Amazon announces new Fire TV Cube, Nebula Soundbar, more hardware partners
Amazon just announced several new Fire TV devices, not only for the US market but across Europe and Japan. The company's streaming television platform has gained new partners, new hardware, and for the first time, is now built into a soundbar for your TV.
The new Fire TV Cube is a modest, but minor upgrade from the first-generation device. The processor is now twice as powerful when compared to the first-gen model. According to Amazon, Fire TV Cube owners use eight-times more voice commands to control their TV when compared to other Fire TV users. The additional voice interaction is due to the multi-directional microphones built into the Cube, allowing for voice commands to be given, free of any need to interact with the remote.
The new Fire Cube TV will be available in the US, Canada, UK, Germany, and Japan. It's available for preorder right now, priced at $119, and will begin shipping Oct. 10. In Japan, it will start shipping Nov. 5. There's also a $249 bundle that includes the new Fire TV Cube and a Ring Video Doorbell 2.
Must-see offers
Amazon partnered with prolific accessory maker Anker to create the Nebula Soundbar Fire TV Edition. The soundbar acts and functions as a normal soundbar, improving your TV's audio, but also have Fire TV support built into it. You only need to hook up the soundbar to your TV, and you'll be able to stream and watch content as if you had a stand-alone Fire TV. This is the first time Amazon has expanded its Fire TV Edition series outside of television sets and is possibly the most intriguing product included in today's announcement. The Nebula Soundbar is available to order today and will begin shipping Nov. 21 for $229.
Amazon also announced several new Fire TV Edition televisions from various partners throughout the US and Europe. Toshiba will release a 65-inch Fire TV Edition in October through Best Buy, while Grundig will release 11 different Fire TV Edition models in Germany and Austria over the course of the next few months, ranging from a 55-inch €1,299 OLED TV with Alexa voice control built into it, to a more typical €239 32-inch TV.
There will be a JVC Fire TV Edition starting at £349 in the UK, but release dates aren't finalized. You can sign up here for more information.
The expanded Fire TV lineup will all arrive just in time for the all-important holiday shopping, and with expanded availability in more countries, Amazon looks poised to continue its push into more living rooms and on more TVs.