# Bought an Amazon Fire TV Box.



## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

I keep buying and returning these streaming devices because I like my BD players better for streaming. I recently bought an Amazon Fire streaming box. This looks like it might be a keeper! But getting it set up isn't a picnic.

First thing that annoyed me was the box it came in. I couldn't figure out how to open it without destroying it. After about a half hour, I finally pried it open (I can change the HDD in an HR in about 15 minutes) without causing too much damage. Fully expecting another disappointment and figuring I'd return it, I did want to keep the box and its contents in decent shape.

So, I get it unpacked and, of course, no instructions. Just a small brief pamphlet that had little info, but it did have site addresses for problems.

The setup of the box itself is simple. Just needed to plug in an Ethernet cord, an HDMI cable and the power cord. That went well.

Then I fired it up. Studied the interface and it looked pretty simple. 

Then I took the remote out of its wrappings. Looked like an Apple TV remote. I used an Apple TV this summer while on vacation and it was OK, but nothing special. But, looking more closely at the remote, it seemed a bit more complicated than the Apple TV's remote. 

Now I was ready for content. Found the NF and Showtime apps right away. Had to go on a long search for the HBOGO app, but I found it buried in an unexpected place. Clicked on it and up comes a menu that doesn't respond. I expected to see a dialog box of some kind asking me to log in using D*'s password. Nope, nothing. Then I think maybe the app isn't ready to be used yet since it's new to the Fire box.

I go up to the NF app. Same thing happens. Go to the Showtime app. Same thing happens. Menus that don't work. No place to sign in. Start wondering what I got myself into. Got ready to return it.

But I remember the website listed in that pamphlet for help with this thing. I used the website to find a way to talk to a human and called. Got the usual immediate callback from Amazon. And I get a CSR who says she knows all about the Fire box. She tells me to go to the HBOGO app and click on the link to put in my D* info. I tell her there isn't a link. She tells me to look in the upper right hand corner. Nothing there. Are you sure? Long story short, after asking me to click on the link she thinks is there at least 20 times in different ways, I ask her to connect me with someone who knows something about these things. But wait...now she knows what to do. She tells me to call D* and they'll tell me what I'm doing wrong. What could D* possibly know about it, I ask her. I don't know, she says. Please get me someone who knows what they're doing, I say politely.

Another woman comes on the line and tells me to log into D* and the app will work. How, I reply. So we start to go thru the same rigamarole. By this time I've puttered around in several apps and have activated NF and Showtime apps. While she's blathering about the link in the upper right hand of the screen, I'm downloading and activating the HBOGO app. I interrupt her and tell her I've got it working and thank her for wasting an hour of my time and hang up. So simple to do, but damn near impossible to figure out. 

And we think D*'s CSRs are bad? Geez.

Oh yeah, about the Fire box: I really like it! It has a better Amazon interface than my BD players do, the PQ is quite good, all 1080p. The remote, which I had dismissed as trash, turns out to be great! The voice search works beautifully (another short learning curve) and completes every search properly. I've been using it upstairs and downstairs (watching _The Wire_ on Amazon) and the remote and interface are really good and easy to use. Much better trick-play on Amazon than my BD players provide. 

All in all, so far, it is the best streaming box I've ever used and I've used just about every one of them. I have yet to do a side by side test of the upscaling abilities of the box against my BD players using _Cheers _as a benchmark, but I'll get to that this week. I did put an episode of _Cheers _on briefly and it looked pretty good, but I want to do the side by side thing to make sure. If it upscales 480p as well as my BD players do, I'm gonna get at least one more of these. 

Rich


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## Supramom2000 (Jun 21, 2007)

We all love it at my house! Even hubby, who gets tired of my newest tech toys, uses it for Netflix and Prime movies and shows - all the time! We bit on the $19.99 stick as well, so I can watch in the master or wherever I feel like it!

I haven't done the HBOGo app yet. Where did you find it buried and what was the secret trick to getting it to work?


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## SayWhat? (Jun 7, 2009)

Rich said:


> I keep buying and returning these streaming devices because I like my BD players better for streaming. I recently bought an Amazon Fire streaming box. This looks like it might be a keeper!


Keep an eye on battery consumption in the remote. Rumor has it that it likes them. A lot.


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## Starchild (Sep 4, 2007)

I love the amazon Fire TV box. My only negative is that it doesn't include A Vudu app. So for that I have to stream elsewhere. 

If Amazon would only join the ultraviolet community this would be a non issue.


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## ronton3 (Mar 15, 2006)

I have had one since the the day they came out and I have Prime. Last week I got a Vizio Pseries 4Ktv with Amazon and Netflix as apps, since I am not a gamer and since I can't get 4K through the box I am wondering when I will ever use it again.


