The source of breathless tech blog reports for more than a year now, Amazon has finally acknowledged development of a new Linux-based operating system for its Fire TV gadgets, called “Vega,” which will replace the Google Android-based OS used Fire TV devices for more than a decade.
In a company blog post published earlier this week, Amazon said that the newest Fire TV streaming stick, the HDR10+-capable “4K Select,” will be powered by Vega, supporting quick app launching.
“The performance comes from our new operating system, Vega, which is responsive and highly efficient,” Amazon said in its post. “Everything you need is right int he box — it works with your favorite streaming services, and will soon support Xbox gaming, Luna and Alexa+.”
The device is already available for preorder for $39.99 on Amazon.
Amazon still hasn’t released much in the way of technical data about Vega. And it’s unclear which Fire TV smart TVs, smart soundbars, HDMI players and various smart home devices will get the new OS next.
The Vega development arc still seems to be in ramp-up mode, note this want ad for a software development manager to help lead building a Vega OS product, recently unearthed by the aforementioned tech blogosphere.
But as some might tell you, there are advantages to using operating software specifically designed for streaming video devices and not high-end smart phones. Notably, Fire TV was based on a “forked” version of Android. It’s customized to such a level that makes that fact hard to tell from the UX, but the underlying Android code has always been there.
This impacts necessary compute power — where the less the better in a highly competitive, low-margin consumer electronics business.
Amazon bills its new streaming stick as being “remarkably fast,” despite being equipped with only 1 gigabyte of RAM (according to enthusiasts blog AFTV News.) That’s half as much memory as previous Fire Stick generations. The takeaway: Vega can make Fire TV devices work faster and more efficiently with less computer horsepower.
Some Fire TV users won’t be thrilled. For instance, the somewhat popular practice of “side-loading” apps on Fire TV — that is, installing Android APK apps not available in the Amazon Appstore — will not be supported by Vega.
As of September, Amazon said more than 300 million Fire TV devices have been sold worldwide.
According to data published in April by Hub Entertainment Research in April, Fire TV is the No. 3 ranked TVOS in the U.S. for streaming, used by 35% of the market.