The 3rd-gen Fire TV Cube has been released today and I have it in hand. Amazon PR usually sends me new Fire TV models for review at least a few days before the public release day, but, unfortunately, this time I didn’t get the review unit until this morning. So my usual in-depth coverage of a new Fire TV model is going to be trickling out a little later than usual. I’ve already got the new Fire TV Cube 3 running through my set of benchmarks, so look for a raw performance comparison coming very soon. In the meantime, let me know in the comments if there is anything specific you’d like to know about the new flagship Fire TV model and I’ll do my best to cover it in the upcoming articles about the 3rd-gen Fire TV Cube.
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I am mostly interested to see if the speed improvements are noticeable, and how well the upscaling works.
I used to have a problem playing Gemini Man on my Plex install on my gen 2 Fire TV. This particular video only played on my Nvidia Shield Pro. Just finished installing my new Fire TV, installed the Plex app and the movie played smooth as butter. Have not tried fast forwarding rewinding yet (did this 10 minutes back) but seems to be better.
Imo the speed compared to my 2nd gen Cube was night & day. Breezes through menus as fast as i can click the button without any hiccups and all images loading instantly. The upscaling is what i was most looking forward to and can report I was quite impressed. I have my 3rd gen Cube hooked up to a 65″ Vizio OLED with an $80 Audioquest cable and instantly turned on The First 48 which is only a 1080p show and the quality was outstanding to say the least. Not only does it do a great job at upscaling, but the picture quality in general just looks so much better, more vivid, clear, just all around better. Even the menus looked better. Imo i definitely think it was worth the upgrade. I got my money’s worth out of my 2nd gen, and it was getting really laggy so I’m definitely glad I made the switch.
Agree on speed. Gen 2 was getting laggy, Gen 3 is snappy and quick. With Gen 2, I always had a border on my Hisense U8G. Now the video stretches the whole 75″ of my screen – I love it!!
Just got yesterday, very noticable speed improvement, apps load very fast. I have no regrets so far
In comparison to the 2nd gen cube?
Does it support TrueHD and DTS-MA audio passthrough.
It believe it does. Am using it to pass audio to a Samsung QN90A over arc and then to a Samsung Q950A soundbar. Can control both using the remote. Need to do more testing though.
HDMI ARC does not support TrueHD or DTS-HD. HDMI-eARC is required for both.
The Samsung Q90A does not passthrough any DTS audio format.
So I’m guessing a huge improvement over first generation?
Have you had a chance to play some TrueHD or DTS-MA files yet? Can’t seem to find anybody who has.
I don’t believe any Fire TV devices support any of the DTS audio standards.
when running with fully wired ethernet, how bad is the latency when streaming via the steamlink app?
I’m looking for microphone improvements. My Google devices can hear a quiet voice from a room away. With my fire cube 1 and 2, I feel like I have to shout at it from 10 feet away.
Why it doesn’t have AirPlay 2??? No really, Elias? Why doesn’t it have AirPlay 2??? We don’t keep features as exclusives to TV sets, here! We support AirPlay 2…and then Matter control and Matter Casting too! Bluetooth audio sending too! Also? Desperately in need Roku Stream Bar Soundbar IR support too! Should have been added like…yesterday! Also? For some reason? My DirectTV Stream box colors look dulled down going through the Cube 3 INPUT, while the main Fire TV looks vivid and perfect…haven’t checked other devices.
What are the notable differences to this vs a sheild 2015 (non hdd version) and a sheild 2017 version.
I have the 2015 sheild, an unopened v2 cube ane really trying to determine if if i can settle with dolby atmos via netflix apps on my qn95a and passthrough via plex/kodi on my sheild 2015 for everything else…
Waiting on delivery today, hopefully, a good cube.
What is the ram, rom, cpu?
https://developer.amazon.com/docs/fire-tv/device-specifications-fire-tv-streaming-media-player.html
oops. wrong link.
https://developer.amazon.com/docs/fire-tv/device-specifications-fire-tv-cube.html
Will movies anywhere and Vudu app do 4K and atmos on it? I can never get those apps to do it on fire cube 2. I don’t think the apps list them as a supported device.
Having same issue. I was hoping just because it is new device but you are saying that it is same issue on the 2nd gen?
https://www.amazonforum.com/s/question/0D56Q0000AFVgHMSQ1/is-anyone-able-to-view-movies-in-uhd-with-vudu-app-on-fire-tv-cube-3rd-gen
Looks like they are already aware and working on a fix.
Please, could you check if it supports (A) Frame Rate Matching for other apps than Prime Video (like Netflix, D+, HBO Max…)?