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## Starchild (Sep 4, 2007)

And I can't get prime through my sharp TV. I wish everything would be standardized offerings.


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## jerrylove56 (Jun 15, 2008)

Had mine since Dec and love it. (Stick) I was upset about Vudu until I discovered the world of (XBMC/KODI) OMG!!! - Who knew the video world was at your fingertips. About to buy another one.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

Supramom2000 said:


> We all love it at my house! Even hubby, who gets tired of my newest tech toys, uses it for Netflix and Prime movies and shows - all the time! We bit on the $19.99 stick as well, so I can watch in the master or wherever I feel like it!
> 
> I haven't done the HBOGo app yet. Where did you find it buried and what was the secret trick to getting it to work?


I haven't got it hooked up at the moment. I think it was in the third level of choices when in "Home". You'll see the yellow "Free" box below the app and you click on that and it leads you thru the process. Same as NF and Showtime. Amazon I didn't have to do anything with, it knew who I was. I liked that.

Rich


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

SayWhat? said:


> Keep an eye on battery consumption in the remote. Rumor has it that it likes them. A lot.


Happened already. Second day of use, yesterday. I tried the Voice Search and it didn't have enough power to do the search. I thought the box was shot, but I put the batteries that came with it in the remote and they were dead. I put Duracells in it and I'll see how long they last. But I am worried about the battery life. 3 days in and I'm worried about the batteries... :nono2:

Rich


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

ronton3 said:


> I have had one since the the day they came out and I have Prime. Last week I got a Vizio Pseries 4Ktv with Amazon and Netflix as apps, since I am not a gamer and since I can't get 4K through the box I am wondering when I will ever use it again.


Perhaps a 4K upgrade will come? The processor in the box seems big enough to handle that, I think.

Rich


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

jerrylove56 said:


> Had mine since Dec and love it. (Stick) I was upset about Vudu until I discovered the world of (_*XBMC/KODI*_) OMG!!! - Who knew the video world was at your fingertips. About to buy another one.


I have no idea what that means, but I'll find out.

Rich


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## Supramom2000 (Jun 21, 2007)

I've had mine since November, and I have had no battery issues. My daughter used it daily over the Christmas break.


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## Billzebub (Jan 2, 2007)

When I first got mine the Showtime App didn't support DirecTV and there was no HBOGO app. They've since been added and I'm very happy with the box. Spent last night watching the last few episodes of the Borgias that I lost when my DVR crashed.
This is really helpful for me since I subscribe to Premier with DirecTV at home, but have no pay channels in my Harrisburg Apt with Comcast. 
Now if they would just add Cinemax and Starz apps.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

I did the side by side test, upscaling _Cheers _on the Fire TV and my best Sammy BD player. Saw no difference in PQ. Oh goody, I'm gonna keep this box!

Rich


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

SayWhat? said:


> Keep an eye on battery consumption in the remote. Rumor has it that it likes them. A lot.


Happened again. Now I'm getting worried. Just ordered another box and I've gone thru two sets of batteries already. I put in two brand new Duracells after the Amazon batteries died and they only lasted two days. Nutz.

Now I'm trying out leaving the box unplugged overnight until I start to use it. It made a big thing about connecting the remote to the box and I have a feeling that connection is what's draining the batteries. In other words, I think the box and remote are maintaining a connection as long as one of them has power.

Rich


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## Supramom2000 (Jun 21, 2007)

We've had ours for 4 months with a lot of daily use, and we're on the same batteries as it arrived with.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

Supramom2000 said:


> We've had ours for 4 months with a lot of daily use, and we're on the same batteries as it arrived with.


_*Say What*_ put a curse on me.... :rolling:

Rich


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## coolman302003 (Jun 2, 2008)

With heavy use of the headphone jack feature, our Roku 3 remote goes through batteries very quick as well. I haven't checked the exact amount of days they last but it's relatively short. I need to write down the install date on the batteries next time. I've got a Harmony 650 that gets heavy use and almost like clockwork, the batteries need changing every ~60 days. I started writing down the date I installed the batteries in the Harmony.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

I just got my second Fire TV box yesterday. I have a feeling the first one I bought wasn't new. I'll check it later and see exactly what's different. 

Rich


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## sigma1914 (Sep 5, 2006)

I bought the Fire Stick for my 2nd little TV. I hated it at first because it constantly dropped the network connection. After reading Amazon it turned out being a bug that eventually patched with an update - It's been great since the update.


