Can’t wait until October 5th for your 4k Fire TV fix? Best Buy has already started lining shelves with Amazon’s new model, clocking in at the same $99 (and potentially cheaper than the incoming Roku 4). And while I didn’t partake (today), I’m far more interested in Amazon’s streamer knowing TiVo support is just around the corner.
I assume many of us would prefer the HDMI dongle form factor in many situations. However, my experience with the Fire TV Stick wasn’t the greatest. Plus, beyond my Amazon-specific quirks, there’s really only so much you can cram into these sorts of gadgets before they melt and wireless reception will always be a concern. So, box it is — more power, more ports, and more clutter (unless you get tricky).
Beyond 4k, the beefed up Fire TV features a number of upgrades over its predecessor, like 802.11ac and a microSD slot for who knows why, while swapping out a Bluetooth controller for the greater range of WiFi Direct. Also, Fire TV 2 takes a page from Echo with Alexa. Yeah, the prior model had reasonably decent voice skills. But we anticipate all sorts of new capabilities via “Alexa” (which is expected to hit existing Fire TV boxes this month).
I didn’t count, but there were could have been at least 8 of these out on the shelf with all the other streamers.
For $99, I’m not sure what advantage there is over another Tivo Mini for $123.50 on Amazon right now – except for Watch ESPN – which alone has me about ready to get one of the cast/fire/roku devices.
Not sure I really want another one, even with 4K. There is something about the interface that is not smooth.
East coast Best Buy stores…? West? Somewhere in the middle? The website shows ‘pre-order’ and ‘no available for in-store pickup’ :-(
I know of three different Best Buys in different regions. Mine is a Virginia suburb of DC. Elias (of AFTVNews) tells me that his LA store is stocked, but they wouldn’t let him purchase one.
Jason, the interface isn’t my favorite either. But the app selection is improving and I’m deep into Amazon content. Plus TiVo.
Speaking of which, m — no matter how good the TiVo app is, it’ll never be as good as a Mini. I see this more as a bonus on secondary TVs. Although I was reading somewhere that someone thought the Fire TV TiVo app would be more like mirroring of some sort, maybe from a smartphone? Hopefully it’s more of an Android app port with leanback interface.
Tangent, but wow: “Amazon to Ban Sale of Apple, Google Video-Streaming Devices”.
Elephants fighting in the jungle.
I’ll see your semi-monopoly, and raise my semi-monopoly…
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Hey, Dave, given both this, and given other Best Buy concerns I always dismiss, perhaps incorrectly, do you have even a vague idea of how much big-box stores have as market-share in devices like Fire, TiVo, AppleTV, etc? I’m urban, so I’m clueless here.
Also, is there any possibility Amazon is paying TiVo to get an exclusive over Roku, etc? Or is that completely unreasonable speculation?
Crap!! And I was going to stop by BestBuy on the way home. I could have purchased the FireTV and then cancelled my Amazon order. I’ll need to look tomorrow when I pick up the Age of Ultron 3D BD.
Chucky, TiVo has indicated more of their sales have been coming online the last few years. It’s more complex and costly which probably dovetails with online research followed by potential sales. I don’t know if more means majority though. For Roku, Chromecast, and Fire TV, retail is huge – these are relatively small ticket items and folks will be loading up for the holidays. All frequently have prominent Best Buy displays and/or endcaps as well. I chuckled at the Chromecast display today as it’s still the old stuff.
I doubt Amazon is paying TiVo in cash. But they obviously chose to invest in updating their TiVo app while Fire TV was out there and TiVo has called out Amazon as a successful sales channel. So I’d say synergy. (If anything, TiVo could be paying Amazon in the form of big bounties on sales — when I was an affiliate, it was $100 per Roamio sale. Been living on ramen since they killed that program.;)
“I doubt Amazon is paying TiVo in cash. But they obviously chose to invest in updating their TiVo app while Fire TV was out there and TiVo has called out Amazon as a successful sales channel. So I’d say synergy.”
Makes good sense.
And, if true, would imply Roku, etc clients will follow in their own good time…
Unless Roku is a direct competitor…They really should have gone with Amazon when they came sniffing around. I can’t see their end game. And Apple’s move into apps was kind of inevitable. The only surprise was that it took this long.
