The Fire HD tablet lineup now includes four new devices: Fire HD 8 , Fire HD 8 Plus, Fire HD 8 Kids Edition, and Fire HD 8 Kids Pro. Running on the latest Fire OS version, FOS 8, these tablets introduce new dynamic screen features for building immersive, engaging experiences in your apps and games. Accessibility improvements also help connect you with more users around the world.
Better-performing devices for increased app usage
The new devices are 30% faster than the previous generation and include 2GB and 3GB RAM options for faster app launches. Users can enjoy up to 13 hours of video, music, reading, and web browsing - made all the more seamless with the split screen and scalable picture-in-picture features. The experience also extends beyond the 8-inch HD display with screen mirroring for video, browser apps, and photos on compatible larger screens.
π‘ Tip - Make sure your app UI is responding to changes in window size when users enable split screen. Using the Jetpack Compose material3-window-size-class library, you can easily detect what the current window size is and change your layout:
setContent {
val windowWidthSize = calculateWindowSizeClass(activity = this).widthSizeClass
when (windowWidthSize) {
WindowWidthSizeClass.Compact -> {
// Not a lot of width size you could display a bottom navigation UI
}
WindowWidthSizeClass.Medium -> {
// Reasonable space to change from bottom navigation to a left drawer
}
WindowWidthSizeClass.Expanded -> {
// Your app using all the width
}
}
}π‘ Tip - When an app enters picture-in-picture mode, the UI shown can be very small. You may want to adapt the visual elements for optimal user control (such as show/hide the video player stop/play button):
override fun onPictureInPictureModeChanged(isInPiP: Boolean,
newConfig: Configuration) {
if (isInPiP) {
// Hide the Video Player control buttons while in picture-in-picture mode.
} else {
// Restore the Video Player control UI
}
}Reaching more users with accessibility features
Fire HD 8 tablets include support for Switch Access, Text to Speech, VoiceView screen reader, Display Size, and screen magnifier, helping you optimize your app and maximize user reach. This is in addition to Dark theme and privacy and security behavior changes introduced with FOS 8 earlier this year.
Update your apps
Apps running on FOS 8 must set the targetSdkVersion to 30 to enable additional user privacy and app performance. Apps running on previous FOS versions will be available for download on the Fire HD 8 tablets; however, updating apps to the newest version provides users with the privacy and security benefits introduced with Android 11.
As a reminder, Amazon Appstore requires a minimum target API level of 28 for apps running on FOS 7. Review the device filtering and compatibility guidelines to ensure maximum compatibility across devices.Interesting in learning more? Check out these resources:
