While I can’t test and review everything out there, it’s good to know that there are others taking up the reins. John Archer at Forbes Tech has a wonderful story about Apple sitting on its core, so to speak, about 4k while Amazon delivers the 4KFire TV Box.
So just a week ago I found myself writing about my disappointment at the new Apple AAPL -1.75% TV boxnot supporting 4K UHD video. I argued then that with so much 4K content and other 4K hardware around these days, it seemed seriously short-sighted of Apple not to include 4K streaming capabilities in its new TV box. And now Amazon has gleefully proved my point by announcing – with perfect timing – that its second-generation Amazon Fire TV box WILL support 4K UHD streaming. What’s more, it will do so for a price of just $99.99 (£80 in the UK), comfortably undercutting what Apple is asking for its HD-only boxes.
The 4K capabilities of the new Amazon Fire TV will let users access the 4K UHD streams of AmazonPrime Video, Amazon Video, and Netflix NFLX +0.17%. This adds up to hundreds of hours of 4K UHD content by the time you’ve taken into account all the films and TV series these three platforms currently offer in 4K. Plus, of course, the amount of 4K content they offer is going to increase dramatically in the coming months as both Amazon and Netflix are committed to delivering the majority of their own home-grown shows in 4K UHD.