“Unless Roku is a direct competitor…”
Hmmm…
But synergy is different that cold-cash exclusives. It means TiVo has reason to launch with Amazon, but unless Amazon is playing more hardball with TiVo than I’d expect in a ‘synergy scenario’, there would be no reason for TiVo not to expand end-points in a quarter or two after initially promoting Fire, no?
“They really should have gone with Amazon when they came sniffing around. I can’t see their end game.”
Uber, but for streaming video.
Look, I dunno how I’d feel if I’d had an ownership stake in Roku, but from the sidelines, all I can I say is: you go girl!
They’re a no-name startup up agains the biggest brands in the business, and they’re first in market share! Stop and smoke a pipe full of that for a moment. They obviously face severe challenges going forward, but their ‘Switzerland’ model actually has potential value to stakeholders. What was Netflix’s end game back in darker days of modeling? Being first gives you potential in a seeming unsurmountable situation.
Lean-back OTT is a brand new world. The future is unwritten.
I took the bait — I live less than a mile from a Best Buy. Called first, she said they had them. I explained the 10/5 launch date, and was she sure I could buy one… 10 minutes on hold while she checked… …’yes, come on in, go to home video’ was the response. The guy went in back to get it, but when the sales clerk tied to ring up the sale, their POS system wouldn’t accept it. If anyone got one from Best Buy, they didn’t process the sale normally, as their POS won’t accept that skew number until they open on Monday.
They were nice about it though. They only received 4, and said the soonest they’d receive more is Tuesday, 10/6 — so they set it aside and are knocking $10 off the price :-)
The one reason I am SERIOUSLY considering getting the Amazon FireTV is that it is the only connected device (other than Roku’s inferior method of how the SlingPlayer app works) that is currently supported by Sling for the SlingPlayer app for connected devices.
The FireTV experience demonstrated by Sling on its YouTube channel shows it is using the same interface as the old WD units, and if you were from one room in your home to another room in your home, it used your LAN resulting in crystal clear full HD. Further, the FireTV experience with SlingPlayer app is just so much EASIER and intuitive to use, and I do mean for a few of my family who sometimes watch Sling content from a remote location. This beats the Roku SlingPlayer experience that requires a mobile device to make the initial connection (you don’t have to start the streaming until AFTER casting to the Roku) and then the Roku remote becomes “dead” except for the HOME key, and all control of the Sling is using the remote device, and to add salt to the wound, it sure looks to me that even if all the devices are on my LAN, the diminished (but still darn good considering) PQ makes me think that it is Slinged OUT and UPstream from my gateway to the internet and then back DOWN again to re-enter my LAN from which it originated because my ISP only gives me 5 Mbps upstream (although I get 60 Mbps downstream). It aint the crystal clear HD at 7-8 Mbps I used to get via my WD Live TV never leaving my LAN. If anyone knows if Roku SlingPlayer app does, indeed, stay within the LAN when all devices are on the same LAN, do feel free to correct me. But it sure looks like it sends it out to the internet and then back down to me again.
Anyway, FireTV having SlingPlayer is more compelling than TiVo app because I don have either Mini’s or TiVo boxes in the other rooms, but I sure do see great value in the TiVo app for those who don’t have Mini’s or TiVo boxes in other rooms.
benjitek, the word “bait” you used is quite a good one. My sense is that BB my knowingly post info making consumers think an item is in stock at the brick and mortar stores just to get people INTO the stores in the hope the person buys something on impulse. Forgive me, but I think that is what may have happened to you because something similar happened to me.
I say this because I recently bought another Slingbox 500 (renamed Sling TV, but not the SlingTV service????)and saw that BB on-line had the same discounted price as Amazon, but the BB site stated that the device was available for pick-up at my nearest store. So, I stopped by that store on the way home so that I could get the device NOW! Well, after not seeing any of the 500’s on the shelves. So, I got help from floor sales person who checked to see if any were in stock. He took a long time because they told him they had no 500’s in stock, but he double-checked in a different area for me, and he finally came back to say they had NO 500’s and he was not sure when they would be getting more, even though Sling had a big promotional sale of the devices.
