The unit has a very slim profile (it’s roughly the size of two CD jewel cases stacked up) but packs some pretty robust hardware inside its tiny case including 2GB of RAM, a 1.7Ghz quad-core mobile processor, a dual MIMO 802.11bgn antenna, an optical audio out, and even an Ethernet jack for those of you that prefer wired connections over wireless.
How Do I Set It Up?
A smooth user experience is definitely an area the Fire TV excels in and setup is no exception. Plug the device into your HDTV, plug the power cable in, and grab the remote.
The Fire will perform some basic checks, download updates if available, and then (if you’re using Wi-Fi instead of Ethernet) prompt you to connect to your local Wi-Fi node.
If you happen to have a USB-based keyboard handy, now would be a great time to take advantage of the USB port on the back of the Fire and plug it in.
The on-screen keyboard is actually fairly remote friendly (and they made excellent use of the remote buttons as shortcuts for tasks like backspacing, shifting, and moving onto the next step) but it’s still clicking around a keyboard with a remote control and not much fun. Using the USB keyboard to avoid the tedium of typing in your lengthy Wi-Fi SSID and password is totally worth it.
One of the things we noted in our review of the Kindle Fire last year was how user friendly the Kindle Fire was (especially with the Mayday feature to help guide you through problems). The Fire TV continues with the trend of user friendliness as the brief tutorial video pretty much covers everything you need to immediately start using the device.
User Interface
As veteran media center users we had few complaints about the user interface. Overall the user interface is very snappy and navigating the main categories is painless. The games menu did leave a bit to be desired though as it was difficult to easily browse the greater games database beyond the curated suggestion lists first presented to to the user.
Hardware and Performance
The Fire TV’s hardware is clearly up to the task (and then some) when it comes to video playback. In fact the processor and RAM is overkill for 1080p playback (the humble Raspberry Pi does just fine playing back HD video with a fraction of the hardware power packed into the Fire TV).
In fact the Fire TV has more than enough power for even hardware-intensive mobile games. We had no problem playing Asphalt 8, Grand Theft Auto, or other games that would tax weaker Android devices.
Specialty Features
The Fire TV sports a few features that either don’t exist on other streaming media center solutions or are poorly implemented. Let’s take a look at a few of them.
Voice Search
Gaming
The real problem with gaming on the Fire TV though isn’t any real shortcoming of the Fire TV itself though. There’s just this large and still present gap between the ease and fun of true mobile gaming (on your phone or tablet) and the depth and experience of sit-down gaming with a console or PC that this whole mobile-gaming-on-your-TV genre has failed to bridge properly. Even games that would be fun to play on your phone while waiting for the train or what not feel cheap and hollow when you’ve actually taken the time to sit down on your couch and invest some time in a game. Fingers crossed the mobile-to-TV crossover movement strengthens and some solid titles can take advantage of the Fire’s beefy processor.
FreeTime and Parental Controls
It’s incredibly easy to restrict access to the device, set screen time limits, set bedtime shut off, restrict content, and otherwise lock the device down and make it kid-friendly. Combine the Fire TV with FreeTime Unlimited ($2.99 a month for Prime subscribers) and you have yourself a media rich and kid-safe media box.
The Good, The Bad, and The Verdict
After playing around with the FireTV for the last week and putting it through the paces, what do we have to say about it? Let’s run through some bullet points in The Good and The Bad, and then issue a Verdict.
The Good
The Bad
The Verdict
If you’re a DIY-type geek, however, and the majority of your media is ripped and stored locally on a portable HDD or a storage server, there’s no native support for any kind of local or attached-storage streaming. Although you can install third-party applications to attempt a work around there’s no good way (as it’s presently impossible to jailbreak your Fire TV and override the default home screen) to prioritize that local content.
