Amazon Fire TV

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Amazon Fire TV
Amazon Fire TV.jpg
Manufacturer Amazon.com
Released 2014-04-02 (US)
OS Fire OS 3.0 "Mojito" (Based on Android)
CPU Qualcomm Krait 300, quad-core to 1.7 Ghz
Storage 8 GB internal
RAM 2 GB RAM
Display 1080p
Graphics Qualcomm Adreno 320
Connectivity HDMI, Bluetooth 4.0, USB 2.0, Wifi (802.11n), 10/100 Ethernet, Optical audio, CEC
Dimensions 115 × 115 × 17.5 mm (4.53 × 4.53 × 0.69 in)
Amazon Fire TV ports
Home icon grey.png   ▶ Devices ▶ Android ▶ Amazon Fire TV

Amazon Fire TV is an Android-based (Fire OS) set-top-box that contains a very powerful ARM processor (that can even handle some of the more heavy Kodi skins). Fire TV stands above some of the other Android-based offerings due to Amazon's strong product support and because it contains more remote friendly versions of Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and other video service clients, making it a good pairing with Kodi.

Amazon in addition recently released Amazon Fire TV Stick as a low cost version in a HDMI-stick format, and while the Amazon Fire TV Stick also uses the same Android-based (Fire OS) software platform it contains less powerful ARM processor hardware it should still technically provides all the same video playback features and capabilities as its big brother, the Amazon Fire TV, at least as far as running Kodi on it.

Builds

Official Builds

Kodi v20.5 Nexus: '

Other builds

  • elmerohueso's XBMC/Kodi builds - The official build of XBMC/Kodi, modified to have Launcher functionality and elmerohueso's repo for some other tweaks. Includes Gotham 13.1 and 13.2, and Helix 14.0 and 14.1 versions.
  • SPMC - SPMC is a fork of Kodi (currently built on Gotham) and sometimes contains special fixes that are not yet in the official builds. Users who are unsure of which version to use should normally try out the official XBMC/Kodi builds first and see how it runs, and if they have issues then try SPMC.

installing

Kodi can be installed on any Fire TV or Fire TV Stick. Root is not required.

See: HOW-TO:Install Kodi on Fire TV

Bypassing Amazon Home

See: HOW-TO:Bypass Home on Fire TV - HOW-TO:Bypass Home on Fire TV

Launch Kodi from Recent on the FTV Home Screen

This process allows Kodi to show in Recent on the FireTV Home Screen. Note that Kodi will not show in the main Apps menu, only Recent.

Amazon only approves Kodi for Android mobile devices, not the FireTV. Therefore it still needs to be installed and upgraded via sideloading.

Procedure

  1. "Buy" Kodi on the Amazon Store. (It is free.)
  2. On the FireTV, select Settings, My Account, then Sync Amazon Content
  3. Now Kodi will show in Recent Apps on the FireTV Home Screen.

Troubleshooting

  • Before Kodi shows in Recents, it must be recently run. If you haven't used Kodi yet, launch it from Settings, Applications first.
  • You may need to restart your FireTV and sync again.
  • Some users have reported that they needed to de-register and then re-register their FireTV.

Launch Kodi from an Existing App on the FTV Home Screen

There is a alternative way to invoke Kodi from the FTV Home Screen using Llama. This method uses a “sacrificial” app that you have installed from Amazon that you will use to access Kodi. The app can be anything you have installed but don’t need to use; however, some apps behave better than others (some apps will enter a loop when exiting Kodi). One app that has been tested and works well for this purpose is “Classic TV”.

The advantage of this method is that using the sacrificial app you have Home Screen Access to Kodi and you can exit Kodi to the FTV Home Screen just as you would any other FTV app.

Prerequisites

  1. Llama side loaded on your FTV.
  2. The app called “Classic TV” from the Amazon app store.
  3. One Llama Event (described below).