Than, the next day, I called that same store from home and asked if they had any Slingbox 500’s in stock because the website shows not only my store but several others claiming to have Slingbox 500’s in stock, and I did not want to go down to the store if they had none in stock. I was on hold for a good full 5 minutes, when she finally returned to say that they have NO 500’s in stock and said the website must not have been updated.
OK, I know some websites are abominably run by some webmasters, but I got a very unctuous feeling from all this: BB CEO has stated that they embrace being used by those who come into the store just to evaluate items to only then purchase them on-line. BB just wants people to COME INTO THE STORE. They want the traffic. It is often a good chance that people who come into the stores do walk out with some item they purchased while in the store.
I could be wrong, but my sense is that with all the tied in automated inventory software, I am very skeptical of BB indicating stock available at the BB store OR FOR PURCHASE, only for us to find out it is NOT in stock or available for purchase, but they got us IN THE STORE.
Yes, I am being cynical, but it strikes me that BB is still fighting for its life and is willing to do anything just to get people into the stores.
two things:
1. Correction: BB’s price was LOWER than Amazon’s by pretty fair amount.
2. While I felt some disgust with BB, I went ahead and just ordered the 500 from their BB on-line site because the price was the lowest. It was delivered and has since been installed and is working well and enjoyed by those steaming from it.
No HDR support. No thanks.
The shelf was empty this morning where the Amazon Fire TV was supposed to be. At the Springfield, VA BestBuy. Although I didn’t spend much time looking around. I remember when the Fire TV stick came out. They were nowhere near where they were supposed to be at that BestBuy.
@HarryKerryJr — Our experience isn’t at all similar, and I have experienced no feelings of ‘disgust’ like you mentioned feeling. I actually preordered from Amazon, but thought I might have my new toy for the weekend ;-)
When I mentioned ‘bait’, I was referring to this article, not something Best Buy did. It was a combination of reading this blog post and a mistake on the part of the person on the phone at Best Buy… it happens. They did nothing to mislead, the product isn’t listed as available on their site, the product page has only a pre-order option.
The Best Buy supervisor went above and beyond by instructing me not to pre-order so that she could hold one, and to come in on Monday and ask for her so she give me $10 off for the inconvenience. She also made note of the link to this article and said she would ‘pass it along’ — no idea why or to who…
“She also made note of the link to this article and said she would ‘pass it along’ — no idea why or to who…”
The CIA, NSA, and FBI will obviously be paying Dave a visit tonight…
While many think of me as a TiVo blogger, I’m also part Best Buy ninja. I swung by Best Buy today and the Fire TV was gone. Which is to be expected. For example, when I uncovered the Slingboxes early a few years back, Sling’s sales team notified Best Buy who had a memo sent (via computer) to all Best Buy stores to make sure they were off the shelves until whatever the “real” date was supposed to be. But I’d imagine the the Fire TV is still out in some stores (there’s a lot of stores, a lot of work, and a lot of young employees) and possibly available for sale if you find the right person.
Dave twits: No, there’s no understanding (the reasoning behind Amazon’s ban of the Apple TV, Chromecast, and Nexus Player).
And I respectively disagree.
If I Apple can try to use its semi-monopoly in one field to muscle into the new OTT video lean-back space, why shouldn’t Amazon try to use its semi-monopoly in one field to muscle into the new OTT video lean-back space? And as an entirely retaliatory move, the sequencing even gives Amazon a good chunk of the moral high ground.
Now, I don’t know for sure if this is wise move on Amazon’s part or not, but that’s a different (and likely more interesting) question than simply understanding the reason behind the decision.
@Chucky “…I respectively disagree…”
IMHO — Apple is the clog in this drain. They should make an app for Amazon and Roku, Chromecast if they’re bored ;-) For many users, myself included, there is no streaming option the covers all the bases: Wireless audio, Plex, Amazon Instant Video, USTVnow.com, and iTunes Music & Video Libraries — everything else I might need is on all platforms. 4K is an important consideration for many, but I won’t be upgrading to a TV that can play it for at least a couple years.
Apple could make their for-purchase services available and leave the full integration exclusively available for products of their own. Doing so would make it all about the features and less about the platform. I’m going with FireTV, the only missing item on my list is USTVnow.com — though my Roku 3 will remain plugged in for that.
