Amazon Fire TV Stick With Built-In Alexa Coming to the U.K.

[MacRumors]

Amazon's latest Fire TV stick, with Alexa built in, is coming to the U.K., after launching in the U.S. back in October.

The streaming TV dongle will make its debut in the country on April 6 and have a price tag of £40, with Amazon already taking pre-orders.

The device comes with a quad-core processor that Amazon says makes it 30 percent faster than its predecessor. The dongle also supports 802.11ac WiFi networks, but the biggest difference is the new Alexa remote.

Like the Siri Remote on the Apple TV, a built-in microphone lets users search for content like movies and music, as well as control playback, open apps, and more. Unlike Siri Remote, it also supports third-party Alexa skills, allowing users to control smart home devices, for example.

Apart from the aforementioned online pre-orders, the new Amazon Fire TV stick will be on sale in shops including Dixons, John Lewis, Tesco, and Maplin from April 6.

Article Link: Amazon Fire TV Stick With Built-In Alexa Coming to the U.K.

 

[unsaltedrhino]

Like the Siri Remote on the Apple TV, q built-in microphone lets users search for content like movies and music, as well as control playback, open apps, and more. Unlike Siri Remote, it also supports third-party Alexa skills, allowing users to control smart home devices, for example.​

Siri Remote can control smart home devices.

 

[timmyh]

Siri Remote can control smart home devices.

That's true. I didn't mean to suggest that it couldn't.

 

[Brenster]

UK here as well. We use Apple TV for iTunes content & rentals, Netflix, YouTube and NowTV. However our 2nd gen FireTV gets WAY more use with Amazon Video Prime & Netflix content, Amazon Video rentals together with iPlayer, ITV Hub and All4.

Most of the films we've bought digitally have been on iTunes as iTunes Extras does a great job of replicating the disc menu & extras experience. However a Fire tablet purchase last Black Friday together with a Kids Fire Tablet for our son has use using the Amazon eco-system more and more, over and above my Paperwhite and my serious Audible habit. I'm debating whether to try the Amazon Video versions of Doctor Strange and Rogue One over the next couple of months. Whilst I'd rather not lose the iTunes Extras experience, compatibility with our 'good enough' Fire tablets, my son's Kids Fire tablet and the Fire TB box is extremely tempting.

Before Christmas Currys and Argos both had cardboard stands full of Fire TV and Fire TV Sticks, all of which were sold out before Christmas, like on the back of The Grand Tour. Between the Grand Tour focused advertising and the word of mouth on Fire TV/FTV Stick, it seems like Amazon is comfortably winning the streaming box war here in the UK.

Apple TV *seriously* needs to gain app/service parity with Amazon Fire TV as the only current advantage of Apple TV over the Fire TV is native YouTube and NowTV support - and both of those can be had with the £15 NowTV box in any supermarket.

Quote my post from yesterday in another forum thread. Amazon are absolutely killing it here in the UK, both on the set top box and streaming subscription market, with Netflix readily available on Amazon's devices.

I upgraded from the previous generation Stick to the full Fire TV quite a while back due to the laggy UI navigation and the occasional dropped frame on streaming playback. The full 2nd gen Fire TV is fantastic on both these points so it's good to see performance improvements and the great voice search/navigation with the new Fire TV Stick.

Doubtless Amazon will advertise the heck out of the new Stick and the voice capabilities as they have done with the previous hardware generation - Clarkson advertising Prime/Fire TV/Stick adverts were all over TV and recent cinema releases. Apple really need to step up or just be seen as a box for those of us deeply immersed in the iTunes/Apple Music eco-system and for no one else.

 

[MH01]

Well that was the logical next move. Very impressed with my Alexa devices , cheap also

 

[Mike Oxard]

Do you need an echo as well as the fire stick to support skills or is the stick a stand alone Alexa device?

 

[keysofanxiety]

Clarkson advertising Prime/Fire TV/Stick adverts were all over TV and recent cinema releases.

Ahaha yes. Clarkson's voice is fabulous and lines really stick in your head.

"I suddenly became... UNBUSY"

"In fact it's SOO good"

"It has Prime VIDDEEEEOOO"

 

[Brenster]

Ahaha yes. Clarkson's voice is fabulous and lines really stick in your head.

"I suddenly became... UNBUSY"

"In fact it's SOO good"

"It has Prime VIDDEEEEOOO"

Can't abide the man or his shows, but there's no arguing with the effectiveness or ubiquity of the advertising campaign nor the subsequent success in selling Amazon devices and subscriptions. Happy to be corrected but I can't remember any sort of TV or cinema advert for Apple TV.

Prime & Fire, yes.
Netflix, yes.
NowTV, yes.
Apple TV?

 

[scott911]

I skipped the last apple TV version (after waiting for it desperately) because it lacked the function I was waiting for - I know use my smart TV's internal functions from streaming. Apple tv is only used to easily access my music library.

Question is this - if I want to stick with itunes (hosted by my imac) are their any easy to use alternatives to apply TV - like this google product by any chance?

imac is in another room. thanks.

 

[robotica]

Wish they would release them at the same time as the us.

Why treat the uk as second class customers?

 

[toolioiep]

Wish they would release them at the same time as the us.

Why treat the uk as second class customers?

Try being a Canadian..... we are hoping to become second class customers in this instance.

 

[stevielatphoto]

While my Apple ecosystem is starting to get smaller, my Amazon Ecosystem, grows larger and I just wish this wasn't the way it was !

 

[mazz0]

Wonder if it'll be crippled compared to the US version like the Apple TV which costs four times as much.

FFS Apple.

 

[Porco]

I've got to agree with those saying that unless you have a huge Apple-locked media collection the AppleTV really is a dead duck in the UK, IMHO. The full Amazon FireTV is just so much more compelling a product than what Apple are offering, even if it was the same price, but it wins on that too, and the Stick version is plenty for simple streaming of the UK catch-up services, Amazon video and Netflix.

Personally I'm not fussed about the voice search, but it's a nice remote anyway.

 

[foxcub6]

To. E fai

Quote my post from yesterday in another forum thread. Amazon are absolutely killing it here in the UK, both on the set top box and streaming subscription market, with Netflix readily available on Amazon's devices.

I upgraded from the previous generation Stick to the full Fire TV quite a while back due to the laggy UI navigation and the occasional dropped frame on streaming playback. The full 2nd gen Fire TV is fantastic on both these points so it's good to see performance improvements and the great voice search/navigation with the new Fire TV Stick.

Doubtless Amazon will advertise the heck out of the new Stick and the voice capabilities as they have done with the previous hardware generation - Clarkson advertising Prime/Fire TV/Stick adverts were all over TV and recent cinema releases. Apple really need to step up or just be seen as a box for those of us deeply immersed in the iTunes/Apple Music eco-system and for no one else.

To be fair everybody's buying the fire stick for kodi installs , free tv . The Apple TV has limited functions in the Uk BBC iPlayer now tv and Netflix . Not really s fair comparison between the two boxes, don't have the firestck myself as Iam against this free for all tv when other honest folk pay for it , will wait to see the running court case to see how it turns out legal or illegal to stream these prog that most of us pay for

 

[Kal El]

I think a very small percentage of all Amazon Fire TV Sticks sold here in the U.K. Are actually being used for Amazon Prime streaming, the vast majority are used to run KODI.