Setting Up Launcher

  1. Install / side-load Llama.
  2. Install “Classic TV” (or “ikono TV” in the UK) app from Amazon app store.
  3. Launch Llama (From FireTV - Settings > Applications > Llama > Launch Application).
  4. Go to EVENTS on top menu and click '+' to add a NEW EVENT.
  5. In your NEW EVENT select ADD CONDITION then, from the Menu select 'Active Application' and select 'Choose App’. Scroll through the list of apps until you find “Classic TV” and select this app. Doing this should return you to the Events Menu.
  6. Next, select ADD ACTION and select 'Run Application' from the Menu list. From here, select whatever the name of your Kodi build is. That should create your event. At this point you can also name your event to distinguish it from others.

Replacing the "Classic TV" images with Kodi

  1. Download thumbnail and preview images (you'll need to either load the link in a new window/tab or right-click and "Save Link As..." so that you avoid saving the auto-generated smaller version that kodi-wiki created):
    1. Thumbnail 43127692f3ed9671e079492a40a450bbd51543bd84d74bba24baf55fe7e06afa.png (file name should be thumbnail_43127692f3ed9671e079492a40a450bbd51543bd84d74bba24baf55fe7e06afa.png)
    2. Preview 43127692f3ed9671e079492a40a450bbd51543bd84d74bba24baf55fe7e06afa.png (file name should be preview_43127692f3ed9671e079492a40a450bbd51543bd84d74bba24baf55fe7e06afa.png)
  2. Double check that your file names are correct and not capitalized at the beginning (as koki.wiki forced when they were uploaded).
  3. Using adb, upload to FireTV (/sdcard/.imagecache/com.amazon.venezia/com.adrise.profilms/B00IPRAZB4/):
    > adb push thumbnail_43127692f3ed9671e079492a40a450bbd51543bd84d74bba24baf55fe7e06afa.png /sdcard/.imagecache/com.amazon.venezia/com.adrise.profilms/B00IPRAZB4/
    > adb push preview_43127692f3ed9671e079492a40a450bbd51543bd84d74bba24baf55fe7e06afa.png /sdcard/.imagecache/com.amazon.venezia/com.adrise.profilms/B00IPRAZB4/
  4. Reboot FireTV and new images should appear. (Rebooting can be done through Settings -> System, or by holding
  5. Troubleshooting:
    1. If images don't update, make sure the filenames match what is in /sdcard/.imagecache/com.amazon.venezia/com.adrise.profilms/B00IPRAZB4/

Now when you start the “Classic TV” app from the Home Screen, it should automatically open XBMC. Feel free to experiment with other apps from the FTV app store. Just be aware that some will loop back and re-start Kodi when you try and exit Kodi to get back to the FTV Home Screen.

Launching Android Apps within Kodi

FTVXbmcAndroidApps.png
  • In Gotham builds, it is possible to launch Android Apps from shortcuts on the main menu.
  • It is recommended to use the Confluence skin, go to Programs, then Android Apps and favorite any applications you would like to launch from Kodi.
  • Skins like Amber allow you place custom shortcuts on the main menu to these favorite items.
  • In Frodo builds you can only launch these apps from going into Programs -> Android Apps. They will not launch when put onto the main menu.


NOTE: For skins that allow you to add "Favorites" to the main menu, if you add an App to favorites then uninstall that App you should make sure to remove that App from favorites first. If you uninstall an App that you have added to favorites and don't remove it from favorites first it may cause Kodi to crash.

If this happens, reinstall the App you uninstalled, then launch Kodi and remove it from favorites. This will stop Kodi from crashing.

Copying files

Copy userdata settings (optional)

Run Kodi at least once to initialize the userdata folder on the Fire TV

Copying from PC to Fire TV
Copy files to Fire TV userdata folder using adb push <local> <remote>
  • For example, to copy advancedsettings.xml from your local folder to your Fire TV Kodi userdata folder:
    >adb push advancedsettings.xml /sdcard/android/data/org.xbmc.kodi/files/.kodi/userdata
Note: For SPMC change the path to /sdcard/android/data/com.semperpax.spmc/files/.spmc/userdata
Copying files from Fire TV to PC
Copy files from Fire TV userdata folder using adb pull <remote> <local>
  • For example, to copy advancedsettings.xml from your Fire TV Kodi userdata folder to your local folder:
    >adb pull /sdcard/android/data/org.xbmc.kodi/files/.kodi/userdata/advancedsettings.xml

You can use adb shell to open a remote shell on the Fire TV. Use standard Linux commands such as cd and ls to navigate the file structure. Type exit to exit adb shell.

