Amazon's Fire TV Looks A Lot Like the Rumored Apple TV Update

[HobeSoundDarryl]

I ordered Fire TV ...... yesterday !

I look forward to OBJECTIVE head-to-head reviews. But more so, I hope Apple might feel a little more pressure to get with it. Amazon- like Google- is a big player who have the money and muscle to take a big bite of this space. I have long seen the space as Apple's to own or lose… and have been frustrated at what seems to generally be only minor interest in the "hobby". Personally, I think it's a bigger market than the other iDevices (there's still lots of people without cell phones & tablets that have TVs) but Apple appears to struggle at doing more than a few things at one time. I sometimes wonder if Apple is still running like a much smaller company (all decisions big or small at the very top) rather than the much bigger company it has become (where delegating most of the decision making down the chain of command is a requirement; else the senior managers that must decide everything become the bottlenecks to ongoing growth beyond the few things on which they can actually focus at any one time). I'm not inside Apple but it's easy to imagine that from the outside looking in.

 

[dusty64]

Because it's going to be handled how much?

I handled it quite a bit, it does dent easier. I figured if Apple can patent rounded corners that Amazon should had patented sharp edges.

 

[ayale99]

bottom line its who ever brings it first! and AMAZON JUST DID IT!!!

You sure can tell old school Apple fans from new school Apple fans by statements like this.

 

[elev8d]

I'm not interested in this Fire TV at all and I have a Kindle 2, Paperwhite, and HDX.

I already have an Apple TV mostly to access iTunes movies I've collected over the years (mostly digital copies) and to rent movies when I get discounted gift cards.

I also have a Roku 3 which I love the headphone jack on the remote. Also, the Roku has VUDU (which I have 100+ movies on it, all "disc to digital" or digital copies) and Amazon's video and music stuff anyway, plus private porn channels (free and paid) and some basic games.

And I have a blu-ray player and PS3 that accesses everything but iTunes anyway.

I quit Netflix a few years ago. I'll probably quit Prime since I don't use the shipping or streaming video service much anymore. I just started using HBO Go which I like better but costs more than both Amazon and Netflix monthly.

For music I sent in all my discs to murfie.com so I use that with a Sonos system for lossless streaming. My iTunes music is all in the cloud and also synced to Google Music and Amazon *just in case*

This murfie site looks pretty sweet! I have so much stuff that I've never ripped! This is awesome!

 

[dusty64]

You sure can tell old school Apple fans from new school Apple fans by statements like this.

Not sure how Amazon brought ANYTHING first. The hardware design was a complete copy from Apple TV including integrated AC power which later was removed because the design was thermally broken.

 

[samcraig]

I handled it quite a bit, it does dent easier. I figured if Apple can patent rounded corners that Amazon should had patented sharp edges.

Well I, for one, am glad you joined today to tell us all about your intimate knowledge of the Amazon Fire TV. You have been most enlightening...

 

[mappyman]

XBMC team did it first 12 years ago. Albeit on a bulky fat console.

 

[smeezles]

I wouldn't call it "being beat to the punch," but Amazon, Google, and Roku have been able to deliver the features that people want right now earlier than Apple.

However, as we all know, Apple routinely aims to deliver the full package from the get go - even if it doesn't always happen.

It's widely known that people want the future of TV to be an ecosystem where you could stream content from online or your network, subscribe to individual cable channels, and use apps and games developed by third-parties. Currently, I believe that Apple is the only company that has the power to deliver that experience.

My guess, and my hope, is that they will wait until they have everything in place. The ATV has been a hobby for far too long, and they have been quietly building their offerings. Much like the iPhone, Apple has the potential to sweep away the competition because of their resources and their large user base.

I'll gladly wait longer for the product that delivers the experience of the future, rather than just another one of the present.

 

[TWSS37]

Apple is definitely just kicking back seeing their competitors release all these products, while I'm sure the competitors are just as scared for when Apple announces a keynote event and readys to impress everyone.

This Fire TV from Amazon can essentially be a software update from Apple.

Theres a reason why Apple has remained quiet in recent times concerning this space...

It's because they're preparing to strike.

Can't wait for the new Apple TV.

The hardware superiority of the Amazon version can be a software update? Oh, OK.

 

[Boston007]

Its not the device I am concerned about, I simply do not want to have to buy cable/satellite just to watch what I want. I want to buy HBO or individual shows and only that.

That's al la carte. Good luck getting that. These cable companies do not want to do that. I agree though because I want HBO, ESPN, local sports channels(like NESN) and that's about it.

These cable companies are idiots.

Pretty soon I will tell them give me basic cable service, no boxes, high speed internet, and that's it. I'll pay the $80 or so a month and connect my own streaming devices so I get the content I choose and want.

 

[ZeRoLiMiT]

I'm old school apple fan and unless apple brings something good then they will be left behind.

Perfect example now apple is going with a wider iPhone this year .... Wonder why? Apple is great company I have nothing but apple products.