Also, if (B) plays properply at 24Hz content on Prime Video? Eg. Fire TV Stick 4K Max cannot play correctly 24Hz content (like “Rings of Power”), and plays that as 23.976Hz – which causes stuttering… And if (C) the stuttering is visible at Prime Video when auto framerate is on? 4K Max has some issues in about each 15-17 minutes of runtime (more here: https://www.avsforum.com/threads/fire-tv-4k-max-choppy-video-every-20-minutes-or-so.3245334/).
Thanks a lot!
This is a biggie for me too. I returned the 4K Stick Max because it couldn’t handle integer frame rates. Please check for stuttering on Prime Video and Netflix 24hz material! Thank you!
Also the most important thing to me. It is the only reason I’m running an apple tv 4k. Is frame matching in apps like Netflix (and notably Disney+ 24p movies) working better than gen 2? I always had issues up to the last time I tested it in July 2022 with frame matching and my projector.
One wish I’ve had with gen2 Cube is ability to have everything turn on with voice and switch directly to TV’s OTA signal (or another HDMI input on the TV). This vs. having to issue a second command saying “Alexa, switch to antenna” or channel XY. Can this be done with a single command with gen3?
I’ve had success saying “switch to NBC on fire TV”.
Thanks, but in my case, it turns on the TV and switches to NBC Now steaming channel on FTV :(.
If I hook an Xbox to it with HDMI will the sound play thru a pair of echo studios paired to it? My fire cube now has no AEC so I need a way to play sound from the Xbox.
Will it blend?
yes but not ice cubes…lol
What software version it comes with from the factory.
not sure if it’s just me, but I setup my gen3 today and when I went to my Alexa routine that starts my tv (connected to the cube) i could not see the gen3 cube listed as a firetv via the routine flow.
can we disable HDR same as we do on the fire stick 4k max?
Yes
Does the cube support at least 4:4:4 4K 60hz output and input? Don’t have cable so curious if there are any interesting ways to use the hdmi input. Input from another firetv device for some fake multitasking? Video feed from security system?
I’m really interested in the super resolution upscaling. If it’s better or worse or the same as Nvidia Shield’s AI Upscaling.
+1 on this. The shield does an amazing job of upscaling. I hope the new cube can do as good a job, as I much prefer the cube as a day to day steamer.
Benchmark and memory management
I would like to see a comparison of the cubes upscaling vs shield upscaling. And just general benchmarks vs as many other devices as possible.
Is ambient intelligence via Alexa widgets available in a screen saver?
A 2 column comparison between the 2nd Gen Cube and the new 3rd Gen Cube would be very helpful in boiling it down as to whether or not to bother buying the new model. So many of us have greater or lesser interests in watching TV.
As others have asked, does it support Dolby TrueHd and DTS-MA when playing MKV files on Plex?
Silly question… Can I use the same power supply as my gen 2 cube? Swapping that out requires more effort than I expected.
Yes
Yep, that is what I did. Was too painful to dig around in the mass of tangled cables. Just unplugged the power, HDMI and ethernet cables from the Fire TV 2 and plugged them into the Fire TV 3.
Haha – EXACTLY!!!
Please test if it supports DV profile 7 with dual layer (single track) MKV files. So far Chromecast with GoogleTV is the only streamer that supports it, but it doesn’t offer lossless sound support.
In order to test it, play this file with the Plex player or JustPlayer app:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/12DjMIdjIcGSguLS8Ghel4RG3DM3thbxA/view?usp=sharing.
If you see the screen flashing different colors and two images mixed together – than it’s good news!
And of course you need to test that with a DV enabled TV.
I have a Samsung QN90A that does not support DV else would have tested.
On certian apps that are installed they are greyed out (Opera, Adia64) on the 2nd Gen cube that was fixed. It seems also that developer menu app is reporting the incorrect values as on the 2nd gen cube but not on the 4k Max. Overall the new cube is a great device just needs some software tweaks.
Did Amazon limit ethernet speed? I’ve been using a gigabit usb hub on my Firestick Max and noticed speed of 106 mps and I have 800 mps that use to register at over 300. I connected the same hub to Fire Cube 3 with similar 108 mps. WiFi is well over 300.
Ethernet is only 10/100. Not gigabyte speed
Same answer as below with regards to the fact it’s not gigabit speed, but just wondering what you used to get over 100 on your firestick max? I would guess that you’ve got an incorrect reading on that speed test as I was told that there is no hardware to use with firestick and rhe OTG cable to get higher than 100
I used an OTG cable with ugreen usb hub with a gigabit ethernet port on it. It would consistently test at over 300mps on FireStick Max up until a few upgrades ago then not much above 100mps. Currently I have it plugged into the Fire Cube 3 through the usb port. Last night it kept testing at around 100 mps, but this morning it now almost to 200 mps. I’m not using the built in Ethernet on the Cube that only 100 mps.
do you have a link for that setup? also, I receive over 350 mps on wifi, any reason I should consider this? I find my internet is generally very stable.
thanks. I tried a ugreen with gigabit port and it won’t work. When speaking to some guys on an online forum they said it can never work so was interested how you got such a high speed. My wifi ended up being fine though as i am getting 400 mbps out of the 500 mbps connection so didnt need the wire
What I noticed using the hub is that if the Cube 3 is in sleep mode it won’t allow input from HDMI as well as through the usb port. I would eventually get the Cube light flashing indicating no internet connection. If you plug directly into the Ethernet port of use Wi-Fi the Cube doesn’t disconnect from the internet.