See userdata folder for more information on the contents of the userdata folder.

Update Splash Image (optional)

Run Kodi at least once to initialize the userdata folder on the Fire TV

  • If the splash image file is splash.png, you can run the following command to copy the file to Fire TV (you may need to update the folder name):

For Gotham

>adb push splash.png /sdcard/Android/data/org.xbmc.xbmc/files/.xbmc/media/splash.png

Fire TV splash images:

  • Non-version specific
  • Version specific

Note: The "Non-version specific" splashscreens can also be applied using elmerohueso's "XBMC Tweaks for FTV" program addon, which is available from elmerohueso's Kodi repo.

Controls

Bluetooth remote

Note: For better button layouts, see Alternative keymaps for Fire TV remote.

Button Global action Fullscreen video action Amazon Fire TV remote.jpg
3 Directional pad:
  • Up
  • Down
  • Right
  • Left
Directional pad:
  • Up: Next chapter or go forward 10 minutes
  • Down: Previous chapter or go back 10 minutes
  • Right: +30 seconds
  • Left: -30 seconds
4 Select On-screen-display menu
6 Context menu Playlist
8 Play/pause Play/pause
9 Back Back out of fullscreen video (does not stop playback)


To reboot the Fire TV with the Bluetooth remote, hold Play/Pause (8) and Select (4) for 5 seconds.

CEC

People are reporting that the Amazon Fire TV has basic CEC support. Reported working keys are UP, DOWN, RIGHT, LEFT, SELECT, PLAY and PAUSE (depending on the TV brand).

USB

USB port allows for various additional remote types, such as FLIRC, various RF dongles, etc. Most of these devices will show up as a keyboard type input.

USB Keyboards

  • Logitech DiNovo Edge keyboard works, but touch pad and media keys do not work. DiNovo Edge doesn't have a menu key.
  • IOGEAR GKM561R wireless keyboard/mouse combo works (although Shift/Capslock does not in 12.x, apparently an issue addressed on Gotham)
  • FAVI Entertainment SmartStick Wireless Keyboard with Touchpad Mouse, FE02RF-BL
  • See keyboard controls for how to control Kodi using a keyboard. Additional Fire TV controls goes as followed:
Key Action
F11
or "browser search"
media key.
Voice Search (Does not send mic audio)
F12 Fire TV home screen
Esc Fire TV back button
Ctrl+Esc
or "Menu" (to the right of the Windows key on the right side)
Fire TV menu button
Alt+Tab  Recent App
Ctrl+Alt+Delete System reset


USB Infrared Remotes

MCE (IR) remote - 2nd generation works. Turn on the Fire TV after plugging in the IR receiver and it should work. You can also use a logitech Harmony remote to work with the IR dongle itself

Unbranded MCE remote

Two versions, the cheaper verson is available online for around 4 dollars - HARMONY:Chinavasio?n CVSB-983

These work perfectly well with Amazon Fire TV and Kodi including play, stop, pause, fast forward, rewind, next chapter, previous chapter etc. The all important CONTEXT MENU button can be activated by pressing the Right Mouse Click; Home (to Amazon Fire TV home) = WWW; Back = ESC. The only button/function that will not work of course is voice search, which you'll need the original Amazon Fire TV remote for.


If programming a Harmony One (IR) remote to go with this MCE remote:

1. Add device: Computer. Media Centre PC. Chinavision. CVSB-983.

2. Customising buttons: all buttons work pretty well with default button settings. There are only three buttons you would need to set yourself:


a. Context menu = Mouse Right Click.
b. Home (to AmazonFireTV) = WWW.
c. Back = ESC.


Up, down, left, right, select, play, stop, pause, fast forward, rewind, next track, previous track, all work fine as-is.


