Amazon Fire TV/Game

[SpaceBooger]

Amazon has a new streaming box, it seems pretty powerful and will play Android games using their controller.
Specs:

Size 4.5" x 4.5" x 0.7" (115 mm x 115 mm x 17.5 mm)
Weight 9.9 oz (281 grams)
SOC Platform Qualcomm Snapdragon 8064
Processor Qualcomm Krait 300, quad-core to 1.7 Ghz
GPU Qualcomm Adreno 320
Storage 8 GB internal
Memory 2 GB LPDDR2 @ 533 MHZ
Wi-Fi Connectivity Dual-band, dual-antenna Wi-Fi (MIMO) for faster streaming and fewer dropped connections than standard Wi-Fi. Supports public and private Wi-Fi networks that use the 802.11a/b/g/n standard with support for WEP, WPA and WPA2 security using password authentication
Bluetooth Bluetooth 4.0 with support for the following profiles: HID, HFP 1.6, SPP
Cloud Storage Free cloud storage for all Amazon content
Ports 5.5 mm DC Jack
Type A HDMI 1.4b output, w/HDCP
Optical Audio (TOSLINK)
10/100 Ethernet
USB 2.0 Type A
Audio Support for Dolby Digital Plus, 5.1 surround sound, 2ch Stereo and HDMI audio pass through up to 7.1
Content Formats Supported Video: H.263, H.264, MPEG4-SP, VC1
Audio: AAC, AC-3, E-AC-3, HE-A, PCM, MP3
Photo: JPG, PNG
Output Resolution Supported 720p and 1080p up to 60fps

More info:
Controller info:

As someone who does not have cable, streams tons of stuff through my blu-ray player, has Amazon Prime and has tons of apps and mp3s via Amazon - I am intrigued.

[RyaNtheSlayA]

So it's basically an Ouya with Apple TV like support.

Still not interested. I've already made that mistake before.

[SpaceBooger]

Yeah, the more I think about it... unless mobile gaming becomes my main source of games - I will stick with my blu-ray player since it does nexflix, playon and prime instant video.

Edit: I have read that you don't need to buy the controller if you have a wired 360 controller.

[isiolia]

If the UI for the streaming apps is zippy, it could be neat for additional TVs that I don't have, need, or want right now. Still, sounds like they tried to prioritize that - and even using the more responsive apps via PS3 or Wii U means load time to get into them.

Were it not for Amazon also introducing an in-house game dev, I'd count that more as an afterthought. Though, it still could be, at least as far as dedicated gamers go.

[Anapan]

It seems to have better specs than the higher end HDMI Android dongles on Deal Extreme. Having an android media hub on your TV is kinda cool. My experience with the DX ones is the antennas were lacking and bluetooth was sluggish even after rooting with the best available rom. One of them also has a heat issue or power supply problem causing instability - I bet Amazon has addressed those problems. For the price, if you configured it to your liking or they signifigantly improved over the stock phone touch-screen interface it'd make for an excellent media center. If the UI is good I bet it's awesome right out of the box. If it can't be configured/tweaked as easily as the phones can then there's a lot of competition that just hasn't made it to North America yet. For the same price you could buy an Android dongle and a PS3 compatible controller and play all the emulators off of a small Micro SD card while plugging in a USB 2.4 Ghz keyboard/mouse combo to address the rest of the interface on those devices.
I've purchased and sold 3 Measy brand Wiimote-type keyboard/mouse controllers (2.4, not bluetooth) and would recommend them to anyone who has a big-screen with a computer attached.

[mjmjr25]

Must it be an HDTV? It keeps saying connects to your HDTV, but is that just to get the most out of it...or is it required?

The Busey commercial is...i'm not sure yet. It's sad, but it also might be hysterical.

[noiseredux]

Must it be an HDTV? It keeps saying connects to your HDTV, but is that just to get the most out of it...or is it required?

looks required, Mike. I don't see any output other than HDMI in the specs.

[Anapan]

All the android devices I saw that are decent are HDMI only.
I did the HD to SD. Works but painfull - cords and wires everywhere because of the Wii so it also required a powered matrix video hub.
HDMI -> VGA via Monorpice adapter = audio out to headphone -> RCA
VGA -> 480i via Altona VGA<->Component adapter = 480i
720P -> 480i = shit but almost readable when the Android OS text size is set to max.
Input via Bluetooth mouse and handheld USB wireless keyboard.
Streaming video files off the local network through ES File Explorer shortcuts.
Since all the hardware was just sitting in a cupboard it's okay I guess, but, really, it makes me cringe. 720P widescreen on a 480i CRT has to be around 360i or less...

Now mom can participate in Youtube yoga on the 38" CRT I wanted to throw away because of convergence issues.

She loves it, but I feel bad for giving her such a shitty video experience. Even tho it's YUV, the flicker would give me a headache.

[FerretGamer]

It's hard to be interested until I see some more from Amazon Game Studios. Their first exclusive, Sev Zero, looks interesting and they have some more games in the pipeline. I'd only get it for shits and giggles but seriously I can play Asphalt 8 on about 10 devices in my home so it's hard to get excited about the gaming side.

I could also care less about all of the streaming stuff since I have all of those capabilities on just as many devices as well. I think Amazon will still sell boat loads of the Fire TV though.

BTW, for anyone interested, here are some trailers:

Sev Zero:
http://youtu.be/iXI898kyBgM

Sneak Peak at other games:
http://youtu.be/ZlVLhqj1weY

[Cronozilla]

If this thing can run normal Play store software I'd be extremely interested. I'd be able to stream my PC games to my TV! That's worth $100 to me, also a box dedicated to streaming would be nice, to give my game consoles a rest, help prolong their life-spans.