For more quality of life issues, I’d like to know if the fire TV cube 3 lets you modify time out and screensaver with or without having to plug it into a computer. One of my biggest annoyances is pausing something on Netflix for 5 minutes and coming back to the Amazon home screen every time. The only way to disable this is by connecting it to a actual computer to change the settings
Yes, from Control Panel on Cude, you can set minutes in 5, 10, 15 or never.
Unfortunately that setting is pretty useless and just stops the screen saver but not the time out.
After about 15 minutes, the cube boots you out of any apps and back to the Amazon profile select screen.
The only work around involves connecting it to a computer to change hidden settings.
Please do benchmark comparison with all popular streamers, including Apple TV 4K.
Does the 3rd Gen Cube allow Child Profiles to be used?
Does the HDMI In allow HDR passthrough?
Will it control a Blu-Ray player via the HDMI pass-through?
im having issues maintaining the 4k (2160p) with my Vizio OLED tv. It continues to fallback to 1080p or i get a disturbing pixelated screen. once tv LOCKED and had to power cycle via the power cord.
Hi Elias, can you please check what languages are available?
Yes I have a 2nd gen cube are Amazon offering anything to upgrade to 3rd gen.
There is nothing wrong with it so should I upgrade?
Hi, just got the cube 3 and set it up. But when set to “best sound available” on the sounds settings output is only PCM/ Atmos+PCM. Called tech support and told it’s a software issue. Changed settings to “Dolby digital plus” and now output is DD+/Atmos+DD+ but this should be on a new device. Any thoughts?
I’m having the exact same problem. My new Cube only outputs PCM. I have a Yamaha receiver. My previous Fire TV stick 4K Max does not have this issue. I contacted Amazon support and they had me set up the receiver again, but it didn’t help. They said they were going to forward the issue to another team and that I would receive an email. What model receiver do you
have?
I have a Sony receiver. I also have a fire stick 4k and no issues. It’s not a receiver problem. It’s the cube. They escalated the issue but who knows when it’ll be fixed.
Also I’ve seen that every time the cube goes to sleep and I turn it on the display settings change to 1080p and I have to manually change to 4k. Frustrating. Anyone else have this issue. Please check your display settings.
YouTube app still doesn’t support 4k for purchased UHD videos. Also seeing significant buffering issues/audio lag with hbo Max, YouTube, and prime video. I have gig speed with wifi6, anyone else seeing this?
I too would like to know about lossless audio passthrough Dolby TrueHD and DTS-MA.
It has a usb connection.
Can it play media files from this port?
What is the maximum file size it can play?
Can it be jailbroken or sided like other cubes and like the fire stick?
Wi-Fi disconnects over night. Ever morning I’ve gotten the glowing light on the Fire Cube 3 that indicates no signal. I’ve attempted to reconnect with the cube indicating no signal, but all my other devices in the home have signal. I’m now trying hard wiring into the cube to see if I loose internet.
TrueHD or DTS-HD on media files?
Are they passed through to the amp or downgraded to DD+ like the old sticks?
Can you check something for me on your 3rdcgen Cube before I have to try factory reset please. I use Alexa Routines, and since I got my 3rd gen Cube I can’t set an action for it, too either turn on or turn off (or anything for that matter) cause when you click add action in Routines and select Fire TV from the menu, my new Cube doesn’t show in the list. It does show up in my devices list and in my group though. Although weird, in my device list the 3rd gen Cube has a different icon from my previous 2nd gen and the other 2nd gen that’s in my home. The icon for the 3rd gen Cube looks like a wifi signal, rather than the Fire TV icon previously. Could you look into this please? Could you check to see what icon your 3rd gen Cube shows in your device list and also see if you can create a routine and add an action for the Cube? I’d greatly appreciate. Just don’t want to have to factory reset if this is an actual problem. I’ve tried asking in TG groups with no luck. Thanks for you time!
hi,
my Gen3 icon looks like the same as Gen2 and like you it does’nt show into routines section.
how does it handle emulation specially n64 , dreamcast and newer systems, I think the GPU still not good enought
Hi has anyone noticed you cannot change the voice to male ?
I’ve got a fire stick in the back of my tv and I’ve an alexa show 8. What would be the difference in getting the cube 3?
Can I use a TV fire cube in Spain?