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Amazon Fire TV

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Re: Amazon Fire TV

#221

Post by chrisBob »

bitcrusher wrote: post #111
programminggeek wrote: post #84

This is pretty much what Google TV should have been all along, but Google cares too much about web search and not enough about what people actually want to do on a TV - watch shows and play games. The gaming aspect of this will make it a winner. OUYA's big problem is that it didn't do streaming and was a bit clunky. Amazon has a big game library and just needs controller support. As a parent, a $100 streaming box and…

It's interesting how different perspectives work: > The gaming aspect of this will make it a winner. OUYA's big problem is that it didn't do streaming and was a bit clunky. Amazon has a big game library and just needs controller support. I think the gaming aspects are the worst part and are entirely useless. Who wants to casual game with an underpowered box on a giant TV screen? Goofy games are fun on a 4-7" screen b…

Why do you assume underpowered? My iPad 4, which is a few years old now has amazing graphics at higher than HD resolution. I don't know enough about the processors to compare them directly, but I don't see any reason to count out the Fire TV.

By making it easy to port Android apps they could do well with this.

Re: Amazon Fire TV

#222

Post by Touche »

parasubvert wrote: post #209
Touche wrote: post #191

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What's your point? I didn't say Amazon was available on every platform in existence, just that it's available on a large variety of platforms and is expanding. I wish it was on Android too, that would be ideal, but we're just comparing availability here. And Amazon's is pretty good.

You are claiming that Amazon is on a wide variety of platforms and that's a reason to choose their ecosystem over Apple which encourages the purchase of an Apple device. I don't agree. Google and Amazon are trying to get into Apple's device ecosystem game as it's way more profitable and offers more control than inserting apps on devices, which seems a failed strategy. Microsoft has already taken this approach with Su…

> You are claiming that Amazon is on a wide variety of platforms and that's a reason to choose their ecosystem over Apple which encourages the purchase of an Apple device.

Correct, can't wait for the counter argument.

> I don't agree.

Great, here it comes...

And then the rest of the post is about how the lock-in strategy is more profitable. Not sure if that's true or not, but doesn't have anything to do with my argument that being available on many devices is an advantage for the consumer.

Re: Amazon Fire TV

#223

Post by cauterize »

adestefan wrote: post #205
WoodenChair wrote: post #45

I'm really not that impressed. This is just Apple TV for the Amazon eco-system with gaming lopped on. The majority of people don't care about the specs of their set-top box since that really doesn't affect the performance of streaming an HD video in this day and age. So the two differentiating features are: - Voice Search - Gaming Are those enough of a value proposition? Probably not to make converts. I suspect the m…

If this Amazon box ever gets MLB.TV I'll buy one that day to replace my AppleTV. I don't watch enough movies or non-sports TV to make Netflix worth it to me, but having ties into what Amazon Prime streaming would be enough to pull me over.

Was very surprised to not see MLB.tv listed despite their willingness to support any device that has a screen.

Re: Amazon Fire TV

#224

Post by twoodfin »

smackfu wrote: post #200
dankoss wrote: post #176

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Amazon added this about six months ago, but it requires another iOS device: http://techcrunch.com/2013/09/17/amazons-instant-video-app-a...

Interesting that Amazon now has a pretty good motivation to remove this feature.

Why? Amazon wants to make money on the blades (content), not the razor.

Re: Amazon Fire TV

#225

Post by jggonz »

laxatives wrote: post #192
ambler0 wrote: post #181

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The lag is terrible with mirroring. Apple TV won't be viable for gaming until the game is played on the box itself and there is a low-latency controller.

Similarly, I've never understood the purpose of ChromeCast. The lag makes it completely unusable for video (I'm getting ~1 frame / 3 seconds), making it a glorified radio with cellphone/laptop remotes.

You need to upgrade your router. I was using a cheapo D-Link router when I first got my ChromeCast and the connection was awful. Range to laptops and devices was terrible and the connection always dropped. I bought an ASUS router for $150 and life is incredibly easier. I can stream HD content from 40-50ft away across 3 bedrooms without any issues.

