside.