Amazon has built a reputation for offering affordable hardware that serves up its content. It’s a double whammy – sell you the device and then sell you the subscription. It’s hardly unique in this regard: Apple made a major shift over the past decade from selling you hardware to selling you services, Google sold you services and then followed up with hardware.
Fire TV is emerging into one of the most interesting areas that Amazon is working in. Fire TV as a platform has been around since 2014, initially accessed through the company’s affordable Fire TV Stick, with televisions with that capability following in 2017. In 2024, Fire TV has made significant steps: it’s being selected as the platform for established TV brands like Panasonic, while Amazon has launched what looks like a really serious television.
This new model could be Fire TV’s Kindle Oasis, or Echo Studio.
Introducing the Fire TV Omni Mini-LED Series
Amazon’s Fire TV ambitions changed with the launch of the first Fire TV Omni in 2021. Omni set out its stall doing something a little more ambitious than the regular Series television. Firstly, it included a far-field microphone, to make it a handsfree Alexa device. Secondly, Omni strives for higher picture quality, initially using a QLED panel (deploying quantum dots) and now shifting to a newer technology, Mini-LED.
The use of Mini-LED means that Amazon can offer a greater number of dimming zones and more precise illumination to reduce bleed between dark and light areas. Mini-LED can also effectively boost brightness, with Amazon saying there’s 1400 nits peak brightness on the new model. That gives the TV the potential to boost the HDR picture quality and the accuracy compared to the older model.
IMAGE CREDIT: AMAZON
Amazon is also talking up the AI picture optimisation that the new Omni Mini-LED will offer. Launching a TV at this level without some sort of artificial intelligence processing the picture would be madness, and here it’s promising fine-tuning of the details to make it look better.
That is likely also a reflection of the larger sizes that Amazon is pushing: with 55-, 65- and 75-inch models to choose from – the US also getting an 85-inch model – you’re going to need AI upscaling to help keep those 4K images sharp.
Amazon has also switched to a panel that will support 144Hz, with AMD FreeSync Premium Pro certification, which is a play to gamers. On top of that, this model now offers two HMDI 2.1 and support for Wi-Fi 6E, so it’s a better connected TV all round. That, again, just means it’s better futureproofed and should lead to better performance.
There’s a boost to the speakers, claiming Dolby Atmos support, with a 2.1 speaker system. Even if that immersion doesn’t come from those speakers, the inclusion of a subwoofer should bring richness and substance.
But the Fire TV Omni QLED Mini-LED is all about value for money: starting at £850, this is an aggressively-priced television, with shoppers safe in the knowledge that it’s going to get regular discounts. Indeed, on launch there was an “introductory offer”, resulting in an instant £200 discount on the 55-inch model (until 2 December 2024).
IMAGE CREDIT: AMAZON
Amazon Fire TV Omni Mini-LED vs Fire TV Omni QLED
I have a Fire TV Omni QLED. It was a previous Black Friday purchase because of the heavy discount and it suited my requirements for a second TV. I’ve been really impressed with its performance and it’s a firm favourite with the family. But how does the older Fire TV Omni QLED compare to the new Fire TV Omni Mini-LED?
More dimming zones
There are now 512 dimming zones (on the 55-inch) thanks to the Mini-LED panel, compared to 64 dimming zones on the Omni QLED (55-inch). This will provide better light control, reducing bleed and increasing accuracy. (As the TV gets larger there are more dimming zones – but the ratio is similar, with Mini-LED having about 8x as many.)
Greater brightness
The Fire TV Omni Mini-LED has a stated brightness of 1400 nits. Amazon doesn’t say what the peak brightness is of the older Fire TV Omni QLED, but various sites report it to be around 500 nits. The increased brightness should allow for better HDR effects for more striking visuals.
Faster refresh rate
The Fire TV Omni Mini-LED has a faster refresh rate compared to previous Amazon Fire TV models. Stepping up to 144Hz means that the TV will better support gamers. Crucially, it means that Xbox and PlayStation gamers will get the 120Hz support, while PC gamers who might take advantage of 144Hz also have AMD FreeSync Premium Pro, designed to reduce latency, smooth out gameplay and offer better colours. The older Fire TV Omni QLED is a 60Hz TV – in reality, if you’re only watching movies and TV programming, the refresh rate won’t make a huge difference.
More HMDI flexibility
The Omni Mini-LED gets itself two HMDI 2.1 connections and two HDMI 2.0, compared to the single HDMI 2.1 option on the older Fire TV Omni. The advantage is that HMDI 2.1 offers higher bandwidth, with support for those higher refresh rates and those gaming features. It also supports Dolby Atmos through the eARC, although the old Fire TV Omni has eARC on HDMI 2.1, so offers the same. This means you could have the eARC heading to your soundbar and still have a HDMI 2.1 for your games console, for example.
Better Wi-Fi
Both TVs offer an Ethernet connection, but the Fire TV Omni Mini-LED steps up the Wi-Fi to support Wi-Fi 6E, compared to Wi-Fi 5 on the older model. That’s quite a big step, not only supporting faster data rates, but also giving access to 6GHz. You’ll need a router that supports Wi-Fi 6E (like Amazon’s own Eero) however.
Better speakers and Dolby Atmos sound
While the Fire TV Omni QLED will pass Dolby Atmos to a compatible system, the new Fire TV Omni Mini-LED has a better sound system to handle that Dolby Atmos itself. The older model has a pair of 12W speakers, but the newer Mini-LED model has a 2.1 system, meaning it has those left and right speakers as well as a subwoofer. Amazon hasn’t specified how much power there is in the new TV, but it should offer better overall sound.
There’s a radar sensor
One of the features of the Fire TV is the Ambient Experience. That means that when the TV is off, but there’s someone in the room, the screen can show other information. That can be a screen saver and it can also include widgets, like weather. This is now getting enhanced thanks to a radar sensor that can detect motion in the room and transform this into art, making it more immersive and unique.
The new TV is more expensive
There’s always a catch, isn’t there? Both TVs come in a range of sizes, but both come in popular 55- and 65-inch sizes. The Omni QLED model costs £999 for the 65-inch model, but the Mini-LED version costs £1,149 for the 65-inch. It’s worth bearing in mind that Amazon does make reductions regularly and it’s likely you’ll be able to pick up either model for much less than the asking price.
