Amazon is taking its television business seriously. New Fire TV Omni QLED series has an unique “ambient” experience that employs sensors to sense your presence in the room and promises to offer greater image quality and functionality than the company’s current TVs.
All of that is available at a price that is specifically targeted at midrange models from well-known manufacturers like Samsung, TCL, and Vizio. On Wednesday, the new models were disclosed as part of Amazon’s gadget presentation. Two versions of the Fire TV Omni QLED series are currently up for preorder: a 65-inch model costs $800, while a 75-inch model costs $1,100.
Your TV recognizes your presence.
The new versions listen to Alexa voice commands hand-free, just like the current Omni Fire TV, but they also go a step further. According to Amazon’s press release, “when not streaming, the Omni QLED Series uses its built-in presence sensors to recognise when a person enters the room and changes to the lovely and informative Ambient Experience.” You’re not the only one if you find it unsettling.
The screen activates to display artwork, widgets, or other material when the sensors recognize you are in the space. 1,500 photographs and works of fine art, including collections from The National Gallery of Art and The Art Institute of Chicago, are used to create the artwork. And with the Omni QLED, all of the art is free, unlike Samsung’s The Frame TVs. The TV may also show your personal photo library if you don’t wish to see art.
A number of widgets, including calendars, reminders, sticky notes, and news headlines, may be shown on the TV in addition to being able to operate smart home appliances like thermostats and Ring doorbells. Without turning on the screen, you may also instruct the TV to start playing music.
The system is able to comprehend the environment’s context. For instance, it will automatically turn on during the day but not at night. The TV has a physical switch you may use to turn the microphones off. Additionally, there is a “do not disturb” feature that turns off the ambient experience during specific hours and a menu setting that fully eliminates presence detection. According to Amazon, no identification is determined from the data transmitted regarding the use of the function.
The Ambient experience on the Fire TV Omni QLED looks to be comparable to modes on Samsung and LG TVs, both of which display artwork and widgets on the screen while the TV is off, but with the automation of presence sensors added. The concept of a TV that recognises your presence is also nothing new; Sony implemented it back in 2009 as a power-saving measure, for instance. However, none of those TV makers have the same level of artificial intelligence and data expertise as Amazon Alexa.
A collection of image improvements
In terms of visual quality, the Omni QLED could be intriguing even if you decide to turn off all the “ambient” elements. They have full-array local dimming, which enhances contrast and HDR by independently adjusting brightness in distinct screen regions. While more zones don’t always equate to higher image quality, in my experience as a TV reviewer, they frequently do. The number of zones determines how exact the dimming may be. With 80 zones on the 65-inch model and 96 on the 75-inch model, the Omni QLED has more zones than, for instance, the Vizio MQX but less than, the TCL 6-Series.
Although Amazon doesn’t provide a brightness specification in nits, the “QLED” refers to quantum dots, which allow the TV to attain superior colour and brightness compared to other TVs. The majority of HDR formats, including Dolby Vision IQ, which adapts the image to various lighting situations via an ambient light sensor, are supported by the Omni QLED.
Support for Auto Low Latency mode and Variable Refresh Rate are included in the gaming features. Its 60Hz refresh rate, in contrast to certain midrange TVs’ 120Hz refresh rate, prevents it from taking use of the highest-quality 4K/120Hz output from the Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5.
The Amazon Fire TV streaming platform is included inside the Omni QLED. It does not come with the new Voice Remote Pro from the firm, only a regular voice remote. Additionally, Amazon is keeping its current Fire TV Omni and 4-Series TVs on the market without making any modifications.
Separately, Amazon also unveiled an upgraded Fire TV Cube, a new Alexa Voice Remote Pro, and a function that gives the Echo Show 15 access to Fire TV streaming menus and a Fire TV remote.
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