Re: Amazon Fire TV

#226

Post by ghotli »

laxatives wrote: post #192
ambler0 wrote: post #181

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The lag is terrible with mirroring. Apple TV won't be viable for gaming until the game is played on the box itself and there is a low-latency controller.

Similarly, I've never understood the purpose of ChromeCast. The lag makes it completely unusable for video (I'm getting ~1 frame / 3 seconds), making it a glorified radio with cellphone/laptop remotes.

I have never, ever had video lag with my chromecast. It works flawlessly every time I use it. Netflix and HBO Go from a Moto X.

Re: Amazon Fire TV

#227

Post by nemof »

laxatives wrote: post #192
ambler0 wrote: post #181

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The lag is terrible with mirroring. Apple TV won't be viable for gaming until the game is played on the box itself and there is a low-latency controller.

Similarly, I've never understood the purpose of ChromeCast. The lag makes it completely unusable for video (I'm getting ~1 frame / 3 seconds), making it a glorified radio with cellphone/laptop remotes.

I just bought a chromecast now it's finally out in the UK. Streaming local video from my dlna server over wifi has been a total pleasure and works perfectly. Iplayer, youtube, any other html5 video I throw at it just works. What are you trying to do with it that gets that kind of lag? The only thing I've found which reduces framerate at all is the experimental fullscreen casting.

Re: Amazon Fire TV

#228

Post by happyscrappy »

ambler0 wrote: post #181
downandout wrote: post #107

Earlier quoted context omitted.

With screen mirroring, Apple TV offers the ability to play any game in the App Store on a TV wirelessly without having to buy a controller. That game library will likely always be larger than this one. Granted, you must have an iPhone or iPad, but I am surprised that Apple does not tout this feature more. I use it daily and it is pretty awesome.

The lag is terrible with mirroring. Apple TV won't be viable for gaming until the game is played on the box itself and there is a low-latency controller.

It works fine for me, and if I remember correctly the people having a problem with lag had their ATV connected via RJ-45 and switching to wifi fixed it.

Re: Amazon Fire TV

#229

Post by Zelphyr »

ChuckMcM wrote: post #204

I am kind of surprised the Roku manages to stay independent in all the 'tv' efforts. They have a really nice player and now a nice 'stick' player. Also a pretty easy to use SDK. So why re-build all or much of that for a proprietary box? Any thoughts on that strategy?

Roku, as I understand it, derives their revenue from hardware sales. So they have such an incentive to get you to upgrade hardware that they will actually take away content[1] in an effort to force you to do so.

My guess is Amazon is doing the opposite. They're probably practically giving away the hardware in hopes they'll realize more profits on the content you buy. And a device like this is just a small piece of a larger puzzle for Amazon and with their previous hardware experience its not a giant leap for them to produce a proprietary box.

For Roku, their device line is the puzzle. So sure, they have an easy to use SDK[2] it is also proprietary. I'm guessing Amazon built the Fire TV on Android so new apps are really just Android apps.

[1]: They did this last year and as a result I will never buy another Roku product again.

[2]: I'm still dumbfounded that they based it on Visual Basic. Carl Sassenrath is an employee now. In my opinion they'd do well to scrap their existing VB-style SDK and base the next generation on Rebol.

Re: Amazon Fire TV

#230

Post by eclipxe »

laxatives wrote: post #192
ambler0 wrote: post #181

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The lag is terrible with mirroring. Apple TV won't be viable for gaming until the game is played on the box itself and there is a low-latency controller.

Similarly, I've never understood the purpose of ChromeCast. The lag makes it completely unusable for video (I'm getting ~1 frame / 3 seconds), making it a glorified radio with cellphone/laptop remotes.

I think people confuse the ChromeCast tab/screen mirroring (which is slow and laggy) and ChromeCast DIAL/casting from apps like Netflix which actually just sends a URL to the Chromecast to stream
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