Amazon has announced that the updated version of its Fire TV stick enables users to interact with Alexa and provides access to all smart home skills available on the platform.
Owners of Amazon’s portable Fire stick can now navigate content and control playback (with commands such as "find suspense thrillers" or "go back 30 seconds"), as well as ask questions to Alexa when watching video content and navigating apps.
Currently the only media streaming stick in the UK to have a voice remote, the Fire device additionally has undergone a complete redesign and now offers a quad-core processor (for 30% faster performance) and improved image quality via Advanced Streaming and Prediction (ASAP) for Amazon Video and support for High Efficiency Video Codec (HEVC).
With Alexa Voice Remote, homeowners can ask Alexa to get the news and weather, check their work commute, get the latest sports scores, create shopping lists and play music.
For visually impaired users, the stick offers a VoiceView screen reader, automatic reading of programme information and high contrast text for easier viewing.
“Fire TV Stick is our fastest-selling UK device ever – today we’re making it even better,” commented Jorrit Van der Meulen, vice president at Amazon Devices International. “The new Amazon Fire TV Stick has been completely redesigned with incredible performance, powerful voice search and the included Alexa-powered remote to deliver fast access to a vast selection of movies, TV shows, games and Alexa skills.”
The latest version of the Fire stick begins shipping in the UK from 6 April onwards.