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## itzme (Jan 17, 2008)

sigma1914 said:


> I bought the Fire Stick for my 2nd little TV. I hated it at first because it constantly dropped the network connection. After reading Amazon it turned out being a bug that eventually patched with an update - It's been great since the update.


Can you please give me a link to what you read about a fix? My fire stick has had that problem, repeated drop of the network and the message "connected with problems"

The only other fix I hope to see soon is the ability to get 5.1 surround when using the Plex app. I've been following that issue on the Plex boards.


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## sigma1914 (Sep 5, 2006)

itzme said:


> Can you please give me a link to what you read about a fix? My fire stick has had that problem, repeated drop of the network and the message "connected with problems"
> 
> The only other fix I hope to see soon is the ability to get 5.1 surround when using the Plex app. I've been following that issue on the Plex boards.


It was under the Q&A under the product on Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/forum/kindle/ref=cm_cd_pg_pg1?_encoding=UTF8&cdForum=Fx1D7SY3BVSESG&cdPage=1&cdThread=Tx2CDOG0K31UBSB

I guess people still have the issue; I got lucky I guess after a firmware upgrade.


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## itzme (Jan 17, 2008)

Thanks Sigma. Actually my Fire Stick has stayed online for 7+ days now, so maybe it was fixed. I even tested Plex and everything seems good. I think the stick is a good solution for secondary TVs in the house, making dumb TVs Smart.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

itzme said:


> Thanks Sigma. Actually my Fire Stick has stayed online for 7+ days now, so maybe it was fixed. I even tested Plex and everything seems good. I think the stick is a good solution for secondary TVs in the house, making dumb TVs Smart.


I've got a dumb smart TV. :nono2:

Rich


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

I can't recall a device that is more puzzling than the Fire TV box. I spent a couple hours puttering around with the two boxes I have yesterday and found all kinds of goodies. One important thing I did find: If you get a second box, be sure the first thing you do is go into settings and sync up the box with the other box. First thing. It truly amazes me how they can sell these things without instructions. 

Rich


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

My main reason for getting the Fire TV box was to get HBO GO. I figure if HBO comes out with that streaming option the box should get it too. Then I'll finally be able to get rid of the Premium movie package.

Rich


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## Billzebub (Jan 2, 2007)

Rich said:


> My main reason for getting the Fire TV box was to get HBO GO. I figure if HBO comes out with that streaming option the box should get it too. Then I'll finally be able to get rid of the Premium movie package.
> 
> Rich


It's A little different for me. I have the premiere package but also have an apartment in another city for work. With HBOGO and Showtime Anytime I can watch without paying a second time for the service. I also wanted access to Amazon Prime.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

Billzebub said:


> It's A little different for me. I have the premiere package but also have an apartment in another city for work. With HBOGO and Showtime Anytime I can watch without paying a second time for the service. I also wanted access to Amazon Prime.


After giving my "idea" some more consideration, I think I'll have to keep HBO and Showtime if I want to drop to the lower tiers of movie channels. There are some channels that I think are associated with the packages that I just have to have, like YES.

Rich


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## jerrylove56 (Jun 15, 2008)

Rich said:


> I can't recall a device that is more puzzling than the Fire TV box. I spent a couple hours puttering around with the two boxes I have yesterday and found all kinds of goodies. One important thing I did find: If you get a second box, be sure the first thing you do is go into settings and sync up the box with the other box. First thing. It truly amazes me how they can sell these things without instructions.
> 
> Rich


Most Amazon devices have loads of technical instructions online. Also there is a support forum available. I have noticed there are a number of help books available also. (With a price, of course.)

At first I thought the Roku was the best way to go in streaming devices. After first purchasing the Stick, I have now added the Fire TV box. I love the options that the Fire Tv gives you. Being able to side load apps is wonderful.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

jerrylove56 said:


> Most Amazon devices have loads of technical instructions online. Also there is a support forum available. I have noticed there are a number of help books available also. (With a price, of course.)
> 
> At first I thought the Roku was the best way to go in streaming devices. After first purchasing the Stick, I have now added the Fire TV box. I love the options that the Fire Tv gives you. _*Being able to side load apps is wonderful.*_


I'll have to try to find those sites. What is "sideloading apps"? Something else I missed? As I said, I've tried most streaming devices and have sent them all back. Usually, I don't need a manual, but the Fire TV box is something I wasn't quite expecting. Now I've got to learn more.

Rich


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

No problems with the batteries in either Fire TV box so far since the four failed. Curious. Good, tho. I'm really liking these boxes. I even called Samsung up and asked them if HBO Go was scheduled for implementation on their/my BD players. Another frustrating experience, the guy had no idea what I was talking about.

