Amazon refreshes lineup of low-cost tablets, new kids model

Amazon’s performed some spring cleaning on its tablet line. Independent analysts estimate that Kindle tablet and e-reader owners spend far more than non-Kindle owners on Amazon.com – up to 30 percent more, according to a report from the Consumer Intelligence Research Group. Make no mistake, these are not the most powerful tablets in the market but that’s not the point anyway.

Amazon’s Kids Edition tablets also include the FreeTime Unlimited content plus new FreeTime features like Discussion Card and Parent Dashboard.

“The new Element Fire TV Edition smart TVs deliver access to the best streaming, live over-the-air TV broadcasts (HD antenna required) and subscription content through one unified experience, eliminating the need for multiple devices and remotes”. Inside is a quad-core processor, an ARM Mali Multi-core 3D GPU with 3GB of RAM, and 16GB of internal storage.

The company Wednesday introduced the Amazon Fire 7, a thinner and lighter model with a 7-inch display that has better clarity.

Alexa works as you’d expect her to with the included Voice Remote, which resembles a longer Fire TV Voice Remote, but with volume buttons and three buttons for Amazon Prime Video, Netflix, and Amazon Music. There are also age-appropriate books and videos to enjoy at no extra cost. Of course, you have almost unlimited access to those if you’re a Prime subscriber. Ask it for the football scores and you’ll get a score card, with goal breakdowns by half. A leader in TV Everywhere advancement and cross-platform availability, EPIX is continuing to expand its footprint to reach millions of customers with the launch on Amazon Fire TV. Their key difference, however, is that they are packaged with kids in mind.

Starting next week, Fire TV users can gain access to a limited free trial of EPIX exclusively on Amazon Fire TV. Of course, parents have the final say, with parental controls at their fingertips.

The company also announced a new version of the 7-inch Fire tablet, which will keep its $50 price tag. The new-and-improved version of the Fire 7 will stay the same price: $49.99.

Fire 7 Kids Edition is $99.99 (a total value of over $225) and is available for pre-order today at www.amazon.com/fire7-kids-edition.

Otherwise, the Fire Tablet has the same FireOS we’ve seen before, with plenty of shortcuts to Amazon’s web pages, streaming services and apps.