Amazon has announced two new Fire TV Stick models, integrating significant performance upgrades and innovative AI features. The company also introduced a cost-effective Fire TV Soundbar and unveiled advanced AI search capabilities.
New Fire TV Stick Models
Fire TV Stick 4K Max: The flagship model, the Fire TV Stick 4K Max, now boasts a powerful 2GHz quad-core processor, making it Amazon’s most advanced streaming stick to date. Key features include:
- Enhanced Performance: With Wi-Fi 6E support and twice the storage capacity of its predecessor, the 4K Max promises faster and more efficient streaming.
- Fire TV Ambient Experience: This feature transforms the device into a smart display when not in use, showcasing calendars, sticky notes, and smart home controls.
Fire TV Stick 4K: The standard 4K model receives a performance boost with a 1.7GHz chip and Wi-Fi 6 compatibility. Both sticks are priced competitively at $59.99 for the 4K Max and $34.99 for the 4K, making high-quality streaming accessible to a wide audience.
Fire TV Soundbar
Fire TV Soundbar: Priced at $109, this new soundbar aims to elevate your audio experience with DTS Virtual-X and Dolby Audio technologies, delivering cinematic sound quality to your living room.
AI-Powered Features
Amazon is also enhancing the Fire TV experience with advanced AI capabilities:
AI-Generated Artwork: The Fire TV Ambient Experience now allows users to generate AI-created artwork by simply asking Alexa to "create an image" and providing a description. This feature will be available on the 4K Max stick in the US by the end of the year at no additional cost.
AI Search Capabilities: Amazon’s new AI search functionality aims to simplify content discovery. Users can ask Alexa complex, open-ended questions about movies and shows, such as:
- Topic Searches: "Show me sci-fi shows about time travel."
- Genre Searches: "Find Korean horror films."
- Plot Descriptions: "Movies where people get stuck in a video game."
- Quotes: "What has the 'Winter is coming' line?"
This advanced search feature utilizes an Amazon-built large language model to provide personalized recommendations across your streaming services, addressing the common issue of users spending excessive time searching for content. According to Amazon, the average viewer spends 10 minutes per session just looking for something to watch.
The AI search feature is currently rolling out to select Fire TV devices in the US, with plans to expand to all eligible devices in the coming weeks.
With these updates, Amazon continues to enhance its Fire TV ecosystem, blending powerful hardware with innovative AI technologies to improve user experience and content accessibility.
News Source: TechSpot