 

[dusty64]

Well I, for one, am glad you joined today to tell us all about your intimate knowledge of the Amazon Fire TV. You have been most enlightening...

I could tell you whatever you wanted to know about it if you wanted to be enlightened. Don't think there was any harm in joining the forum to see consumer reaction to something I worked on from scratch for over a year but I can just as easily not log in if that is a problem for you.

 

[TPadden]

..... Apple has the potential to sweep away the competition because of their resources and their large user base......

Poor Amazon; hope they can develop resources and a user base ......

 

[abshole765]

Where does this say it streams MKV's?

I think people are saying it will play MKV because of Plex. So it isn't directly playing them.

 

[Boston007]

Give me the movie Extras like the Gen 1 Apple TV still has.

Gen 2 & 3 provide a diminished experience after you purchase the movie (compared to Gen 1 or a Disk) in this respect - with Apple's focus on user experience, I find it hard to understand why they haven't fixed this.

What do you mean by this?

Are you saying the Gen 1 Apple TV was if you bought a movie you got all the supplements that went with that movie that were found on the DVD/bluray version? and now with the later generations Apple TVs that is not the case?

Thanks

 

[frankly]

That doesn't look anything like the Apple TV. It's 1/20th of the size!

That is a mistake in the perspective at which they composited this photo together. This is not an actual picture of the two devices sitting side by side. It is two separate pictures taken from different distances and then put together. The difference in height between the two devices is 0.7 inches for the Fire and 0.9 inches for the Apple TV. And the Apple TV is a smaller square. Of course, the way that MacRumors created this image it looks like a HUGE monster of a device next to the Fire.

 

[Godzilla71]

Hurry up apple! show us the update already!

as far as looking like the apple tv I think the box looks like the atv the remote reminds me of a roku inspired design and the controller strangely looks like an Xbox 360 controller.

 

[winston1236]

Pretty lame, devices like Chromecast are the future, this thing is like a dinosaur.

 

[DaveNinja]

are the games the same as the regular amazon app store games? like if you've bought Minecraft for a Kindle Fire, will you have to buy it again for the FireTV? Are the games multiplayer compatable with the Kindle Fire versions?

 

[milo]

$99 is impressive for a box that can run games instead of just stream video. For apple, is an A7 based box at $99 even an option? Even the older A5 and A6 based iPhones and iPads are way more than that, how cheap could they make A7 based on component costs.

Amazon releases set-top box in 2014 and "Apple got beat to the punch."

A box that runs apps and games? Hell yeah they got beat to the punch. Honestly it's pretty amazing Apple has had the opportunity to bring apps to the TV for so long but still hasn't taken advantage.

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Pretty lame, devices like Chromecast are the future, this thing is like a dinosaur.

Does chromecast run apps?

 

[elev8d]

The current gen ATV is nowhere near as good as a Roku3 because of it's controller and channel/app store, and this looks like it has the potential to be much better than a Roku3 (when all of the apps are developed). It'll be interesting to see if Apple truly plans on battling in this space and committing resources to it. I'd love to see a proper App Store driven ATV. Truth of the matter though, is I would never replace my PS4 with an ATV unless the quality of games were greater than the PS4. Without a dedicated powerful graphics chip set, that won't be happening.

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$99 is impressive for a box that can run games instead of just stream video. For apple, is an A7 based box at $99 even an option? Even the older A5 and A6 based iPhones and iPads are way more than that, how cheap could they make A7 based on component costs.



A box that runs apps and games? Hell yeah they got beat to the punch. Honestly it's pretty amazing Apple has had the opportunity to bring apps to the TV for so long but still hasn't taken advantage.

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Does chromecast run apps?

Roku has always run apps. You can play games like Angry Birds on it, and it's controller is basically a Wii remote.

 

[abshole765]

Pretty lame, devices like Chromecast are the future, this thing is like a dinosaur.

I will never understand the appeal of Chromecast.

 

[pubwvj]

The winning device will be agnostic, supporting all content:
DVD
Blueray
iTunesStore
AmazonPrime
NetFlix
etc.

AmazonTV misses out by not supporting all content paths. e.g., iTunesStore
AppleTV misses out by not supporting all content paths. e.g., AmazonPrime

Both need to be supporting disks at the very least with an optional plugin drive that they sit on to look like one nice neat device for those billions of existing DVD and Blueray disks.

My Vote: no buy yet.

 

[richman555]

I am happy for the Amazon TV release.

It pretty much means a couple things all of which are good.

1. TV is no longer a hobby.
2. Apple had better get moving on an long waited update.

Also, I do like the approach that these devices tend to run on the same 'guts' as the tablet and phone devices. I don't have to have a PC box running in my living room.

 

[smeezles]

Poor Amazon; hope they can develop resources and a user base ......

The don't have hundreds of millions of people with computers, mp3 players, phones, and tablets made by them, in an ecosystem made by them.

Yes, they have a large user base, but we all know that they do not have the same amount of power that Apple does.