If you wanted to, you can also customise the Harmony One's digit keyboard to become a your mouse direction and select tool. i.e. 5 = ENTER. 1 = mouse left down. 2 = mouse down. 3 = mouse right down. 4 = mouse left. 6 = mouse right. 7 = mouse left up. 8 = mouse up. 9 = mouse right up. etc.


3. Unplug power from Amazon Fire TV Unit. Plug in IR reader for the MCE remote (as-is or via a USB hub is also okay). Reinsert Power. You'll be good to go.



Additional tip:


1. Set Kodi Power settings to exit after xx minutes of idle activity (e.g. 15 minutes). It will shutdown (properly) and return to the Amazon Fire TV home screen.

2. Set Llama events to put the FireTV to sleep after xx minutes of idle activity (e.g. 15 minutes).


The two combined, the unit will self shut down after xx minutes of idle activity (30 minutes using the example).

VRC-1100

This remote is available online for about 15 dollars - HARMONY:ortek avr-1100

USB Gamepads

  • Logitech F710 Wireless Gamepad (uses a small USB dongle)
  • Xbox 360 wired gamepad
  • Xbox 360 wireless gamepad works if you use the Wireless Gaming Receiver for Windows

Flirc

The rewind, fast forward, and play/pause keys on the Fire TV controller operate the same as a keyboard's media keys. Use the "Media Keys" controller in the Flirc application to set these on your remote. Netflix and Pandora on the Fire TV (and possibly other apps) do pick up the other media keys such as stop. Kodi also picks up these keys.

Esc can be used as the back button. Remapping XBMC's back to Esc would be required to use one button for both commands.

 Menu (the button to the right of the Windows key on the right side on a keyboard) works as the Fire TV's menu button and does not have the issues Ctrl+Esc has. Ctrl+Esc usually results in duplicate keypresses and will sometimes act as just Esc. At this time the Flirc GUI does not have a button to map "Menu" on the "Full Keyboard" controller, but on the command line flirc_util record_api 0 101 can be used.

Also note that the Fire TV Home button is a soft key set to F12.

Using the "Flirc, XBMC" profile in Harmony is optional. Using it will get you started with Kodi commands faster, but you will probably also need to change some of the keypresses, which can be done without changing profiles.

Other bluetooth devices

It should be possible to pair other bluetooth controllers and remotes to the Fire TV. Most of these devices will show up as a keyboard type input.

Bluetooth Gamepads

  • Nyko PlayPad Pro
  • Ouya Controller

Uninstall Kodi

  1. From the Fire TV Home screen, select Settings
  2. Select Applications
  3. Find and select your Kodi installation (it may be named "XBMC", "SPMC", or "XBMC on OUYA")
  4. Select Uninstall

Alternatively, you can do the uninstall over ADB with one of the following commands.

OUYA

adb uninstall tv.ouya.xbmc

SPMC

adb uninstall com.semperpax.spmc

XBMC

adb uninstall org.xbmc.xbmc

Video guide

Known issues

  • VC-1 / WMV9 encoded videos is currently not hardware decoded in Kodi on the Amazon Fire TV box.
  • USB for storage on the Fire TV box requires root access.
  • Live IPTV (via multicast UDP/RTP) is currently not supported due to missing kernel support.

Random notes

Feel free to place various notes, tips, and links here. As this section of the wiki gets more organized, those notes will be properly sorted. Consider this like a dumping ground for when you're not sure where to put something.

  • The USB port works with keyboard and mice. If you root the Fire TV then you can also use it for other things such as storage.
  • Debug information in the Fire TV's Netflix app can be accessed by pressing Ctrl+Alt+ Shift+D.
  • The FireTV will not go to 'sleep' when Kodi is the active application. In the Gotham builds, you may set the Power Saving -> Shutdown Function to Quit, and choose any time between 5-120 minutes. This will Exit the application after being idle, which allows the FireTV screensaver to run (the screensaver should pop up right when Kodi exits; test this by using the 5 minute Quit timer). This also appears to function correctly and allow the device to sleep even if you are using the Llama settings to always keep Kodi running.
  • You can change the FTV to use non-US Time Zones by using TimeZone Changer.

See also

Links