Trying to use an SD card with your Amazon Fire tablet?
While older Amazon Fire tablets don’t support external memory, luckily the new editions of Amazon’s ‘cheap’ tablets do accept SD cards. While having 128GB of storage might feel impractical for such a lightweight device, movies do take up quite a lot of space.
With that in mind, how do you use SD card with Amazon Fire tablet? There are two ways that you can do this, and we’ll go over the pros and cons of both options down below.
Once you’re done expanding your storage space, here’s how you can install Google Play on your Fire tablet so you can install YouTube. Without further ado, this is how you can use SD cards with Amazon Fire tablets to give yourself that extra and much-needed storage.
Let’s get started!
- 1. microSD Vs SD Card.
- 2. Formatting Your SD Card.
- 3. Use SD Card With Amazon Fire Tablet For Internal Space.
- 4. Using The SD Card For Portable Memory.
- 5. Setting Up Your SD Card With Amazon Fire Tablet.
1. microSD Vs SD Card.
First off, microSD cards and normal SD cards are physically different. If you have a normal SD card then that probably isn’t going to fit in your Fire tablet. The Amazon Fire only accepts microSD cards since they are smaller and much more compact.
In fact, SD cards are also somewhat outdated so you may as well invest in a microSD if you haven’t already. Additionally, there are a lot of benefits to having an external memory. Unfortunately, these perks did get lost when phones transitioned to exclusive built-in internal storage.
External memory allows you to switch SD cards with someone to exchange files. If you’re watching a movie, you could unmount your SD card and plug that into your TV then play your movies there.
With that in mind, try to check for reference pictures online so you can differentiate the physical appearance of an SD and microSD card. Amazon’s Fire tablets can accept up to 1TB of external space, but that is a little overkill.
2. Formatting Your SD Card.
While we recommend getting a new microSD for this, using an old microSD that’s lying around is a great way to save a couple of bucks. However, keep in mind that to use a microSD with your Fire tablet: you’re going to need to reformat your microSD card.
Reformatting your microSD will completely wipe out all the data on your card to prepare it for your Fire tablet. Additionally, the orientation and importance of your microSD will depend on whether you’re using this for external storage or as a pseudo-internal space for apps.
We’ll expound on the differences of both in a bit, for now, try to back up the files on your microSD. Other than that, once you plug the microSD into your Amazon Fire, your tablet will automatically ask you to confirm if you want to reformat the microSD or not.
The process is pretty straightforward from there, so we’ll cover that in the next two topics below. Moving on, it’s time to figure out what you want your microSD card to be used for.
3. Use SD Card With Amazon Fire Tablet For Internal Space.
Having your microSD used as pseudo-internal space can let you download and install more apps that otherwise wouldn’t fit in your normal Amazon Fire. Unfortunately, you won’t be able to unmount and transfer your microSD without losing all the data and functionality of the apps installed on your microSD.
Pseudo-internal storage means that the storage space is used internally but isn’t actually built into your device. So your microSD acts like internal storage even though it’s technically an external device.
For what it’s worth since most applications are cloud-based like Twitter and Facebook, you can always just log back into your account and not lose any data. Programs like that will only require you to re-download the app and then you’ll be able to use the service again like normal.
Additionally, you can also move apps back and forth from your internal storage to your microSD. This way, you won’t have to lose any data in case you want to unmount and remove your microSD card.
4. Using The SD Card For Portable Memory.
If you’re already satisfied with the apps you have installed on your tablet but simply want to have the extra storage space for movies and songs, then this is the choice for you. Setting up your SD card as a portable storage device makes it flexible while still giving you all that needed extra space.
While you may not be able to install your apps into your microSD card, you’ll have all the space you need for movies, books, files, and so on. The only real downside to using your microSD this way is that you won’t be able to install apps without reformatting it into pseudo-internal storage.
Other than that, it acts exactly like a hard drive when connected to a computer. This would be the best way to set up your SD card if you’re the type to move your microSD everywhere between devices.
5. Setting Up Your SD Card With Amazon Fire Tablet.
Now that we’re on the hands-on side of things, opening up your microSD slot isn’t too hard. Don’t be intimidated by this, even if it is your first time since you’ll only be opening up a flap and inserting your microSD.
However, feel free to seek professional services if you feel like this is out of your reach. If you want to proceed, we suggest having something like a paperclip or another pointy object if your nails aren’t long enough to pry the SD card slot open.
Here’s how you can use your SD card with Amazon Fire tablet:
- First, you’re going to have to look for the microSD slot on your tablet. You should find this at the top-right corner of your tablet in a long and circular shape with a groove that you can use to lift up the cover.
- Open this up with the paperclip and insert your microSD until it clicks. Do this slowly since it’s very common for people to insert this on the wrong side, if so just flip the microSD and try to insert it again. If you have a hard time getting it through all the way, you can push the microSD lightly with your paperclip.
- Close the cover to avoid dust build-up and swipe down from the top of your screen. Your Fire tablet should detect that an unrecognized or unsupported storage has been inserted. Tap on this prompt to proceed.
- This is the part where you’ll decide how you want to use the Micro SD. Tap on either choice between Tablet Storage and Portable Storage and your Fire tablet should begin setting up your Micro SD as a compatible storage device.
Congratulations! Your SD card is now ready to use. Regardless of how you oriented your microSD, knowing the proper steps of removing your SD card is pretty useful.
That about wraps up this article. Hopefully, we’ve taught you how to use SD card with Amazon Fire tablet. If you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment down below or to converse with our other readers.
If this guide helped you, please share it. 🙂