“For many users, myself included, there is no streaming option the covers all the bases: Wireless audio, Plex, Amazon Instant Video, USTVnow.com, and iTunes Music & Video Libraries — everything else I might need is on all platforms.”
Can I get you a pony with that? Everyone loves ponies.
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“Apple could make their for-purchase services available and leave the full integration exclusively available for products of their own. Doing so would make it all about the features and less about the platform.”
You’ve stumbled into the carefully hidden skunkworks of Project Satire.
Please talk to your Apple HR person about the Prime Directive. We really don’t want to have to send you to the Foxconn re-education camp…
@Chucky “…Can I get you a pony…
@Chucky “…Can I get you a pony…”
A unicorn, yes — I already have a pony ;-)
I see my FireTV shipped today from Amazon. With delivery expected on Monday. It would have nice to have been able to pick one up from BestBuy today so I could check it out this weekend. Since i plan on watching some streaming shows. Now I just need to sell my old FireTV. I’ll probably pick up a second 2015 FireTV to replace my FireTV stick at my secondary viewing location.
Swung by a different Best Buy this AM, in Leesburg VA. They had four 4K Fire TVs on the shelf… until I tried to buy one. ;) I didn’t push the issue or offer to sweeten the deal as I’m in no rush — need to see what the Roku 4 offers before pulling the trigger.
“..They had four 4K Fire TVs on the shelf… until I tried to buy one…”
So cruel :-)
After I called to confirm I could purchase one, I had my Bluetooth headphones charging, made sure I had a spare HDMI cable… only to experience the ‘Santa didn’t come to your house this year’ feeling after the clerk discovered their POS system wouldn’t accept the skew number until Monday :-(
Just got mine in the mail from best buy. Had an email about a week back about the release date changing to 9/30, said to do nothing if you accept. But I can verify usps dropped mine at my door step about 15 minutes ago.
Maybe it was delivered… maybe not… without seeing it, no way to really know. Surprised Best Buy is using USPS now, typically no their preferred shipping method…
I’ve had FedEx, UPS, and USPS for BestBuy deliveries in the past. I’m just glad they don;t use LASERship like Amazon does around here. They are the worst. I am lucky to get 50% of my packages when Amazon uses them.
They sometimes use USPS for ‘standard’ deliveries, but not directly — usually through UPS Mail Innovations or FedEx SmartPost, methods where UPS hands it over to USPS after the package reaches the area of delivery. Both involve an extra day to final delivery because of the carrier transferal. To receive the FireTV today, it would have to have been shipped via Best Buy’s ‘Expedited’ or ‘Express’ options, neither of which use USPS at all.
If someone knows how I could post images in can. Also it was shipped with FedEx and transfered to my local post office yesterday. I had pre-ordered it and got an email from best buy saying the previous order date had changesd. I thought because of the roku 4 leak that they knew something and bumped the release date up. If anyone lives in Carlsbad you can come over and toy with it. Cheers all
Looks like they jumped the gun: http://imgur.com/ZoEdQYB
And here I thought I’d get it the soonest by ordering from Amazon :-(
Feel free to send anything you like to me – I can get them posted for the rest of us to admire. davezatz@gmail.com
Oops, I did again — I’ve pulled my foot out of my mouth so that I could type. Thought for sure crazycaddy was telling a tale. Apologies. Jealous. ;-)
I went ahead and posted a sampling of pics Crazycaddy sent me. Try to enjoy despite the jealousy. :)
https://zatznotfunny.com/2015-10/best-buy-delivers-4k-fire-tv/
1080 / 24 p ?
I set up my FireTV a little while ago. Mine is messed up. It won’t send DD+ for some reason. I can swap places with my first Gen FireTV and that will send DD+ fine from Amazon and Netflix. But the second gen FireTV is only sending DD from AMazon and stereo audio from Netflix. I guess I’ll need to contact them to exchange it.
Or wait a few days and see what other people say. It’s more likely a software issue than hardware…
Yes. I see now where other people are having similar issues. RIght now my first gen FireTV is faster than the second gen. Plus the audio problems with the second gen.
I just printed out my return label for the FireTV. Too many issues right now.
Plus I see it’s already discounted 20% at Amazon. The new FireTV is showing up for $80 right now at Amazon. WHich was even more incentive for me to return the one I paid $100 for.