Back in 2015, Amazon released its cheapest tablet yet - the 'Fire tablet' for just $50 (with lock-screen ads). There's still a sizable developer community around the device too, with plenty of hacks and ROMs available for owners.Now the company is following up with a new model, named the Fire 7. The Fire HD 8 is also getting a minor refresh, in case you need something a little bigger. The 7-inch tablet still starts at $50 with lock-screen ads, and $64.99 without. The Fire HD 8 starts at $79.99 with lock-screen ads, and $94.99 without.So you might be wondering what is different with the new models. Honestly, there doesn't appear to be any major hardware or software differences. The colors are different - both tablets are available in Black, Canary Yellow, Marine Blue, and Punch Red. The smaller Fire 7 also has dual-band Wi-Fi for the first time, so you can connect to 5GHz networks.Here are the full specifications for the Fire 7/Fire 7 Kids Edition:

SPECS

Display

7" 1024x600

Processor

Quad-core 1.3GHz

RAM

1GB

Cameras

VGA front-facing camera, 2MP back camera with 720p HD video recording

Connectivity

Dual-band Wi-Fi

Storage

8 or 16GB for Fire 7, 16GB only for Fire 7 Kids Edition (both models have microSD expansion)

And for the Fire HD 8/Fire HD 8 Kids Edition:

SPECS

Display

8" 1280x800 IPS

Processor

Quad-core 1.3GHz

RAM

1.5GB

Cameras

VGA front-facing camera, 2MP back camera with 720p HD video recording

Connectivity

Dual-band Wi-Fi

Storage

16 or 32GB for Fire HD 8, 32GB only for Fire HD 8 Kids Edition (both models have microSD expansion)

The product pages and press releases didn't reveal what version of Fire OS (Amazon's fork of Android) the tablets are running, so it's probably safe to assume they're running Fire OS 5. That version is based on Android 5.0 Lollipop, and obviously doesn't include any Google services or the Play Store. I imagine the Play Store will be pretty easy to sideload, just like with the original Fire tablet, once the developer community starts digging into it.

Both tablets are available in 'Kids' editions, which are more expensive than the respective base models, but have a few useful perks. First, Amazon includes a two-year worry-free replacement guarantee with both models. Both tablets also come with one year of Amazon FreeTime Unlimited, which includes access to tons of age-appropriate books, videos, educational apps, and games.

The Fire 7 Kids Edition is $99.99, and the Fire 8 HD Kids Edition is $129.99. Not bad at all, considering everything you get with it. You can find all models on Amazon at the source links below.

Source: Amazon - Fire 7, Fire 7 Kids Edition, Fire 8 HD, Fire 8 HD Kids Edition

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