Google’s Chromecast has been getting a lot of media attention in tech circles, mostly due to the ever-evolving number of services and websites throwing support behind the little HDMI dongle. Price also plays a part of it -- retail is a mere $35, and Amazon offers it for a hair under $30.

All of this attention has kept the product at the top of the best-seller list in the electronics category for sometime now. But last week Amazon disrupted the market by announcing Fire TV -- a small set-top box designed to compete with Chromecast, Roku, Apple TV and the like.

Continue reading →

Magic is pretty awesome. When Harry Potter uses his magic wand to cast spells or fight evil, he is pretty much the coolest guy ever. However, Mr. Potter is just make believe. Still, it is fun to imagine having magical powers too. Imagine waving your wand, saying "hocus-pocus" and a gallon of milk or a bag of grapes appears on your counter. Well, that is no longer make-believe, it is reality.

Yes, Amazon has created a magic wand of sorts called the Dash, which enables you to order groceries to your home, through the Amazon Fresh program. Hopefully it is not available in Colorado, because if it is, the company may be overwhelmed by people ordering Doritos and Oreo cookies!

Continue reading →

Yesterday, Amazon unveiled its Fire TV set-top box, and while the announcement came as little of a shock, given the information being rumored around the web, what was left were details. Now those are in place and the box is shipping to customers. Since the announcement, other support information has emerged, including Plex, and now Hulu.

The streaming video service was already included on the new Amazon box -- we knew that when it appeared during the announcement -- but what it would offer was not discussed.

Continue reading →

23 percent -- That figure alone explains Amazon's goal for Fire TV. In 2013, it was estimated that the Kindle ecosystem was responsible for 11 percent of Amazon's revenue, but 23 percent of its operating profit. However, the revenue numbers also include $4.5 billion in Kindle device sales (6 percent of Amazon's revenue) which were sold at breakeven. This means that 23 percent of Amazon's operating profit came from a business that accounted for just 5 percent of its annual revenue.

Given the figures above, it is no surprise to see Amazon double down on its "razors and blades" strategy. By selling a low-cost ($99) box to consumers, Amazon gains access to a distribution channel for high-margin content sales. Amazon seems to have realized that this box would only appeal to consumers if it also provides access to third-party services like Netflix, Hulu, etc. (much like Kindle Fire tablets and third party apps). But more importantly, it also seems to be expanding its presence in the digital content business via Amazon Game Studios.

Continue reading →

Plex has a history of supporting every platform possible, both desktop and mobile. With that in mind, Amazon today added one more to the market, throwing a challenge at the media server and end-user service.

But the challenge wasn't difficult -- after all, despite being highly customized, Fire TV still runs Android, an operating system that Plex is familiar with. The service already runs on Kindle Fire tablets, and it didn't take long to announce support for the Amazon Fire TV.

Continue reading →

The rather crowded market of set-top boxes out there just got a bit larger with the announcement from Amazon that it will be joining the battle for control of your living room. Competing with the likes of Roku, Google TV and Apple TV is not easy, but Amazon is the equivalent of a 600-pound gorilla in the room.

The online retail giant already operates a popular TV and movie streaming service through its Prime program, and also has seen success in the hardware market with Kindle -- both e-readers and tablets. Now it attempts to take that experience and roll it into a device that it hopes will be welcomed into your daily entertainment experience.

Continue reading →

It has been four long years since we caught up with anti-terrorism specialist Jack Bauer. No doubt a lot has happened to him over that span of time, but soon we’ll get to catch up with him again, as Fox relaunches the hit series, with a slight name change to 24: Live Another Day.

The violence, fast-paced action and questionable methods employed by Mr. Bauer may not be for every viewer, but those interested will have a second to get up to speed. While the show will appear on the Fox network in the US, Amazon Prime subscribers who want a refresher on what events lead up to this long-delayed ninth season, can begin from…well, the beginning.

Continue reading →

Invitations have been hitting email inboxes today for an Amazon event, even as Microsoft was busy holding its own show. The invitation hints at what is coming, though it does not come right out and say exactly what to expect.

For now we know only one thing, the subject – "Please join us for an update on our video business". The company frequently updates its Prime video library, partnering with an increasing number of studios. These can be a big deal, depending on the movies and TV shows that come along for the ride, but the announcements have always warranted nothing more than a blog post. In other words, this is something bigger.

