![]() For me, it was a good time to make a cup of coffee. And if for some reason, you ever have to reset the device and start from scratch, you’re forced to sit through the video again. You can’t skip the cartoon, and if you back out to the previous setup screen, you have to start the cartoon over. ![]() The next annoyance is that you’re forced to sit through a long cartoon where a man describes the features of the Fire TV - something you were hopefully aware of before plunking down $99. Fortunately, the on-screen keyboard provides shortcuts for the most common email services, like Gmail, Yahoo, Outlook, and AOL. Your Fire TV will likely be associated with your account by default, much like Amazon’s Kindles are, but if it’s not, you must either log into your Amazon account or create one. Enter your Wi-Fi password (slowly, painfully, with the remote), if required. Setup was a nondescript process, but you notice right away just how much faster the Fire TV is than the Apple TV. In the picture below, I sat the Apple TV plug on top of the Fire TV’s to demonstrate the difference. By comparison, the Apple TV’s svelte power connector plays nicely with everything else. For that reason, I had to unplug not just my Apple TV, but my Playstation 3 as well. Let me stop here to point out my first major annoyance with the Fire TV: the power adapter is huge and takes up two plugs’ worth of space on my surge protector. As such, connecting it to your TV works the same as with the Apple TV: plug in the HDMI cable (my unit came with one), plug in the power, plug in the optical audio cable if required, and you’re off to the races. Like the Apple TV, the Fire TV features HDMI, Ethernet, USB, and optical audio ports. The Fire TV is 0.7 inches (1.8 cm) longer and wider than the Apple TV, but 0.2 inches (0.5 cm) thinner. Set Up Fire TV - Physically, the Apple TV and Fire TV have a lot in common. With that out of the way, as the guy who wrote the book on the Apple TV, here are my impressions of the Fire TV, organized to parallel the chapters in my book. ![]() Also, as a reviewer, I was supposed to be given access to Prime Instant Video, but for whatever reason, it never went through. Other than a few device-specific apps, I’m keeping nothing that Amazon has provided, including the Fire TV and controller, which I’m shipping back as soon as possible (though I’ve been unable to reach Amazon’s PR firm to arrange it). ![]() The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug: $5.46Ī total of $54.61 a smidgen over my allowance.The Dark Knight Returns, Part 1 and Part 2: $5.46.Here’s what I spent the money on (including sales tax): Adam and I decided that the ethical thing to do was to use the money strictly for Fire TV movie rentals and app purchases, which led to a Brewster’s Millions-esque situation where I had to spend a lot of money without keeping anything. Presumably, other reviewers got this deal as well. Second, Amazon gave me a generous $50 credit to order content for the device, though in theory I could use it on anything I wanted at Amazon. Both of these are included in the controller’s purchase price. First, the game controller comes with 1,000 Amazon Coins (more on that later) - a $16.99 value - and a free copy of the Amazon-produced game Sev Zero. In the interest of full disclosure, I should note a few goodies Amazon provided. I disconnected the Apple TV from our living room TV and replaced it with the Fire TV for two weeks. Amazon’s new set-top box had more power, voice search, an app store, and even video games - everything on my Apple TV wish list (see “ The Future of Apple TV,” 21 February 2014).Īfter I had a chance to calm down and assess the situation, I was curious to see what Amazon’s box could do, so I asked the company for a review unit of both the $99 Fire TV and the $39.99 Fire Game Controller. #1684: OS bug fix releases, Finder tag poll results, Messages identity verification, blocking spambots, which Apple services do you use?Īs the author of “ Take Control of Apple TV,” waking up to read about the Fire TV (see “ Amazon Fire TV Turns Up the Heat on Apple TV,” 2 April 2014) jolted me out of bed in a panic.#1685: Hidden secrets of the Fn key, Emergency SOS via satellite free access extended, RCS support in Messages, Rogue Amoeba icon evolution.#1686: Please support TidBITS, OS security updates, Apple services poll results, biking with an iPhone.#1687: Feature-rich OS updates, recovering from a crashing bug in Contacts, Zoom for Apple TV, how much do you use widgets?.#1688: Former Apple engineer on watchOS 10, Apple hardware testing tool, Stolen Device Protection, Apple Watch sales halted, smart TV privacy abuses.
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