Tech

Amazon’s budget-friendly answer to the Frame TV will start shipping on April 22

Rewrite the following news content into a professional, SEO-optimized article. Instructions: Keep the meaning exactly the same. Do not add false information. Remove any unwanted text, metadata, or comments at the beginning. Write in clear, engaging, and human-like news tone. Use short paragraphs (2–4 lines each). Add proper headings (H2/H3) where relevant. Ensure good readability and flow. Use simple English (Grade 6–8 level). Avoid repetition and fluff. Format properly for a blog/news post. Content: When Amazon introduced the Ember Artline TVs in January, it didn’t have a specific date of availability to share. Now, the company is ready to supply the details: Pre-orders open today, and units ship on April 22 in the US and Canada, “with the UK and Germany to follow.” The company also announced a new version of its Fire TV Stick HD this morning, as well as some new features for its Fire TV software. For those who don’t remember offhand, the Ember Artline is basically Amazon’s answer to Samsung’s Frame TV. It’s a matte, 4K QLED panel that can double as artwork when you’re not watching TV, and to that end, Amazon is including more than 2,000 pieces of art for free. That’s also part of the Fire TV package that comes on the new Fire TV Stick HD, so you don’t necessarily need an Ember Artline to access them.In its press release, Amazon said “Our collection spans artistic movements and includes Impressionist classics by Monet, Degas, and Renoir, alongside contemporary works of street art, murals, mixed media, and photography. Customers also have access to 60 exclusive motion video pieces commissioned by documentary filmmaker Sam Nuttmann, who traveled the world capturing landscape and wildlife scenes.”To make it easier to match the Ember Artline to your room’s decor, there are 10 frame color options to choose from, and the varieties I saw (a faux wood grain and a muted teal metallic finish) looked quite pleasant. If you really want some help finding artwork that will fit your space, Amazon’s “Match the room” feature might come in handy. A person holding up a phone taking photos of a room with an Ember Artline TV on the wall.AmazonAt a recent demo, I watched as the company’s representatives scanned a QR code from the TV to pull up the tool on their phone. There, they took three photos of the environment (surrounding walls and furniture, for example) and the system generated suggested pieces of art from the gallery. Using the TV remote, they were then able to choose from the recommendations on the big screen. In my brief experience, the suggestions were typically quite good at matching the vibe, while offering a variety of styles (geometric, landscapes, modern etc) each time. According to the press release, “the AI tool will suggest artwork from our collection based on the room’s colors, overall style, and any recurring themes in their existing artwork, including nature or travel photography.”If you’d like a more personal touch, you can showcase your own photos instead by connecting your Amazon Photos account. You can also ask Alexa+ to “play a slideshow of us biking in the mountains,” for example, to pull up memories ad hoc. An animated GIF showing the Ember Artline TV in various rooms and settings with varying decor.AmazonThat’s not the only new feature coming to the Fire TV ecosystem, by the way. In addition to adding Alexa+ support and the new Fire TV UI it showed off in January, Amazon said that this

Tech

Amazon’s new Fire TV Stick HD is slimmer than ever and has no power adapter

Amazon Launches Fire TV Stick HD With Upgraded Features

After unveiling a 4K version of its Fire TV Stick Select at a hardware event last September, Amazon is launching the latest version of its HD dongle today. The Fire TV Stick HD costs $35, comes with Alexa+ built in, and offers the redesigned experience the company previewed at CES in January. It sits at the entry level among Amazon’s streaming sticks and brings meaningful upgrades.

The new dongle is about 30 percent narrower, making it easier to fit into tight spaces or squeeze behind a TV and wall. It ships with a short USB-C cable that has a USB-A head, letting it draw power from a TV USB port instead of a separate wall adapter. In short, the Fire TV Stick HD is optimized for direct power through a TV’s USB port.

If your TV lacks a USB port for direct power, you can still use a USB-C cable with a traditional wall adapter. Given typical TV USB power limits, most standard chargers should work fine to power the device.

The Fire TV Stick HD adds Wi‑Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.3, and Amazon says it’s more than 30 percent faster on average than its predecessor. This speed boost helps the device boot up and open apps more quickly, and the redesigned layout aims to help you find what you want to watch easier.

For Prime Members or Alexa+ subscribers, the stick can offer show recommendations, let you dim lights, and allow you to resume Prime Video from a different room if you have a compatible TV there. The company notes that an Adaptive Display feature is coming in the coming months to improve accessibility.

The Adaptive Display setting will scale content artwork and enlarge text and menus to make the interface easier to read, with multiple size options. This aims to provide a more balanced viewing experience for users with varying visual needs.

As with its predecessors, the Fire TV Stick HD is a straightforward device that brings modern features to older TVs. At $35, it remains a budget-friendly option, though some shoppers may prefer the higher-end 4K Max model if they have the budget to spare.

The Fire TV Stick HD starts shipping on April 29 in the US, the UK, Canada, Mexico, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand, with more regions to follow later. This quick deployment makes it a simple upgrade for those looking to add a refreshed Fire TV experience to an existing display.