Rich


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## sigma1914 (Sep 5, 2006)

Rich said:


> I'll have to try to find those sites. What is "sideloading apps"? Something else I missed? As I said, I've tried most streaming devices and have sent them all back. Usually, I don't need a manual, but the Fire TV box is something I wasn't quite expecting. Now I've got to learn more.
> 
> Rich


http://sideloadfiretv.com/


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## RasputinAXP (Jan 23, 2008)

Well, I had the Fire Stick for a day or two. My only issue with it was that it was useless if the Internet was down but I still wanted to stream local content. Right back in the box it went.


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## Jacksmyname (Nov 11, 2014)

I bought the stick in November when Best Buy had it on sale for $25. I bought it primarily for Amazon Prime content.
Love the thing. Works like a charm. Using it for Prime, Netflix, and several others.
I'm also using an app called Vimu Player with it. It streams movies stored on my PC. 
I also sideloaded BS Player and ES File Explorer, also for streaming local content. They also work fine.
Buying another one for a second TV.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

RasputinAXP said:


> Well, I had the Fire Stick for a day or two. My only issue with it was that it was useless if the Internet was down but I still wanted to stream local content. Right back in the box it went.


You do need the Internet for all the streaming devices.

Rich


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## SayWhat? (Jun 7, 2009)

Rich said:


> I even called Samsung up and asked them
> 
> the guy had no idea what I was talking about.
> 
> Rich


They may have known before you called since word is Sammy Sets are listening to everything you say and phoning home.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

SayWhat? said:


> They may have known before you called since word is Sammy Sets are listening to everything you say and phoning home.


Naw, I don't have a Sammy set. My Panny smart TV is probably too dumb to do anything like that.

Rich


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## Wilf (Oct 15, 2008)

SayWhat? said:


> They may have known before you called since word is Sammy Sets are listening to everything you say and phoning home.


From the Twitter posts, Samsung has shot itself in the foot on this "feature".
See this: http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2015/02/samsung-smart-tvs-inserting-ads-into-third-party-apps/


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## Laxguy (Dec 2, 2010)

Wilf said:


> From the Twitter posts, Samsung has shot itself in the foot on this "feature".
> See this: http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2015/02/samsung-smart-tvs-inserting-ads-into-third-party-apps/


Tempest in a teapot.

People have short memories, and this isn't really heinous, is it/


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

Sent the first Fire TV box back today. It would come on without sound most of the time. That's the one that was eating batteries. I think I got someone else's problem. The replacement is already up and running properly. To those of you who don't know about my dreadful lack of luck, this is normal for me, there's nothing wrong with the Fire TVs, they're the best streaming boxes I've ever tried.

Rich


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## inkahauts (Nov 13, 2006)

Rich said:


> Sent the first Fire TV box back today. It would come on without sound most of the time. That's the one that was eating batteries. I think I got someone else's problem. The replacement is already up and running properly. To those of you who don't know about my dreadful lack of luck, this is normal for me, there's nothing wrong with the Fire TVs, they're the best streaming boxes I've ever tried.
> 
> Rich


Do people who stand next to you get extra good luck?


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## Edmund (Apr 17, 2003)

For those that like the Fire tv, how big is your amazon instant library? Movie and tv on a single line, only able to search one direction.  With over 200 movies and another 60 tv shows it gets tiring.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

inkahauts said:


> Do people who stand next to you get extra good luck?


When I was betting a bunch of fight fans used to always ask me who I was betting on in a big fight. Then they'd bet on the other guy if it was gonna be a close fight. I bet against Mike Tyson in every fight he had until the Tyson vs Douglas fight. No way could Tyson lose that fight. That was a sure thing. Even the guys that usually bet on ''the other guy" bet on Tyson that night. I watched it, I guess it was on PPV, I really don't remember. My wife thought I was dying when Douglas won. That was the last fight I bet on. My luck... :nono2:

Rich


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

Edmund said:


> For those that like the Fire tv, how big is your amazon instant library? Movie and tv on a single line, only able to search one direction.  With over 200 movies and another 60 tv shows it gets tiring.


Much like NF, you're better off using a computer to compile your watchlist, I think. After that, just like NF, you have to do your own searching for what's in your watchlist. My NF watchlist is huge. They (both Amazon and NF) really ought to have a way to search the watchlist. Once you've watched one episode on both services the series shows up on the "recently watched" list, which is much shorter. I think they're both evolving, I hope they are.

Rich


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## Edmund (Apr 17, 2003)

I'm not talking about a watchlist, these programs I own already, under video library. They are listed by date your purchased.


