Amazon Fire TV Stick

[Ravynmagi]

I need this like another hole in the head (have a Fire TV, Roku 3, Apple TV, and Chromecast)... But yeah, for $20 why not.

I like that it comes with it's own remote at this $20 price. Though I suspect this will end up in a drawer next to my Fire TV and Apple TV. I hate the Fire TV UI, just seems so clunky to get to my apps on it and I tend to watch a lot more Netflix than Amazon Prime.

 

[TiredEngineer]

Doesn't matter...if you can instantly rent or buy a movie from Amazon on a $19 stick, they'll make plenty of money back to cover R&D and hardware costs. I use VUDU for rentals & purchases and probably have hundreds of dollars invested in movies in there because it's an easy impulse-purchase system

The point is...I own a Chromecast already and want to rent and view Amazon videos from it.

The Chromecast was (maybe still is), the #1 selling electronic item on Amazon for a long time. It is a STUPID business decision to ignore that, since most people already seem to use Amazon services.

 

[basslover1]

I picked one up, even though I have two TVs and two Chromecasts, I still bought one. I actually enjoyed using the FireTV I test drove for 30 days more than the Chromecast only because I find using an actual remote easier to use.

For $20 why not?

 

[vi edit]

I bought one but only because the fire phone was such a flop that I felt sorry for them lol.
It'll probly be a Christmas present for someone.

LOL. Exactly. This is what Amazon is known for hardware wise. Good values. At $20 I'm not sure how you can go wrong. The problem with the Chromecast is that it required a PC or phone to view content. Not this. It's got apps embedded on it and is not married to another device for content.

 

[drbrock]

So is this supposed to support airplay? Would be nice to play movies from some of my iPad apps that don't work with Chromecast. Was going to pick up an apple TV for Christmas but if this does airplay I wouldn't mind supporting amazon

 

[Kaido]

The point is...I own a Chromecast already and want to rent and view Amazon videos from it.

The Chromecast was (maybe still is), the #1 selling electronic item on Amazon for a long time. It is a STUPID business decision to ignore that, since most people already seem to use Amazon services.

The problem with the Chromecast is that it doesn't have a physical hardware remote included, plus it's not designed to be a full-screened HTPC-style browser for videos like say a Roku is. So they want to migrate that technology to non-techies, but they need something for people who want an actual handheld remote. Makes a lot of sense to me, especially for $19 shipped!

 

[Uppsala9496]

For $19 I ordered one. Dec 5 ship date.

 

[Red Storm]

I've heard the opposite. Everyone I know IRL said their Chromecast was a waste of money for them. Depends on what you use it for, I guess.

I have 3 that all work great (upstairs, main floor, and one in the basement), and I've bought 3 others as gifts for friends, and they all use theirs every day.

 

[Soapy Bones]

So is this supposed to support airplay? Would be nice to play movies from some of my iPad apps that don't work with Chromecast. Was going to pick up an apple TV for Christmas but if this does airplay I wouldn't mind supporting amazon

This is what I am wondering as well. I'm looking for something to use while traveling and if it has good support for Mira cast and my fire hdx without WiFi, it would be pretty awesome.

 

[dougp]

This is what I am wondering as well. I'm looking for something to use while traveling and if it has good support for Mira cast and my fire hdx without WiFi, it would be pretty awesome.

It will not support AirPlay, as that is Apple tech. It does support MiraCast, which is used on a few Android-based phones.

I suspect this is a full-blown Android device, with a bit lower capabilities than the Fire TV. If I can run some emulators and Plex (sideloading as apparently the Amazon version is old) then I can replace my Roku 3. If it can do some N64 games - there goes some time with the wife.

 

[poofyhairguy]

It will not support AirPlay, as that is Apple tech.

Sure but if can run XBMC you get Airplay support.

 

[Ravynmagi]

For $19 I ordered one. Dec 5 ship date.

Mine says the same... Releases Nov 19th, 2 day shipping, arrives Dec 5th. Something must be wrong with my adding skills.

 

[dougp]

Sure but if can run XBMC you get Airplay support.

Ok, but the device doesn't support it natively - just posted some of the available information.

 

[jpeyton]

No brainer for $19 shipped. Pre-ordered.

 

[Jesusthewererabbit]

Ordered two. We have twins, so I never get to buy just one of anything any more.

 

[drbrock]

Ordered two on the hope that airplay will work with xbmc. If it fails give them away as Christmas presents.

 

[podspi]

Those were talking about the 'Fire TV', not the 'Fire TV Stick' which is just announced today (won't arrive until next month).



It would be extremely amazing if it does. But this is a Chromecast competitor, which means it won't have an OS. I'd be ecstatic if I'm wrong, though.

Well, it supports apps, so there must be an OS. Not only that, but given the specs, it is way too beefy to be OS-less.

My guess is it is a stripped-down FireTV. Providing they don't make it hard to sideload apps, this is going to be awesome.

 

[WelshBloke]

My guess is it is a stripped-down FireTV.

Tis exactly what it is.

 

[Kaido]

Ok, but the device doesn't support it natively - just posted some of the available information.

At least it supports Plex, so at bare minimum we'd get LAN streaming & transcoding for local media playback, which is the main reason I got a bunch of Roku 3's in the first place!

 

[Midwayman]

If all It does is let me run netflix on the bedroom tv, I'm happy for $20.

No hbo go though....

 

[Ravynmagi]

If all It does is let me run netflix on the bedroom tv, I'm happy for $20.

No hbo go though....

Ugh... still? Didn't they say that was coming. Seems weird Amazon strikes up the deal with HBO to stream a bunch of their shows from Amazon Prime, but still are not allowing the HBO Go app.

 

[cronos]

Ugh... still? Didn't they say that was coming. Seems weird Amazon strikes up the deal with HBO to stream a bunch of their shows from Amazon Prime, but still are not allowing the HBO Go app.

Yeah, they did say that it's coming at 'the end of the year', so not yet but maybe it's close.

 

[notposting]

So...

Miracast doesn't necessarily mean WiDi (like from a laptop) support, correct?

Ah, who cares. Going to buy it and plug it into our spare TV at the very least.

 

[ponyo]

I ordered one. December 24 delivery date. For $20, I'm willing to give it a shot. HDMI port space is at a premium so it has to be good to earn a permanent spot.

 

[notposting]

Mine says the same... Releases Nov 19th, 2 day shipping, arrives Dec 5th. Something must be wrong with my adding skills.

Shit. I looked yesterday, was available for release date delivery...looking now...

JANUARY 5, 2015.

So...guess they got a few pre-orders, lol.