SAN FRANCISCO
Amazon on Monday unveiled a new streaming device its calling the Fire TV Stick.
The “dongle” is the latest in a series of budget streaming products. The Fire TV Stick is priced at $39, putting it clearly in competition with Google’s $35 Chromecast and the $50 Roku Streaming Stick.
Amazon knows who the enemy is, and is trying to position its new product as the most powerful choice.
“From the responsive interface to instant search results, everything about Fire TV Stick is fast and fluid,” Amazon proclaimed on the Fire TV Stick’s product description page. “It’s all thanks to a dual-core processor with six times the processing power of Roku Streaming Stick, a dedicated VideoCore4 GPU, and 8 GB of storage – four times that of Chromecast and 32 times that of Roku Streaming Stick.”
The products are all similar in functionality. They are each little Wi-Fi connected sticks that plug into the HDMI port of a television. The Fire TV Stick is aimed at streaming video, so users can see any options ordered on-demand through Amazon, as well as Netflix, Hulu Plus, ESPN, YouTube and more.
Amazon is adding a few unique features, like Advanced Streaming and Prediction – or ASAP, for those who enjoy puns – which predicts content users might enjoy and it cues up for a more streamlined experience.
Chromecast and the Roku Streaming Stick have been criticized for lack of speed and processing power, with many critics saying the cheap price is to blame, which is why Amazon boasts of the Fire TV Stick’s improved capabilities.
With more and more customers cutting cable out of their media diet, the bargain prices for these dongles also showcases how these companies make money from the content, not the devices.
Pre-orders are currently available on Amazon’s website and the Fire TV Stick will be released Nov. 19, although the company expects orders to ship out after that date due to popular demand. Amazon is limiting purchases to two per customer.
www.aa.com.tr/en
