I talked about the Amazon Fire TV Stick in my last review and now want to discuss the Amazon Fire TV Box. Although a lot of the review will have the same thing as the Fire TV Stick review there are some extra things about the box you should know in case you are trying to decide which device you want to get.
Design
The design of the Amazon Fire TV “Box” is not as compact as the stick. The stick, of course, is like a USB stick whereas the fire tv “box” has 2 different designs. The 1st and 2nd generations are more like a compact portable DVD drive you would buy for a laptop and the 3rd generation is the same shape but just over ¼ of the size of 1st and 2nd gen. You would, of course, plug them in the same way as the stick. You would use an HDMI cable for 1st and 2nd Gen with the same type of USB power adapter and the 3rd gen has a built-in cable that plugs directly into the HDMI port with the same USB Power adapter.
The remote with mic is the way to go for any of your Fire devices. It is nice to be able to hold the mic button down and say what you want. My kids from 4 to 10 years old can simply say what they are looking for and off they go for some instant entertainment!
Software
The software that comes on the Fire TV is the same as the software that comes on the 2nd gen fire tv sticks. It allows for you to download from their store if an app is available. The layout of the categories can get a little overwhelming to look at when you first start using it but once you get used to where things are it will seem a bit easy. Using the built-in mic on the remote will help with navigation.
The fact that most of your main channels, like Disney, ESPN, ABC, NBC, CBS, and so on, have apps on Amazon store makes it nice if you have a paid cable/satellite provider. This will allow you to only have to pay for one box for the first TV then if you set these channel apps up with your providers account you can instantly watch all the latest shows on the device without having to access your provider’s box. Most of these apps even allow for the stream of Live TV.
If there isn’t an app on Amazon Store there is a chance you could sideload the app and then run it on the device. Like with the previous review on the stick, I won’t go into sideloading but this ability is nice for those out there who want more from the device than what it has to offer out of the box and from their store. A word of caution though with sideloading on the Fire TV’s, the 1st and 2nd generations are as simple as the sticks to sideload but they have done some updates to the 3rd generation fire tv’s that makes it more complicated to sideload to the Fire TV. You will have to use the extra software in order to sideload to the 3rd gen so if you like sideloading software I would research how this is done first because if you are like me you may end up paying a little extra to get your hands on a 2nd generation box. I do have a new box and it is a bit of a pain to do.
Gaming
Playing games on the Amazon Fire TV is much better than doing it with the stick. I would recommend getting one of the game controllers that is sold for the fire tv or any Bluetooth controller probably will work. With the speed of the box’s being much faster than the sticks, there are hundreds of more games available to play on the box than the stick. By no means is this a replacement for the AAA games you get on a console like the Xbox, PS4, and even the Switch but it is a nice way to past time if you can’t afford one of the 3 consoles.
Performance
The overall performance of the Amazon Fire TV is great. It runs fast with smooth transitions between apps and tabs. The 2nd generation does run a bit better than the new 3rd generation boxes but all the boxes run faster than the sticks. The 3rd generation does have something for those who have 4K tv’s and that is 4K support. I watched my first 4K video using the 3rd generation box and I do have to say that it was one of the best pictures I have ever seen to date. Of course, I don’t see a huge difference between the 2nd generation fire tv stick and the 3rd generation fire tv so if you had to choose between the two and you didn’t really want the gaming aspect or the 4K aspect then I would personally recommend the newest stick over the newer box.
Final Verdict
Pros: Great performance, Easy Setup, 4K support (3rd generation), good for basic gaming needs.
Cons: Cost more than the stick, 3rd gen makes sideloading a pain, 3rd gen slower than previous generations.
The overall experience I had with the Amazon Fire TV’s was great. I enjoy the speed of the 2nd generation boxes enough that I did buy a 2nd one even though it cost $30 more at the time than the newer 3rd generations. I do have a 3rd generation box as well and I use it on my 4K TV to watch 4K videos. I am able to sideload on the 3rd generation a bit easier than the average person with how I have my home network setup but I wouldn’t recommend it if you don’t care about 4K but do care about using apps that need to be sideloaded, go for the 2nd generation box or the newer fire tv stick instead.