Less than seven months since introducing Fire TV, Amazon has launched the Fire TV Stick – a new dongle device that plugs into a TV, giving users access to a range of films, TV shows, music, photos, apps and games.
With two times the memory and retailing at $39, Fire TV Stick is set to rival Google’s $35 Chromecast device, which launched in the US last summer and in the UK (£30) earlier this year.
Amazon’s entry into the dongle market will see it offer content from services including Netflix, Prime Instant Video, Hulu, Spotify and Pandora, alongside allowing users to rent or purchase 200,000 film and TV episodes from Amazon Instant Video.
Other features include a remote control, Fire TV remote app with voice search, the ability to mirror smartphone and tablet displays and photo and video slide show options.
“Fire TV Stick is the most powerful streaming media stick available – a dual-core processor, 1 GB of RAM, 8 GB of storage, dual-band and dual-antenna Wi-Fi, included remote control, voice search with our free mobile app, easy set-up, an open ecosystem, and exclusive features like ASAP for instant streaming,” said Jeff Bezos, Amazon.com founder and CEO.
“The team has packed an unbelievable amount of power and selection into an incredible price point – Fire TV Stick is just $39.”
Fire TV Stick is available at $19 for the first two days of pre-order. Eligible customers will also get a free 30-day trial of Netflix and Amazon Prime upon purchase.
