Here’s the All-New Amazon Fire HD 8 for 2018

Are you itching to get your hands on a medium-sized tablet, but don’t want to spend a lot of money in the process? If you happen to have an extra $100 or so kicking around, the all-new Fire HD 8 tablet from Amazon might be worth a gander. Yes, they’re saying this is an “all-new” tablet for 2018.

When I reviewed the current Amazon Fire HD 8 back in January, I found a lot to like. No, it won’t compete against the iPad Pros and Surface Pros of the world. That much is clear. But you do get a lot of bang for your buck. It’s great for some Amazon Video on the couch or a little Kindle reading before bed.

Looking a little closer at this all-new Amazon Fire HD 8 for 2018, though, I don’t find much (if anything) that’s all that different from the 2017 model. You still get a 1.3 GHz quad-core processor, 1.5 GB of RAM, Dolby Atmos Audio, and an 8-inch 1280 x 800 pixel HD display. It comes in 16 GB or 32 GB flavors with a microSD slot for up to 400 GB more storage.

That all sounds like old hat to me. The battery is said to last about 10 hours on mixed usage and you get to use Alexa too. The all-new Amazon Fire HD 8 will support Show Mode as well. And then you get access to all the Amazon goodies like ASAP, For You, X-Ray, Second Screen, Blue Shade, Prime Video downloads, and screen sharing with an Amazon expert for help.

Up here in Canada, the new Fire HD 8 only comes in black and sells for $99.99 (16 GB) and $129.99 (32 GB). Optional cases come in several colors for $39.99 each. In the US, the tablet will come in Black, Canary Yellow, Marine Blue and Punch Red. Prices start at $79.99 for the 16 GB model with special offers, going up to $94.99 for 16 GB without special offers, $109.99 for 32 GB with special offers, and $124.99 for 32 GB without special offers.

Pre-orders start today in both stores. The all-new Amazon Fire HD 8 (2018) ships starting on October 4.