Amazon Fire tablet problems and how to fix them

The Kindle Fire range, now known as Amazon Fire, has been quite the success story in the world of Android tablets. Since the original Kindle Fire made its debut, Amazon’s devices have seen numerous upgrades, with the HD coming in various sizes and offering content for different audiences. While many of these are still some of the best budget Android tablets around, even the most popular products out there have some problems. We gathered some of the most common problems with the Amazon Fire tablets, and offer potential solutions to fix them!

Freezing or not starting up

Some users have reported that they encounter brief freezes or issues when starting up their Fire tablets, or cannot turn on the device at all.

Possible solutions:

• Hold down the power button for forty seconds to force reset the device (the tablet will turn off), and then press the power button to turn it back on. This may clear out any glitches that are causing the problem. If you need more help with this process, check out our guide on hard resetting Amazon Fire tablets.
• If you think your battery may be empty, leave it charging for at least half an hour, or until the charge light turns green before you try to turn it back on.

Tablet not charging

Some Amazon Fire HD owners have commented on numerous problems with the battery and charging. Some simply refuse to charge, whereas others charge only a fraction and slowly charge.

Potential Solutions:

• Turn off your Fire HD tablet, then charge it for a couple of hours. Wait for the charging light to turn green before you attempt to turn it back on again.
• Try the charger with an alternate device to ensure that the cable or charger is not broken. If it isn’t, try using another outlet you know is working.
• Look into the port and see if there is any dirt, hair, lint, or any type of debris in there. These small obstructions can affect charging, if enough build-up has collected. Try to clean it up with a cotton swab, or maybe a toothpick. Just be gentle; you don’t want to damage anything there.
• If the light to indicate charging does not appear, try pushing the cable further or moving it gently. Some Fire HDs have been found to have loose ports. If your port does turn out to be loose, the best option is to pick up a replacement. Here are our lists of the best chargers and best charging cables.
• If this happens to be a hardware issue, you should contact Amazon support to get it fixed. This should be free if your device is within the warranty period and you didn’t cause the damage. You can also claim insurance, if you purchased it.

Audio problems

A few users have reported problems with getting audio to come through their headphones or speakers on their Fire tablets.

Potential Solutions:

• Make sure your volume is turned up by tapping the volume up button at the side of the tablet, or go to Settings > Sound and manually control the volume.
• If your speakers aren’t working, try plugging in a set of headphones, then unplugging them again.
• Reboot your tablet by turning it off and on again. Just press the power button for a few seconds and hit Restart.
• If you have any, try connecting some Bluetooth headphones and see if these work. If you can hear sound on Bluetooth headphones, and not on the speakers, or through the 3.5mm headset jack, then you can isolate the problem and act accordingly.
• Alternatively, if you normally use Bluetooth headphones, it may just be that the tablet is sending the audio to them. I always forget to turn off my wireless headphones! You can either turn these off or turn off Bluetooth by going to Settings > Connected Devices and toggling off Bluetooth.
• If you have a case on your device and your headphones aren’t working correctly, try removing the case and trying the headphones again. It may just be that the case is getting in the way.
• Try jiggling the headphone jack gently and see whether there’s a sound. If it does, you may need to contact Amazon about getting a replacement, as the port or speakers are likely faulty.
• If this happens to be a hardware issue, you should contact Amazon support to get it fixed. This should be free if your device is within the warranty period and you didn’t cause the damage. You can also claim insurance, if you purchased it.

Prime Video problems

Some users have run into problems when trying to play videos on Amazon Prime Video. They see different error codes like 1007, 1022, 7003, 7005, 7031, 7135, 7202, 7203, 7204, 7206, 7207, 7230, 7250, 7251, 7301, 7303, 7305, 7306, 8020, 9003, 9074.

Potential solutions:

• Close the Prime Video app on your device and restart the tablet. To close the app, go to Settings > Apps & Notifications > Se all apps > Prime Video > Force Stop > OK.
• Make sure that the tablet is running the latest software version. To check, go to Settings > Device Options > System Updates > Check Now.
• You might see errors if the same account is on multiple devices. You can only stream Prime Video on three devices simultaneously.
• Of course, make sure that you have a stable internet connection. You may need to restart your Wi-Fi router. Try a speed test. Keep in mind Amazon recommends a bandwidth of 1Mbps for SD content and 5Mbps for HD content.
• Ensure you aren’t connected to a VPN or a proxy server. Amazon Prime Video doesn’t work with these services.

E-books disappearing

Some Fire HD tablet owners cannot find their downloaded e-books, or the e-book isn’t opening when the device is offline.

Potential solutions:

• There is a way to download the Google Play Store on a Fire tablet, which could cause this problem. First, find the Kindle app in the Play Store and uninstall it (it’s already on the device via the Amazon App Store, and this could cause a conflict). Then, make sure the Google Play Store doesn’t automatically update apps. In the Play Store, tap on your profile icon, then go into Settings. Expand Network preferences. Tap on Auto-update apps, and select Don’t auto-update apps. Then hit OK.
• If you don’t have the Play Store installed, it could be a sync issue. Restart the tablet by pressing on the power button for a few seconds and hitting Restart.
• You might also need to clear the app cache. Go to Settings > Apps & Notifications > See all apps > Kindle > Storage, then tap on Clear Cache. You can also try to Clear Storage. This will delete all app data, including your login credentials and files. You’ll need to set it up again.

Wi-Fi issues

You may have Amazon Fire tablet problems connecting to a Wi-Fi network for various reasons.

Potential Solutions:

• Start by ensuring that you do not accidentally have Airplane mode activated and that Wi-Fi is on by going to Settings > Internet, and ensuring Wi-Fi is on and Airplane mode is toggled off.
• Restart the tablet and check if the connection is back. Press the power button for a few seconds and hit Restart.
• Download a Wi-Fi analyzer app to make sure that channels in your area are not too busy.
• Of course, make sure that your internet connection is actually working by testing it with another device.
• Try restarting the router, if there is no internet connection. Some routers have a reset button, and some can be turned off using an app. If you don’t want to deal with these methods, simply unplugging it, waiting for 30-60 seconds, and plugging it back in will do the trick.
• If this happens to be a hardware issue, you should contact Amazon support to get it fixed. This should be free if your device is within the warranty period and the damage wasn’t caused by you. You can also claim insurance, if you purchased it.

Stuck on the logo screen

Some users find that their Fire tablet is stuck on the logo screen before turning off. This is likely caused because of a low charge on the tablet.

Potential solutions:

• Charge your tablet for at least half an hour or until the charge light is green. Then, try powering the device on.
• Some users have found that plugging the tablet into a computer makes it load past the logo screen.
• You might have to reboot the system by going into Recovery Mode. To do so, first power off the device. Turn it on by pressing and holding the power and volume up buttons simultaneously. Navigate to the Reboot System Now option using the volume up and down keys. Press the power button to select this option.
• If this happens to be a hardware issue, you should contact Amazon support to get it fixed. This should be free if your device is within the warranty period and the damage wasn’t caused by you. You can also claim insurance, if you purchased it.

What Amazon Fire tablet problems have you encountered? Be sure to let us know in the comments below. We’ll do our best to help.