The biggest new Fire TV software change announced today at Amazon’s big new devices event this morning was the revamped Fire TV voice search. Second to that is the announcement that Fire TV devices will be getting a new “Continue Watching” row on the home screen that will display what you’ve been watching from both Amazon streaming services, like Prime Video and Freevee, but also 3rd-party streaming services, like Disney+, Hulu, Max, Peacock, and more. Read more ›
With two new high-end Fire TV Stick models announced today, you have more options than ever if you’re looking for a 4k-capable Fire TV. How does the 1st-gen Fire TV Stick 4K stack up against the new 2nd-gen Fire TV Stick 4K? What about the same for the old and new 4K Max? How does the latest Fire TV Stick 4K compare to the new Fire TV Stick 4K Max? Is the 3rd-gen Fire TV Cube worth the upgrade over the flagship Firesticks? Here’s a comparison table with all the specs for the 1st-gen Fire TV Stick 4K, 2nd-gen Fire TV Stick 4K, 1st-gen Fire TV Stick 4K Max, 2nd-gen Fire TV Stick 4K Max, and the 3rd-gen Fire TV Cube. Read more ›
At Amazon’s big new devices event this morning, there was a lot of focus on the new hardware being released, like the new 4K Fire TV Sticks and the new Fire TV Soundbar, but Amazon also revealed some interesting new software improvements coming to Fire TV devices. The most impressive demo was the new conversational AI-based improvements to Alexa voice searches for Fire TVs. Read more ›
As expected, Amazon has announced a pair of new Fire TV Sticks at its big new devices event this morning. The new Firesticks are a 2nd-gen Fire TV Stick 4K, which replaces the previous model released in 2018, and a 2nd-gen Fire TV Stick 4K Max, which replaces the model released in 2021. Both new devices receive a performance improvement and improved WiFi capabilities, compared to the models they replace. However, as is to be expected, some improvements are found only in the new Max model. Read more ›
Amazon’s SVP of devices and services, Dave Limp, announced his retirement last month after over 13 years with the company. According to a report from Bloomberg, his replacement will be Panos Panay, who just announced this morning that he will be leaving Microsoft as its chief product officer. Panay, who has been with Microsoft for nearly 20 years, led the development of Windows and the company’s Surface line of devices. As Limp’s replacement, Panay would be in charge of Amazon’s massive line of devices and services, which includes Fire TV, Echo, Fire Tablet, Kindle, Ring, Blink, Eero, Alexa, Luna, Fire OS, the Amazon Appstore, and much more.
Amazon has added a new feature to Fire TV devices, called Preview Party, where you can find free episodes of popular TV shows across numerous streaming services. This collection of full-length free episodes consists of primarily the first episode of a series to give you a preview of the show. There’s no free-trial subscription necessary to watch these free episodes and you don’t even need to install an app to watch most of the content available. Read more ›
If you’ve ever felt like there was a bit of a divide between Amazon’s Echo and Alexa products and other Amazon devices, like Fire TVs and Fire Tablets, that’s because they have always been headed by different executives within Amazon. The two groups of Amazon devices have always been more like cousins with related parents than siblings of the same parent. That has now changed, I believe for the first time, because Daniel Rausch, who is Amazon’s head of entertainment devices which includes Fire TV, Fire Tablets, Kindles, and more, has recently been put in charge of Alexa as well. Read more ›
While the Fire TV Stick 4K Max is the second newest model in Amazon’s current Fire TV lineup, there have been a few signs that the device will be replaced with a new model this year. Most notably, a recent FCC filing for a pair of devices that appear to be Fire TV Sticks carry strong signs that they are a new Fire TV Stick 4K and 4K Max. Now, what is, in my opinion, the most telling sign that a new Fire TV Stick 4K Max is on the horizon has just occurred. Read more ›
A Redbox streaming app will arrive in the Amazon Appstore for Fire TV devices “later this year” as spotted by Cord Cutters News. Redbox’s parent company Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment (CSSE), which acquired the DVD/Blu-ray rental company turned streaming service last year, has announced the new app’s release as part of a larger deal with Amazon that will bring Amazon Interactive Video Ads to Crackle, also owned by CSSE, making it one of the first third-party services to support the advanced ad format which allows customers to add a product to their Amazon shopping cart directly from the ad break screen. The ads will also make their way into the Chicken Soup for the Soul app and the upcoming Redbox app. Redbox’s streaming apps, already available on Android/Google TV, Roku, and Apple TV devices, provide on-demand TV shows and movies for free with ads or to rent and own. It also offers several free ad-supported live streaming channels.
If you’re a fan of watching live channels, one of the best features of Fire TVs is the built-in program guide that combines channels from many apps and services into a single list. With a button that takes you directly to the guide on all modern Fire TV remotes, it’s handy to flip back and forth between channels no matter what service they’re from. While you can easily remove channels and services you don’t want to be included, the program guide can still easily become unwieldy with the number of channels it contains. Amazon has recently made changes to help filter through the channel guide that is already available on select devices and will, hopefully, be coming to more in the near future. Read more ›
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