Amazon Switches Fire Tablet to Android in Major Revamp

Amazon is planning a major change to its Fire tablet product line following years of complaints from app developers and consumers over its operating system. According to Reuters, the Amazon fire tablet Android revamp will see the ecommerce giant introduce a higher-end tablet as early as next year under a project called Kittyhawk.

Amazon Ditches Homegrown Fire OS

People familiar with the ecommerce giant say the new Amazon project Kittyhawk tablet will run on the Android operating system for the first time.

Amazon has been using a forked version of Android on Fire tablets since it introduced them in 2011. This version featured custom modifications that allowed it to run like a unique operating system.

For a long time, Amazon has been looking to outperform hardware competitors by producing affordable tablets and other mobile devices that serve as dissemination platforms for digital content like videos, e-books, and music. The selling price for these devices has almost been the same as the manufacturing price. However, Amazon’s focus on simplicity has caused a drop in sales as consumers opt for higher-performing devices.

Responding to Consumer Concerns

Amazon’s Kittyhawk Android Fire tablet project represents a shift for the retail giant, which for a long time, has shunned third-party software and operating systems and instead opted to develop its own. As a result, the online retail giant has established an app store with limited app variety as it requires developers to create different versions of apps for their Fire tablets.

Should Amazon succeed with its Kittyhawk project, it could make Fire tablets more appealing to consumers who prefer compatibility with other Android devices.

“Consumers have always expressed a concern about not having access to the latest Android versions, not having access to some of their apps because Amazon used their own store. It means more work for developers in this day and age of largely free apps or services,” Jitesh Ubrani, a Researcher at IT Advisory Firm, IDC said.

However, sources close to Amazon warned that the project may be delayed, or even get cancelled due to financial concerns.

Ubrani added that Amazon has sold millions of its Fire tablets and forfeited profits from those sales in favor of revenue it generates from the services it provides through the devices, like movie rentals.  In April 2025, the ecommerce giant experienced challenges with its premier shopping event as third-party sellers kept off the Amazon Prime day due to tariff threats. The challenge is that its inexpensive tablets come with compromises like lower battery life or screen quality compared to costly options. Currently, Amazon controls 8% of the global tablet market share compared to Apple and Samsung, which control 33.1% and 18.7% respectively.

Switch to Pricier Android Fire Tablets

The new Android Fire tablet will be more costly than existing Amazon devices. Sources close to the ecommerce giant say Amazon was looking at price tags like $400 or close to double the price of its current higher-end Fire Max 11 tablet that costs $230. The specifications of the Android tablet like memory capacity, screen size, or speaker quality remain unclear.

Sources also say the new Fire tablet will leverage the open-source version of Android. This means the company will be able to customize the operating system. Amazon will also not require to coordinate directly with Google.