Jeff Bezos wants to take the “pain” out of being a couch potato.
The Amazon billionaire revealed a new TV set-top box, Amazon Fire TV, that he boasts is faster and easier to use than rival offerings such as Apple TV, Google Chromecast and Roku.
The slim black box costs $99 and allows users to stream content from Amazon’s video library, alongside streaming services like Hulu, Netflix and WatchESPN.
The device’s most inspired feature is its voice-activation remote, which enables users to search for shows and movies by speaking into the controller rather than typing one letter at a time.
“The old way of searching with a TV remote — scrolling and clicking one letter at a time on an alphabet grid — is painful,” Bezos said in a letter posted on Amazon.com. “With Fire TV you simply speak the title, actor or genre into the remote and you’re done.”
Amazon executive Peter Larsen, speaking at an event Wednesday in Manhattan, said the company decided to jump into the already crowded streaming space because of consumer complaints about slow speeds and poor search capabilities.
Fire TV gives users access to 200,000 movies and TV shows, including unlimited access to Amazon’s instant video service for Prime members.
While users must still subscribe separately to Netflix, Hulu Plus and other third-party providers, they will be able to search across all those services at once, rather than conducting individual searches..
Fire TV also promises better, faster performance — no more “dreaded spinner“ — and three times the power of Apple TV and Roku.
There is also a new feature, called ASAP, that cuts down on loading time by predicting what movies and TV episodes users will likely want to watch and “gets them ready to stream instantly,” according to Bezos.
Amazon has added games like Minecraft, The Walking Dead and Amazon’s exclusive game Sev Zero. Bezos said the average cost of the games will be $1.85. A video game controller can be purchased separately for $39.99.
Here’s a look at the set-top box competition:
Roku is currently the most popular set-top box because it boasts the most content. The top of the line Roku 3 costs $100, but its less powerful streaming stick costs just $50.
Both the stick and the box come with more than 1,000 channels, including History, A&E, PBS and the Disney Channel. It also offers other streaming services including Netflix, Hulu Plus, HBO GO, and Showtime Anytime.
Roku has many of the same features as Fire TV, including access to games and music services like Spotify.
Unlike Fire TV, it doesn’t have voice control or parental controls.
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Apple TV costs $99 and promises instant access to thousands of shows though free and subscription channels like ABC PBS, Hulu and Netflix.
The set-top box is designed to play well with Apple’s other devices and apps, such as iTunes and iTunes Radio.
It lets users play content from their iPhone or iPad. Apple users can also connect to their photos and home movies, as well as documents through iCloud.
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Chromecast is Google’s stick-styled streaming device that plugs into the HDMI port on a TV and gives users access to Netflix, Hulu, HBO Go, Pandora, and other services.
It has the least options in terms of content, including no sports apps, but it’s also the cheapest at just $35.