Amazon finally gave users a good reason to buy its Alexa tablets
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Amazon has announced its 2026 line of Alexa tablets (via Amazon News). The main selling points of this year’s models are the built-in Alexa+ advanced smart assistant and full access to the Google Play Store. Alexa+ is worth paying for on its own, but the inclusion of access to Google Play is also a great reason to buy an Alexa tablet. If you’ve been disappointed by the Amazon App Store’s thin offerings in the past, now might be the time to give an Alexa tablet a real chance.
Previous iterations of Amazon’s Fire Tablet line used a custom fork of the Android operating system and only allowed access to limited offerings from Amazon’s proprietary app store. This has led to the common feeling that an Amazon Fire tablet simply isn’t necessary. But the new Alexa tablets promise to offer a true, full-fledged Android experience. Now that Amazon’s tablets are officially compatible with Google Play for the first time, they can finally be a serious competitor to other powerful Android tablets.
Is the Alexa 2026 Tablet Really Worth Buying?
The new Alexa Tablet is available in three models ranging in price from $229 to $679: the Amazon Alexa Tablet 8, the Amazon Alexa Tablet 11, and the Amazon Alexa Tablet 12 Pro. The model you choose will determine the screen size, resolution, storage space, and RAM capacity of the tablet. But if you’re trying to decide between one of these tablets and another option, it’s important to think about how you feel about Amazon’s unique features.
The new Alexa tablets feature distraction-free Kindle reading mode on an Amazon tablet for the first time. If you thought reading on a Kindle beats other devices, the Alexa tablet might change your mind. Amazon claims the Alexa tablet has a battery life of up to 20 hours of reading time, making it a worthwhile product if you have a growing collection of digital literature.
Additionally, the Alexa range of tablets is equipped with Alexa+. If you haven’t used it on another Amazon device yet, you might be surprised to learn that Alexa+ has some exciting new features like context-aware memory and streamlined automation. It also has an on-screen intelligence feature that lets you request more information about whatever is currently displayed on your Alexa tablet’s screen while browsing or reading. It’s an intriguing device worth purchasing as a complement to your existing Alexa smart home ecosystem.
