firetv
Latest
Amazon's Fire TV software is getting a new look soon
Amazon's refreshed Fire TV stick with Alexa-enabled remote started shipping today, and along with the new hardware, we're getting a look at the new Fire TV software update. The new look is said to be a "cinematic" experience, with video trailers and screenshots aplenty. Another change is how it features content from non-Amazon providers, which may increase support from other services on the Fire TV platform.
Jackbox releases its latest party game pack on October 18th
You may not be all that familiar with Jackbox Games, but it has quite the following: party games like Quiplash have helped it stand out in a sea of indie studios. And it's about to make it a little bit easier to get acquainted. The developer has revealed that it's releasing its Jackbox Party Pack 3 bundle on October 18th for PCs (through Steam), the PS4 and Amazon Fire TV users. Xbox One owners will get the title slightly later, on October 21st. Whichever route you go, you'll get the same experience.
Amazon's new Fire TV Stick comes with an Alexa remote for $40
Amazon's next take on the Fire TV Stick looks pretty much the same as before, but it brings along some useful upgrades to keep it current. The biggest difference? It now includes an Alexa-enabled remote at the same $40 price. It also packs in a faster quad-core processor (compared to a dual-core chip before) which Amazon claims is 30 percent faster than its predecessor, as well as speedier 802.11ac WiFi. Mostly, it seems like Amazon is trying to keep the Fire TV Stick more competitive with Roku's excellent $50 streaming stick.
Twitter comes to the Xbox One, Apple and Amazon TV boxes
Much like Shia LaBoeuf declaring that he isn't famous anymore, Twitter is now out and proud about not being a social network. No, instead, Twitter is now a broadcasting platform, which means that it needs to put itself in the sort of places you use to watch TV. That's why the company has announced that it's launching apps for Apple TV, Amazon's Fire TV and Microsoft's Xbox One. It'll be on these that you can watch some of the new video content that's coming to the service, including Thursday Night Football.
Amazon Fire TV update gives you much wider voice search
Amazon's Fire TV devices just became much more useful if you prefer to talk to your media hub. An update rolling out to the Fire TV and Fire TV Stick gives you dramatically improved search: you can now use voice to search over 75 apps and services, including Netflix and (soon) HBO Now. If the show you're looking for is available on multiple services, you'll see all your choices. And if you're content with watching Amazon Video, you're still getting an upgrade. You now have voice control of playback with Amazon's service, so you can skip to your favorite Transparent scene without using the fast forward button.
Target starts selling Kindles again after a four-year break
Years ago, visiting a Target was one of the best ways to check out Amazon's Kindle products in person before plunking down your hard-earned cash. But in 2012, Target stopped selling Kindles both online and in its stores. That's changing, however -- as of today, you can buy the Kindle Paperwhite and standard Kindle from Target online. And a report from Bloomberg indicates that you'll soon be able to buy them in Target's physical retail stores, as well.
DNC, RNC streaming options include Twitch and Bing
The US' big political parties are seemingly determined to outdo each other in terms of ways to watch their conventions online. To start, the Democratic Party has unveiled livestreaming plans that will let you watch its National Convention on seemingly every modern platform under the Sun. On top of Twitter and its own site, the party will stream through Bing, YouTube and... Twitch. That's right -- you can witness an important part of the electoral process in between League of Legends and Overwatch viewing sessions. The convention will also be live on Amazon's Fire TV, the Apple TV, Roku players and your Xbox, in case you'd rather see the nominations on a big screen.
Stream PS Vue's cord-cutting service from your Android device
Sony's attempt at killing your pay-tv subscription is available on Android now -- just like the company promised. What's more, PlayStation Vue also has a few new features on the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4. On the former, the channel guide has a video window in the upper right now, so you can keep an eye on what you were watching as you scroll through other viewing options. It's essentially what cable and satellite guides have offered for years. If you're using your PS3 as a media machine, the addition of a quick navigation overlay, which offers a "last channel" option among other tweaks, should be welcome; it's also available on PS4.
GIF whatever is on your Android screen with 'Mirror'
Recording your Android screen isn't easy, and unless you have a Chromecast device, mirroring it is also a pain. Koushik Dutta, formerly of Cyanogen and now with ClockworkMod, has updated his Mirror app to make screencasting easier and let you record your screen as a GIF. It works on any device running Android 5 or higher and can mirror out to Fire TV, Apple TV and AllCast receivers on Chrome and Android. Though the app is from ROM-maker ClockworkMod, your phone doesn't need to be rooted.
Amazon gives Alexa more control of your Fire TV
Amazon's virtual assistant was already hard at work helping with tasks via its Echo speakers and Fire TV, but now Alexa is getting more control of your television. The online retailer announced today that Alexa can handle more requests on its streaming gadgets, including launching apps, playing selections from Amazon video and add-on subscriptions (HBO Go, Starz, Showtime, SeeSo) and browsing local movie times. Fire TV already offered voice search and Alexa has been available on those devices as well, but this update expands the virtual assistant's workload.
Nielsen starts breaking down TV streams by device next month
Nielsen already tracks what you're watching via gizmos like Apple TV, Roku and PlayStation, but has always lumped those viewing statistics together. That changes come April 25th when the ratings-minded folks start breaking over-the-top viewership data (Netflix or Hulu, for example) down by device, according to Variety. The "brand-level" connected device data will pull from Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast and Xbox in addition to the ones mentioned above. This should give content owners a better idea of what platforms their programming is being watched on most.
