Any downside to Galaxy A 7" tablet vs Fire HD 8

Hi all,
I’ve searched for info comparing these two as I’m sure others have considered it, but I haven’t found much. I’m on the beginning path of basic home automation, and am trying to choose a main tablet for the automation. It won’t be wall mounted, so I don’t share the concerns others have with making it act like a wall panel. I’ve just started installing Lutron Caseta switches, have an Alexa Dot, and am ordering Ecobee4 thermostats and the SmartThings Wifi mesh since my router is getting a bit long in the tooth. My initial primary automation concerns are lighting, thermostat, basic Alexa functions, and later Ring security functions.

I plan to use ActionTiles on the tablet. I realize the Fire tablets are the most popular for cost, especially when people buy multiple ones. With a couple discounts I would get through Samsung, an 7" Galaxy A tablet comes in at the same price as an HD 8 without ads. Considering this, and that for now I’ll just have the one tablet, should I not just get the Galaxy even though the screen is smaller? Or should I spend a bit more on the 8" Galaxy? Are more people using the Fires just because they’re cheaper, or is there some other advantage to them I’m not aware of?

Thanks for the help!

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I have Had both, Currently using Samsung tab 2’s have 6 running Action Tiles and Fully Kiosk they are super stable never any issues, You will also find that the Samsung tablets are a lot easier to set up. Fire tablets have a bunch of work arounds to make them work properly. But there is a lot of helpful post here for that. Good Luck.

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