What's New in Development
New Fire TV Devices
Fire TV Stick 4K
October 3, 2018. Fire TV Stick 4K was announced — see the official press release here. Fire TV Stick 4K is a powerful 4K streaming stick that delivers a vast selection of movies and TV shows instantly with the included all-new Alexa Voice Remote. In addition to 4K Ultra HD and HDR10, Fire TV Stick 4K adds support for HLG, Dolby Vision, and HDR10+ for improved picture quality. Feel scenes come to life with immersive Dolby Atmos audio when connected to compatible home audio systems.
The all-new Alexa Voice Remote can control Fire TV Stick 4K as well as power and volume on a wide range of compatible IR-enabled devices, including TVs, sound bars, and A/V receivers. With this new remote, you can also ask Alexa to switch TV inputs, change the channel on compatible cable/satellite set top boxes, view live camera feeds, or control lights, thermostats, and other compatible smart home devices. The Fire TV Stick 4K will also be available in multiple international marketplaces. For more details, see the Fire TV Stick 4K device specifications.
Canada Availability for 2018 Toshiba Fire TV Edition Smart TVs Announced
October 3, 2018. The Fire TV Edition - Toshiba 4K and HD smart TVs will be available in the Canada marketplace (Amazon.ca), which is the first time Fire TV Edition has been available outside the U.S. French will be a localization option for users in Canada, so keep this in mind if you're localizing your app. For more information on localization, see Distribute Your App Internationally.
Here are quick links to the Fire TV Edition smart TVs in the Canada marketplace:
Four Amazon Fire TV Edition Smart TVs Released
September/October 2018. Amazon released four Fire TV Edition smart TVs (each with various screen size options). You can read details and specifications for each of these devices here:
- Fire TV Edition - Insignia 4K (2018)
- Fire TV Edition - Insignia HD (2018)
- Fire TV Edition - Toshiba 4K (2018)
- Fire TV Edition - Toshiba HD (2018)
Also see the blog post for these smart TVs: Smarter TVs Are Here: Introducing New Fire TV Edition Smart TVs.
Note that viewing traffic on smart TVs tends to be higher than on other devices. This means your content and apps will likely have more views and downloads as a result of these device launches.
Amazon Fire TV Documentation Updates
The following table lists significant updates or new pages to the general Amazon Fire TV documentation. Updates related to Fire App Builder, Web App Starter Kit for Fire TV, or Amazon Creator are provided in the release notes section of their documentation.
| Date | Page | Details |
|---|---|---|
| May 29, 2019 | Deep Linking with Featured Content in the Fire TV UI | Deep linking refers to links that direct users past the homepage of an app to specific content inside the app. |
| January 22, 2018 | In-App Voice Scrolling and Selection | Support for voice-based scrolling and selection in your app. |
| November 21, 2018 | AV Synchronization in Android Applications | Replaced the content here with an updated version. |
| October 3, 2018 |
- Fire TV Stick 4K (2018) - Distribute Your App Internationally |
Specifications for Fire TV Stick 4K. Updates to Fire TV Edition Toshiba smart TV availability in the Canada marketplace. |
| October 2018 |
- Fire TV Edition - Insignia 4K (2018) - Fire TV Edition - Insignia HD (2018) - Fire TV Edition - Toshiba 4K (2018) - Fire TV Edition - Toshiba HD (2018) |
Specifications for the 2018 Fire TV Edition smart TVs |
| July 13, 2018 | Managing Audio Focus | Updated and simplified the content. |
| June 7, 2018 | Device Specifications for Fire TV Cube | Added device specifications for Fire TV Cube |
| June 7, 2018 | Voice-enabling Your App and Content | Provides information on two approaches for voice-enabling your app — the Video Skill API and MediaSession API. |
| June 7, 2018 | Naming Conventions for Fire TV Devices | "Fire TV Cube" refers to a new category of Fire TV devices. |
| May 30, 2018 | Device Specifications for Fire TV Edition - Toshiba 4K | Added device specifications for Fire TV Edition - Toshiba 4K Smart TV |
| May 30, 2018 | Naming Conventions for Fire TV Devices | "Fire TV Edition" refers to any smart TV with Fire TV integrated, whether Element or Toshiba. |
| May 30, 2018 | Identifying Amazon Fire TV Devices | Included details for Fire TV Edition - Toshiba 4K |
| May 10, 2018 | Testing Audio Focus | Evaluate whether your app handles audio focus correctly with the Audio Focus Requester tool. |
| April 24, 2018 | Device Specifications for Fire TV | Reformatted the page from a tabbed layout to a drop-down-selector layout to accommodate the growing number of Fire TV devices. Added general descriptions for each device. |
Amazon Fire TV Blog Updates
You can follow the latest news about Fire TV by reading the Fire TV category on the blog.