Amazon reveals game, movie streaming hardware 'Amazon Fire TV' [Update]
Amazon announced Amazon Fire TV today, a device that streams games and movies over the web. The Fire TV features 2 GB of RAM and a dedicated GPU, which Amazon said is the kind "usually found in smartphones." Additionally, Fire TV is based on Android and HTML, so apps are expected to be easy for developers to port to the device. It comes with a TV remote-like controller that includes a microphone on it, which can be used for the device's voice search functions. The Fire TV's separate dual-stick game pad costs $40.
The device's UI includes sections for movies, television, apps and photos in addition to games. Among the app icons shown during Amazon's presentation were Twitch, WWE Network, Watch ESPN, Netflix and Hulu Plus. Amazon said it is "starting off with Hulu Plus and Amazon Instant Video of course, and we're rolling in other partners over time." As for the games available on Fire TV, the device will host "thousands" from publishers like EA and Ubisoft, and will include Minecraft shortly after it launches.
Earlier in March, we got a look at what Amazon's Bluetooth gamepads might look like. The company founded Amazon Game Studios in 2012 and acquired Double Helix, the studio behind Killer Instinct, in February.
Update: The Amazon Fire TV will cost $99 and is available to purchase today on Amazon's store.
