I wont mention the Borg. I wont mention the Borg. I wont….dammit.
Last month Amazon introduced the Fire TV Cube, and in true Amazon style with very little fanfare. Just like a dreaded Borg cube in Star Trek, it just showed up.
So, what is the Fire TV Cube? First, it’s a full fledged 4k Ultra HD Fire TV. Everything you would get with a Fire TV, you’ll get with a Fire TV Cube. Including the voice enabled remote. Second (but equally as important), it’s an always listening Alexa device. Almost an Echo, but not quite. While it does have the same array of far field microphones, and a speaker built in, at release it will be missing a few features like sleep timers, Alexa calling and messaging, Bluetooth sync and multi-room audio. Third, it’s a hands free multimedia controller. Using an IR dongle, the Fire TV Cube can control compatible TVs, sound bars, cable and satellite boxes, and A/V receivers from top brands like Samsung, Sony, LG, Vizio, and more. It also includes an ethernet cable for a faster, wired connection….finally!
Why you need a Fire TV Cube
If you’re in the market for a streaming device and aren’t married to another platform, such as Apple TV, Roku or Chromecast, Fire TV Cube is the most feature rich offering on the market today. It is fast, powerful, and the only streaming device capable of controlling your other devices out of the box. The addition of Alexa is nothing new for Fire TV devices, but the far field microphones and speaker mean that if you don’t already have an Echo in your living room, you (basically) will once this is installed. All Fire TV devices can also be modified to allow for third party software installations, such as Kodi, so there is the possibility of getting way more content than your standard Netflix, Hulu, Amazon, etc.
Why you don’t need a Fire TV Cube
On the flip side of the equation, there are plenty of reasons why you probably don’t need a Fire TV Cube.
This device is primarily a streaming box and multimedia controller. It could easily replace your Roku, Apple TV, Chromecast, or even an older Fire TV. Although it has Alexa onboard, and shares many of the features of its Echo cousins, the missing features listed above mean it is first and foremost a Fire TV, and second an Alexa enabled device. In order for the Fire TV Cube to support many of the missing Echo features, the entire Fire TV family will have to be brought into the fold. That’s not to say it wont happen, in fact, it’s likely to happen, but at release the features will be missing.
If you already have an Echo device and Fire TV or Fire TV stick in your living room, pairing the two devices would give you all of the voice control of the Fire TV Cube and then some. Add in a Harmony Hub, and you have the whole suite of Fire TV Cube features using devices you may already own.
I’ve also found that having any Alexa device in front of my TV renders it almost useless when the TV is turned on. Amazon may have well compensated for this in the Fire TV Cube, but I’d have to see it work reliably to believe it.