Amazon Launches Alexa Tablets With Alexa+ Built In, From $229.99

• $229.99Lineup starting price
• $499.9912 Pro starting price
• 16 hours12 Pro video playback
• Oct. 14U.S. ship date

Amazon has introduced Amazon Alexa Tablets, a three-model line of Android tablets with its Alexa+ assistant built in and prices starting at $229.99.

The lineup includes the Amazon Alexa Tablet 12 Pro, the Amazon Alexa Tablet 11 and the Amazon Alexa Tablet 8. Amazon said the tablets are on sale now and will ship Oct. 14 in the United States, Mexico and Canada.

Shipments to the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy and Spain begin Oct. 19, according to the company. The tablets will be sold on Amazon.com and through retailers including Best Buy and Target.

Each model has an aluminum unibody design and runs Android with access to the Google Play Store. That opens the devices to apps such as YouTube, Netflix, Gmail and Google Docs.

Amazon’s own apps come built in, including Prime Video, Kindle, Audible, Amazon Music, Amazon Quick and Amazon Luna.

The 12 Pro starts at $499.99 with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage in Graphite. A version with what Amazon calls a Nanomatte anti-glare display starts at $549.99.

Amazon described the 12 Pro as the most advanced tablet it has built. It measures 6.5 millimeters thin and has a 12-inch display at 280 pixels per inch, with a 120Hz refresh rate and a 3:2 aspect ratio.

The tablet runs on a 4-nanometer, 8-core chip with up to 16GB of RAM. Amazon said it delivers nearly three times faster processing and nine times faster graphics than any tablet the company has shipped before.

It also has four Dolby Atmos speakers and Wi-Fi 6E. Amazon rated video playback at 16 hours, the longest of any tablet it has made. Amazon’s performance and battery figures come from the company and were not independently verified.

The Nanomatte screen, available only on the 12 Pro, was developed with Corning. Amazon said a photolithography process etches a texture into the glass at the sub-pixel level to cut glare while keeping detail and color accurate. The company called the result first of its kind.

Two accessories are designed only for the 12 Pro. The Pro Pen, priced at $89.99, is a USI 2.0 active pen with 4,096 levels of pressure sensitivity, tilt detection, magnetic docking and wireless charging.

The $149.99 Pro Keyboard attaches magnetically and needs no Bluetooth pairing, Amazon said. The company said users can work in several windows side by side and switch between work and personal profiles.

The Tablet 11 starts at $329.99 with 8GB of RAM and 64GB of storage. It has an 11-inch, 2.5K display at 276 pixels per inch, a 90Hz refresh rate and a 16:10 aspect ratio.

That model uses an 8-core processor and dual Dolby Atmos speakers, with up to 15 hours of video playback, according to Amazon. It comes in Graphite, Amethyst and Matcha.

The Tablet 8, the smallest in the line, starts at $229.99 with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage. It has an 8.7-inch display, weighs 329 grams and measures 7.95 millimeters thin.

Amazon said the Tablet 8 has an 8-core processor, Wi-Fi 6 and up to 14 hours of video playback. It is offered in Graphite, Rosette and Teal.

Users can call up Alexa+ by saying “Alexa” or tapping an “Ask Alexa” button without leaving the app they are using. A feature called On-Screen Intelligence lets the assistant read what is on the screen and help with it, such as adding dates from a game schedule to a calendar.

A live-session mode allows a continuous, hands-free conversation without repeating the wake word between questions. Users who turn on On-Screen Intelligence can also share their screen during a session.

Amazon said every On-Screen Intelligence feature is off by default and requires users to opt in. A visual indicator appears whenever Alexa is active, and users can turn off any feature at any time, the company said.

The home screen includes a personalized For You feed and a new Dynamic Tab that shows content in progress, recommendations and suggestions.

Opening a book in the Kindle app switches the tablet into a reading mode that silences notifications and reduces blue light. Amazon said battery life in that mode reaches up to 20 hours.

The reading mode offers three display themes. Notes and markups made with the Pro Pen sync across Kindle apps on pen-supported devices and on Kindle Scribe, the company said.

Amazon also introduced Amazon Kids Tablets in 8.7-inch and 11-inch sizes. The bundles include a device, a kid-proof case and a year of Amazon Kids+.

Separate versions are aimed at children ages 3 and up and ages 6 and up. Younger children get a soft bumper case with designs from franchises such as Paw Patrol and Barbie, while the older group gets a slim hard case with a kickstand.

Amazon Kids+ is adding Storybuilder, a tool that lets children create illustrated stories using their voice, along with a redesigned Parent Dashboard that gives weekly insights. The Kids Tablets also ship in Japan on Oct. 14.