Amazon Fire TV Cube review-2019

Amazon Fire TV Cube

With so many streaming devices on the market, it can be difficult for new ones to stand out. Amazon, for its part, has differentiated its Fire TV products with one notable feature: They work with Alexa. If you have an Echo paired with a Fire TV device, you can launch TV shows, play tunes, check the weather or even turn the TV on and off, simply by using your voice. Last year, Amazon married an Echo and a Fire TV together in one product called the Fire TV Cube, so you could use one device instead of two. At the time, however, it couldn't handle some simple voice commands and it lacked core Echo functions like voice messaging.

Amazon Fire TV Cube

The new Fire TV Cube from Amazon has been significantly enhanced over the last year. Now it has YouTube and YouTube TV, Dolby Vision compatibility and HDR+ content, and much more than previous video audiences. It is also much easier to respond to your commands with a hexa-core processor on board. You can render voice calling and monitoring your clever home with an Echo too. Voice search favors some applications over some, you can't get rid of your remote control entirely, and if you already have an Echo, it might not be good. If you want a streaming console powered by Alexa that can also be an Echo, the Fire TV Cube is a good idea.

Amazon has since upgraded its Fire TV Cube software for a wider range of voice commands, more streaming services and voice messaging capabilities. In addition, it launched an all-new, fast, and strong Fire TV cube that is supportive of Dolby Vision and HDR+. It's also supported. On the outside it can look the same, but on the inside it's much better. The new Fire TV Cube is worth considering in the case of a all-in - one Alexa streaming box.

The new Fire TV Cube is the same as its predecessor in the model. It looks like a cube in a sleek black box. It has a plain, minimalist look, which should match well with most home theatres— it looks decent enough on my TV stand anyhow. (It's not really a cube as its sides are different lengths)

There are a few tests at the top: two volume keys, a silence microphone and a "command" button that you can use to activate Alexa. Alexa is the most important function. A blue circle lights up around the top of the Cube each time Alexa turns on. The rear has a HDMI port, an IR extension port, a MicroUSB port to use for the attachment of a power port and an Ethernet adapter. The IR Adapter is helpful if your multimedia devices are locked within a closed cabinet because the FireTV Cube is built for use freely.

Amazon Fire TV Cube

A caution note: the Fire TV Cube must be at least a meter or two away, so that microphones can help catch the voice. It was rather disappointing to me because the majority of my shelves were completely packed, because I intended to have the cube next to my Pc. But it performed well after some rearrangement.

The latest hexacore processer is what separates the Fire TV Cube 2019 from its predecessor. It activates the on-board computing feature Local Voice Control which allows the rapid execution of frequent voice commands without Alexa having access to the cloud at all times. It means that the new Fire TV Cube is almost four times faster than its predecessor, says Amazon.

Support for the Dolby Vision and HDR+ is another good addition to the new Fire TV Cube. This makes it compatible with a large variety of modern TVs and would fit well in most home theatres. (HDR supported only in the previous version). My TV is behind times unfortunately, so I couldn't try, but in case I got a new one I would still like the Fire TV Cube.

The Fire TV Cube comes with a controller, but most of the time (thanks Alexa) you don't have to use it, particularly because you can ask it to unlock any of the different streaming apps, check for certain shows and even enable additional hardware such as sound bars. At least for phones that have IR receivers, it is a standard phone. Alexa also works great to access the Fire TV Ui. When you see the relevant search results you can say "scroll down" or "select number 4." One of my preferred commands is to ask Alexa to speed up a couple of minutes in order to get through publications more quickly.

Amazon Fire TV Cube

The Fire TV Cube is attached to a Fire OS with an app identical to other Fire TV devices. You have connections not only to stream applications such as Netflix and Hulu, but also to live streaming via Twitch. Obviously, via Amazon's video service, you can buy or rent films and TV shows. In the last few months, Google finally agreed that both YouTube and YouTube TV should be enabled on the Fire OS. It means that Fire OS supports nearly all streaming video devices out there.

However, in the choice of live TV platforms such as Hulu Live and PS Vue, I can only change channels by talking, but not on YouTube TV. If I are a Hulu user and I ask, "Alexa, watch Hulu's ESPN" the ESPN channelle would be brought up by Hulu. "Alexa, watch ESPN on YouTube TV," however, is not going to work the same way–rather, it will create an ESPN-related video on YouTube, not YouTube TV. That's no longer entirely surprising given the recent introduction of YouTube TV on Fire OS.

You could better get a fire TV stick instead of the Cube if you already have an Echo. The Stick is sponsored by Dolby Vision, costs just $40 and has almost all the same functionality. You can lack some Cube functions: manipulating the Ui with your voice, managing the rest of your entertainment system and speeding up response times.

But if you don't have a Echo and want a streaming device with Alexa energy, then it is a bad choice for the new Fire TV Cube. While the Amazon Fire TV Cube last year was maybe lacking because of a lack of functionality, it is almost all overshadowed by the newer model. More comprehensive voice commands, Dolby Vision and HDR+ compatibility and much quicker response times are possible. If you don't already have one, it works quite well as an Alexa powered intelligent display. This isn't a wrong deal for $120.