Amazon launches three Alexa+ tablets starting at $229

The new lineup pairs premium aluminum hardware and Google Play access with Amazon’s AI assistant built into every model

Staff Writer
Amazon Alexa Tablets
Image: Supplied

Article summary

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Amazon has launched three new Alexa Tablets with Alexa+ built in, Google Play access, and aluminum builds. Prices run from $229.99 for the 8-inch model to $499.99 for the 12 Pro flagship, which ships October 14.

Key points

  • Amazon launches three Alexa+ tablets starting at $229.99
  • 12 Pro flagship offers 16-hour battery and Nanomatte anti-glare display
  • All models ship October 14 in the US, Canada, and Mexico

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Amazon has announced three new tablets under the Amazon Alexa Tablet name, each with Alexa+ built in, full Google Play Store access, and aluminum unibody construction. The range spans 8-inch, 11-inch, and 12-inch sizes, with prices starting at $229.99. All three ship on October 14 in the US, Mexico, and Canada, and reach the UK, Germany, France, Italy, and Spain on October 19.

The flagship, the Amazon Alexa Tablet 12 Pro, is the most hardware-intensive device in the lineup. At 6.5mm thin, it carries a 12-inch display at 280 PPI with a 120Hz refresh rate and a 3:2 aspect ratio.

It is powered by a 4nm 8-core chip with up to 16GB of RAM, which Amazon says delivers nearly three times faster processing and nine times faster graphics than any tablet it has previously shipped. Battery life is rated at 16 hours of video playback. The 12 Pro starts at $499.99, or $549.99 for the Nanomatte anti-glare display variant.

The Nanomatte display is exclusive to the 12 Pro. Amazon developed it with Corning using a photolithography process that etches a pixel-aligned texture into the glass at the sub-pixel level, preserving colour accuracy while reducing glare. The company says the result reads cleanly indoors and outdoors at any angle.

Two accessories are available for the 12 Pro: a Pro Keyboard ($149.99) that attaches magnetically without Bluetooth pairing, and a Pro Pen ($89.99), a USI 2.0 stylus with 4,096 levels of pressure sensitivity and wireless charging via magnetic dock.

The mid-range Alexa Tablet 11 has an 11-inch 2.5K display at 276 PPI, a 90Hz refresh rate, an 8-core processor with 8GB of RAM, and up to 15 hours of video playback. It starts at $329.99 and comes in Graphite, Amethyst, and Matcha.

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The Alexa Tablet 8 weighs 329g and measures 7.95mm thin. Its 8.7-inch display is paired with an 8-core processor and Wi-Fi 6, with up to 14 hours of playback. It starts at $229.99 in Graphite, Rosette, and Teal.

All three tablets run Android and include Google Play access, enabling apps like YouTube, Gmail, and Netflix alongside Amazon’s own suite. Alexa+ is accessible via voice or an on-screen button without leaving whatever app is open. A feature Amazon calls On-Screen Intelligence lets Alexa read what is on the display and respond in context, though it is off by default and requires explicit opt-in.

When the Kindle app is open, the tablets enter a dedicated reading mode: notifications are suppressed, blue light is reduced, and battery life extends to up to 20 hours. The Nanomatte model’s texture is designed to give the Pro Pen a paper-like feel for annotations, which sync across Kindle apps and Kindle Scribe.

Amazon also announced new Kids Tablets in 8.7-inch and 11-inch sizes, bundled with cases and a year of Amazon Kids+. A new Storybuilder tool lets children use their voice to create illustrated stories.