All Amazon Fire TV devices now have the major UK catch-up apps
If you prefer to catch-up on TV shows instead of watching them as they air, Amazon's latest announcement might be of interest. After bringing all major UK broadcasters to the Fire TV, the company has turned its attention to the streamer's smaller sibling, the Fire TV Stick, confirming today that the HDMI dongle now supports BBC iPlayer, ITV Hub, All 4 and My5. It doesn't matter which Fire TV or Fire TV Stick model you own, they now all feature catch-up apps provided by the UK's biggest broadcasters. Add to that support Amazon's own Video service, Netflix and other major streaming services and you've got yourself a few reasons to skip your traditional TV box entirely.
NBC's comedy streaming service arrives on Roku and Fire TV
NBC's comedy streaming service officially went live back in January after a month-long preview. As of today, the monthly subscription is now available on two popular streaming devices. Roku and Amazon Fire TV owners can now take advantage of Seeso for genre-specific content. And yes, the $4/month service is also available on the Fire TV Stick. Seeso offers on-demand access to original series, late-night NBC shows, network series, movies and more. If you're still waiting for Seeso to reach your streaming gadget of choice, NBCUniversal says it'll be available on more platforms "in the coming months." For now, the web, iOS and Android are the current alternatives to Roku and Amazon's gear.
Kodi takes the fight to sellers of pirate TV boxes
Pirate TV boxes have existed since about five minutes after TV boxes were first introduced. Whether it was rewired cable boxes or satellite TV setups with hacked cards, it's been a reality of the business for decades. The latest iteration on this idea involves a number of Android-powered boxes that are preconfigured to find and stream pirated content from the internet. I noticed right away that the Fire TV is a perfect vessel for Kodi (back then it was still called XBMC), and I wasn't the only one -- which is causing a ton of problems for the developers who actually make Kodi.
Amazon brings its Alexa assistant to first-gen Fire TVs
Now that the 4K Fire TV has taken center stage, Amazon might be forgiven for showing a little less love for its older streaming devices. However, that doesn't appear to be the case, after the online retailer begun seeding a new update that upgrades the original Fire TV to Android 5.1 Lollipop, equips it with Amazon's Alexa voice assistant and improves discovery.
All 4 catch-up streaming comes to Amazon's Fire TV
When you've gone about revamping and rebranding your streaming service like Channel 4 did this year, the next step is to get your app on as many platforms as possible. Just before Christmas, All 4 made its way to the PlayStation 4, joining the apps already available for other games consoles, mobiles, tablets, computers and various smart TVs and set-top boxes (including Google's Chromecast). Today the service expands to yet another device, with All 4 launching on Amazon's newest Fire TV and support for the older version and Fire TV Stick also announced as "coming soon."
Amazon's new Fire TV can talk to your connected home
Amazon's Echo speaker and 4K Fire TV just got much better at handling around-the-house tasks. The Fire TV now controls smart home devices with a simple voice command -- you can ask it to dim the lights right before you start a movie. It'll search for local businesses and restaurants, too, in case you want to get some sushi when you're done watching. The Echo already has these features, but you can now ask it when a TV show starts to make sure you catch that big season premiere. Both the Echo and Fire TV upgrades are relatively straightforward, but they'll mean a lot if you're tired of bringing out your phone to ask simple questions.
CBS' streaming video service comes to Amazon's Fire TV
Your Fire TV (or Fire TV Stick) just became much more useful as a cord-cutting device... at least, if you watch a lot of CBS shows. The TV network has launched an Amazon-native app for its All Access service, giving your Fire TV the same mix of live and on-demand viewing that CBS is offering on rival set-top boxes. You're still paying $6 per month and don't get any hardware-specific features, but look at it this way: you'll definitely be ready when the new Star Trek series begins streaming in a couple of years.
PlayStation Vue internet TV is coming to Chromecast and Amazon
Sony's TV subscription service, Playstation Vue is expanding to the Fire TV and Fire TV Stick with Chromecast support coming soon. The electronics giant also announced a $5 price drop on Core ($54.99 from $59.99) and Elite ($64.99 from $69.99) packages. Subscribers will notice the price reduction during the next billing cycle. The Vue service already works on the PS4, PS3, iPad and iPhone. While a price reduction for bundles is nice, the streaming TV service announced at E3 it would offer up á-la-carte network subscriptions this fall. It'll be interesting to see the pricing of built-to-order subscriptions when this launches. PlayStation Vue is available in Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Philadelphia and Dallas with more markets planned for the future.
Amazon's 4K Fire TV is more capable, but still unnecessary
So the Fire Phone was a flop -- so much so that it reportedly pushed Amazon out of the phone business entirely. But the Fire TV ($100) is still around, and judging from what we've seen from this year's entry, it's likely here to stay. The new model looks the same as the original, but it sports some powerful new hardware and 4K support. Amazon also brought over its virtual assistant Alexa from the Echo speaker, just in time to do battle with Siri on the new Apple TV. As far as upgrades go, the new Fire TV is a fairly minor leap from last year, but it shows Amazon still wants to be competitive in the set-top box arena. Unfortunately, it still hasn't proven why anyone would want to get the Fire TV over the competition.
