Is it worth the upgrade?

If you happen to’ve received a Fireplace TV gadget otherwise you’re searching for one, Amazon is raring to promote you the newly-released Alexa Voice Distant Professional as an additional accent. I not too long ago had a chance to check one, evaluating it towards different Fireplace TV remotes to guage whether or not it actually makes a distinction for the media streaming expertise.

In brief, the Voice Distant Professional is a $35 substitute for the usual Alexa Voice Distant that’s suitable with most media streamers and TVs primarily based on Amazon’s Fireplace TV platform. It’s not out there as an in-pack — even the top-of-the-line Fireplace TV Omni QLED comes bundled with the vanilla Voice Distant. It provides additional buttons, backlighting, a Distant Finder characteristic, plus some minor upgrades. We’ll dive into all of those shortly.

You’ll wish to verify Amazon’s official compatibility checklist earlier than shopping for one, however there are comparatively few merchandise it received’t pair with. These embody the first and 2nd gen Fireplace TV, the first gen Fireplace TV Stick, the Echo Present 15, and the Ingredient Fireplace TV Version. Most conspicuously, you’ll be able to’t pair it with the Hisense U6HF ULED, regardless of that TV being launched in Could 2022. It additionally received’t work with Insignia HD or FHD TVs, although it’s going to work with that model’s UHD and F20 units.

I examined the Voice Distant Professional utilizing a Fireplace TV Stick 4K Max, which is second solely to the Fireplace TV Dice in Amazon’s line-up of streaming packing containers and sticks. Each the distant and the Max have been equipped by Amazon. Throughout the first-time setup, I found that you simply completely should pair the Max’s bundled Voice Distant earlier than you’ll be able to add the Voice Distant Professional — the stick refused to acknowledge the Professional in its setup wizard. This wasn’t an enormous drawback, since I simply added the Professional later utilizing the Fireplace TV’s Settings menu. You need to use each remotes concurrently and, in actual fact, having a backup distant could also be useful for causes we’ll clarify in a minute.

The Professional provides quite a lot of small however important conveniences, the obvious being additional buttons. There’s a devoted Settings choice, a channel selector, and a headphone button that jumps to the Bluetooth menu for faster wi-fi audio pairing. The final one is sort of area of interest, nevertheless it’s a thriller why a Settings button isn’t on the usual Voice Distant — Fireplace TV customers must open Settings on a semi-regular foundation to verify notifications and power app updates, by no means thoughts different controls.

You’ll discover a Settings button (and/or a channel selector) on some third-party remotes just like the Insignia one above, so the largest deal right here is the addition of two customizable shortcuts, labeled “1” and “2”. By urgent and holding them, you’ll be able to assign a wide range of actions, the first selections being to launch apps or run Alexa voice instructions. I assigned 1 to YouTube as an example, and a pair of to “Alexa, activate the Dwelling Room lights.” You received’t hear any vocal reply when you set off an Alexa command this fashion.

Customizable app shortcuts are extraordinarily helpful, for the reason that shortcuts on different Fireplace TV remotes are locked to companies you won’t use. Sure, you’re most likely streaming from the likes of Netflix, Disney Plus, and/or Prime Video when you have a Fireplace TV gadget, however not everybody has all three subscriptions, and different companies could also be extra necessary for some viewers. The one catch with customized shortcuts is that you must keep in mind what you’ve assigned to every of them, and share that information with different individuals in your family.

Distant Finder

If you happen to lose the Professional, you’ll be able to ask an Alexa gadget (or the Alexa and Fireplace TV apps) to “discover my distant.” That triggers a loud ringer, making the Professional straightforward to trace down, no less than if it’s inside earshot.

There are a few different caveats. The characteristic has a spread of 30 ft (about 10m) round your TV, and your Fireplace TV gadget needs to be on, which may be a Catch-22 if it’s the explanation you’re on the lookout for the distant within the first place. For this reason it is best to cling on to the usual Voice Distant as backup.

Backlighting

If you happen to wish to dim your lights for ambiance, the buttons on the Professional illuminate everytime you nudge it or decide it up. It’s a wise addition that makes it simpler to inform what you’re urgent, though in a pitch-black room you should still should fumble a bit to seek out the distant, what with it being almost all black to start with.

Higher building

The Professional is solidly constructed. It’s nonetheless product of plastic, however feels sturdier within the hand than many Fireplace TV remotes, and its texture is much less slippery. It’s additionally simpler to entry the battery compartment, definitely versus Amazon’s default Voice Distant. Whereas that one requires odd hand and finger placement, and generally an excessive amount of power, the Professional opens simply by urgent down on the arrow marker and sliding — the way in which it must be.

Do you want the Professional? No, particularly when you’re comfy utilizing Alexa. Added buttons may save just a few seconds right here and there, however you’ll be able to accomplish most of what they do with voice instructions. In case you have a Fireplace TV Dice, a Fireplace TV Omni, or a linked Alexa speaker, you don’t even must have a distant in your hand. You need to use voice to launch apps earlier than you sit down.

The story modifications when you choose bodily controls or hate Alexa. Whereas the usual Voice Distant is succesful sufficient, the Professional smooths widespread actions in a means that makes Fireplace TV a extra nice expertise. If you happen to stay in a house the place individuals often misplace issues, the Distant Finder characteristic alone may be price it to forestall arguments and save your sanity.

If you happen to’re within the Professional and have the spare money, then there’s no motive why you shouldn’t get one. The improve is helpful sufficient that, arguably, the product ought to mechanically be bundled with higher-end Fireplace TV units.