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## Supramom2000 (Jun 21, 2007)

I don't have any purchased. I only watch free stuff. But I do find the whole set up hard to navigate through.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

Edmund said:


> I'm not talking about a watchlist, these programs I own already, under video library. They are listed by date your purchased.


I don't purchase any content, I just watch what Prime allows me to see without further cost.

Rich


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

Supramom2000 said:


> I don't have any purchased. I only watch free stuff. But I do find the whole set up hard to navigate through.


Me too, but I think they'll realize sooner or later that the watchlists are clumsy at best and come up with some way of searching the watchlist for what you want. As I said, my NF watchlist is so long it takes me quite a while to find what I'm looking for. Amazon's watchlist on my account is gonna end up the same way.

Rich


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

I haven't tried all the apps that I downloaded, but I have a feeling they're all set up in a similar way. 

I'm really liking the remote control. It's so much easier to use than my Sammy BD players' remotes. I haven't really found anything to dislike about the Fire TV. I ought to get my third box today. 

For those of you who get the box and try to set up apps, some of them won't activate using D* as a provider. The workaround for that is to click on the Apple TV and activate that. That will activate that app on the Fire TV box. I had to do that on the PBS app and the A&E app.

Rich


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

Well, something had to be screwed up. When I got my first Fire box, I saw the _Sopranos _featured on the Home page. Ended up watching the whole series again. Came over beautifully, good PQ, 5.1 sound, no problems. Then I activated HBO GO and Showtime Anywhere. Brought up the _Sopranos _in HBO GO and no 5.1 sound. Same thing with Showtime Anywhere. I'm watching _Dexter _on the Showtime app now and not only is it only in stereo, but it's juddering, sorta. Not the juddering you get with an LCD TV, but it's like the frames are skipping smoothly (you really have to see it, I can't quite explain it).

Now I'm wondering if I made a mistake buying the Fire boxes. Do the Rokus have 5.1 on those two apps? I can live with the stereo, my AV systems convert the "Dolby +" 2.0 so that the center speaker and subwoofer work. But I bought the Fire boxes specifically for HBO and Showtime. I got sick and tired of dealing with D*'s VoD and thought the boxes would put an end to that. Now I'm wondering...

Rich


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## sigma1914 (Sep 5, 2006)

HBOGo on Roku is 5.1 on a lot... however, Sopranos didn't have 5.1 until season 4 on the app. Sopranos on Amazon Prime all has 5.1, though. I can check other programs if you want.

Showtime app doesn't have 5.1, unfortunately.


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## jerrylove56 (Jun 15, 2008)

Just purchased another FireTv box. I am loving these devices. It makes my Roku3 seem so out of date. About to put my Roku Stick in the junk drawer. 

While they are not "perfect," I can live with the wrinkles.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

sigma1914 said:


> HBOGo on Roku is 5.1 on a lot... however, Sopranos didn't have 5.1 until season 4 on the app. Sopranos on Amazon Prime all has 5.1, though. I can check other programs if you want.
> 
> Showtime app doesn't have 5.1, unfortunately.


Perfect! That solves the problem. The Fire Box is the same as the Roku regarding 5.1 sound on the _Sopranos_.

Showtime's app is kinda shaky, too. I screwed around with the settings and got rid of most shakiness. I think Showtime might well be the worst streaming site I've ever been on.

Thanx,

Rich


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

Before I posted about the 5.1 sound missing, I called Amazon and asked if anyone there knew anything about the Fire TV boxes. I was routed to a woman who "knows all about them". After half an hour or so of trying to explain to her exactly what my problem was, she asked me what browser I was using. For what? A browser? That question really stumped me. I told her I was using a TV and the FTV in conjunction. Oh. Then she hung up. Called right back and got another woman (again from a call center not in the states) who also knew all about the boxes. After another harrowing hour or so, I gave up and posted in the forum. Within minutes, _*Sigma*_ posted with the answer to my problem (which really wasn't a problem) and that post led me to satisfy myself that there was nothing wrong with the Fire TV boxes. By the time I hung up on the woman she was getting ready to send me shipping tickets to return all three boxes. I felt like I was back in 2007 with D* trying to fix a problem by sending me HR after HR when the problems weren't even with the HRs.

But, I did learn two things, one was if you buy something from Amazon and raise enough of a stink, they'll let you return the item, even after 30 days. The other thing I learned was how to reset the Fire TV box. You hold down the Play/Pause button and the Select button at the same time and the box resets. Probably a useless bit of information.

Anyhow, I'm happy with the Fire TV boxes again. Not happy at all about the time I spent on the phone, but I expected that.

Rich


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