Continue reading →

Last week in the UK, the announcement of the new budget for the country was closely watched as citizens kept an eye on whether they'll be paying more for beer and whether taxes are going up or down. There's a lot to talk about in George Osborne's 2014 budget, but this is not the place to discuss most of what it involves. One thing is of interest for technology enthusiasts, though. The cost of digital downloads -- meaning ebooks, music and apps -- could be set to rise as the chancellor (the guy holding the purse strings) closes a tax loophole.

At the moment, companies offering digital downloads are able to avoid paying taxes in the UK by routing them through another country where taxes are lower. This is not a new technique, and there is nothing illegal about it. It is a loophole that has been exploited for many years, but now plans are afoot to close it off. What is this likely to mean? Well, it should come as no surprise that, ultimately, it's probably going to lead to higher prices for people in the UK.

Continue reading →

Amazon began its retail life as an online book distributor, though it's something we rarely consider the company now -- unless you choose to count digital versions for Kindle and Kindle apps. However, a thriving market for textbooks exists and that has become a recent focus for the company -- also in digital format.

Amazon now lands a major contract in that market, announcing it has reached a textbook deal with the Brazil Ministry of Education. "National Fund for Educational Development (FNDE), has been working with Amazon to convert and wirelessly distribute more than 200 textbooks to hundreds of thousands of public high school teachers via Whispercast", the company states.

Continue reading →

Catalog this post in the "Stories I meant to Write Dept." On February 1, when rumors circulated about Amazon price increases, I conveyed to colleague Alan Buckingham in chat: "If I were Amazon, Prime would stay same for Fire users but go up for everyone else. Reward customers and drive sales". Today's price increase announcement is reason to formally suggest what I should have six weeks ago.

Amazon tablet shipments dipped during fourth quarter -- from 5.9 million to 5.8 million units -- year over year, according to IDC. Global market share fell to 7.6 percent from 9.9 percent. The other top-5 manufacturers all posted healthy growth gains, although Apple also lost market share. Amazon should use lower Prime pricing to encourage new Kindle Fire sales and to reward existing owners. Keep the price $79 for these customers and hike the rest to $99. To be clear: Referring to Kindle Fire means all models, including HD and HDX.

Continue reading →

Rumors have abounded for weeks that Amazon would bump up the pricing of its Prime service -- the program that awards free two-day shipping on all purchases, provides a lending library to Kindle owners and a video streaming service that competes with Netflix.

Today, rumor becomes fact as existing customers awake to an email that gives the bad news. While cries of gloom over the price possibly doubling were, thankfully, not true, it is still an added fee to the annual subscription rate.

Continue reading →

I've certainly made no secret of my love for the Kindle product line -- I called the Kindle Fire HDX 7 the best product of 2013 after it replaced my 2012 HD model. I am also on record as being an Amazon Prime subscriber, primarily for the video service, and an Android user to boot. It all adds up nicely, but I am rehashing things you likely already know.

Recent rumors have been popping up around the internet, as these things tend to do, that Amazon will release its own set-top box. While that is unconfirmed -- though The Verge is already reporting a March release -- it is also logical. The company has a thriving streaming service that competes with Netflix, but there is more to it than just that.

Continue reading →

It's already tough times in the Microsoft world, with Windows 8/8.1 under fire and the impending update coming under recent scrutiny for being, well, a mess, to put it much more politely than my colleague Mark Wilson worded things. If a bad time could go to worse then that would be rival Chrome OS invading the market.

While we largely think of these devices as low-priced notebooks, actual desktops are also getting into the game. Now the Asus Chromebox has hit pre-order in the US on the Amazon website.

Continue reading →

Another week, another spate of security related news. In the latest of a recent run of high-profile hacks, Kickstarter announced that it had been hacked, and it was discovered that ASUS routers could be sharing files with more people than users intended. Google is looking to bolster online security with its latest acquisition -- audio-based authentication outfit SlickLogin, while Microsoft's latest partnership with DocuSign looks set to make digital signatures in Office simpler and more secure. If you were under the impression that app security was generally increasing, think again; a new study shows that an almost unbelievable 96 percent of applications have security issues.

Brian got his hands on the Lenovo Miix 2 and was reasonably impressed by what he saw. He also unboxed the much touted Nokia Lumia Icon and found it to be not dissimilar to the 928 -- no bad thing. Anyone looking for an entry-level 4G smartphone now has the Android-based Samsung Galaxy Core LTE to look forward to, complete with "Jelly Bean Plus".

Continue reading →