Ryan Haines / Android Authority
TL;DR
- Amazon has announced an overhauled security update policy for its Fire TV-enabled gadgets.
- This applies to Fire TV streaming devices, soundbars, and TVs.
We’ve seen several major brands offer a longer commitment to updates in the last 18 months or so, ranging from Samsung and OnePlus to Xiaomi and Oppo. Now, it turns out that Amazon is joining the party as well — but not for tablets.
The company quietly announced (h/t: PhoneArena) that Amazon Fire TV products will now receive a minimum of four years of security updates. More specifically, the retail colossus says the update commitment is for “at least four years after the device is last available for purchase on our websites.”
This last bit makes for some welcome news, as we usually see device manufacturers offering an update pledge that kicks in from the first day of sales. That means someone buying a year-old device that offered three years of updates at launch will only effectively get two years of support. But Amazon’s take means you could buy a 2018-era Fire TV Stick 4K right now and still receive the full commitment period.
All the devices on Amazon’s list of supported gadgets are supported until 2025 at the very least. You can check out the full list below:
Fire TV streaming devices
- Fire TV Stick Basic Edition (Gen 2, 2016)
- Fire TV Stick Lite (2020)
- Fire TV Stick (Gen 3, 2020)
- Fire TV Cube (Gen 2, 2019)
- Fire TV Stick 4K (2018)
- Fire TV Stick 4K Max
- Fire TV Recast DVR (2018)
Smart TVs
- Amazon Fire TV 4K Omni series (43 to 75-inch)
- Amazon Fire TV 4-series 4K (43 to 55-inch)
- Insignia NS (24 to 65-inch)
- Pioneer 22U 4K LED (43 and 50-inch)
- Toshiba U21 Smart 2020 (32 to 50-inch)
- Toshiba C350 series 4K LED 2021 (43 to 75-inch)
Soundbars with Fire TV
- Nebula Soundbar Fire TV Edition
- TCL Alto 8 Plus Fire TV Edition
We’re glad to see Amazon embracing lengthier software commitments for its devices, although it would’ve been great to see this same level of official support applied to its Fire tablet range as well. The company has updated much older tablets before, but making this an official policy would’ve been welcome.
How do you think update policies should work? Should brands start the countdown from the first day of sales or from the last day? Let us know via the poll below.
