Amazon recently released the Alexa Tablet range – and it's the biggest shakeup to the retail giant's tablet lineup yet.
As the name suggests, Alexa+ and its AI capabilities are front and centre of this new range. I was lucky enough to get an early demonstration, where I was shown how the Alexa tablet could find and start TV shows, give personalised recommendations based on your taste and even understand what was on screen.
But the feature that stood out to me most? The new "nanomatte" display.
Nanomatte is a term coined by Amazon, and refers to its "precision-etched anti-glare technology" that aims to make the screen visible indoors and outdoors, at any angle, in any light. It gives a paper-like feel that makes text look as if it is sitting on top of the glass, and Amazon claims the screen retains 82 per cent contrast in bright conditions
And while Amazon had the full lineup on display – the Amazon Alexa Tablet 8, 11 and 12 Pro, all of which had impressive screen specs for the money – the nanomatte model stood out immediately with a more vibrant, contrast-rich screen that looked far more premium than its siblings.
We were able to see the nanomatte screen in action with some clips from House of Cards, and it's safe to say we were impressed. The footage looked crisp and detailed, even during a difficult dark scene in ambient light. We weren't able to put the anti-glare technology to a full test outside, but early signs were promising.
The problem? The nanomatte display is only available on the pricey Alexa Tablet 12 Pro model – and it costs an extra £50 on top. That's a starting price of £500 if you want the fancy new nanomatte screen.
Amazon is not alone in this – Apple are even worse offenders. The tech giant also has a similar nano-texture glass screen available on its iPads, but only on the pricey Pro model with at least 1TB of storage. This time it's an extra £100 for the premium display option, bringing the grand total to an eye-watering £1899.
All of which seems like a bit of a missed opportunity for film and TV fans craving a good anti-reflection screen to watch on the go, of which there are likely many on this site. They'll be pushed to buy the Pro models, which are being marketed more as professional productivity devices rather than for on-the-go entertainment, so it's somewhat overkill to buy one just for watching Reacher on the plane without reflections.
Could the nanomatte option not come with the cheaper and more portable Alexa Tablet 11 too? Will the display technology inevitably trickle down in subsequent generations, or will it remain as an incentive to upgrade to the top model?
I'll give credit to Amazon for at least bringing the specialised anti-glare finish to a more sensible price point than Apple. But for years, Amazon reigned supreme as the go-to budget tablet king for watching films and TV on the go – and it could too at this more mid-range price with this one small change.
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