Sorry if I've posted this in the wrong section. I'm looking to set up a firestick I've just purchased to allow my mum to watch tv and movies on it she is very much behind the times with technology and even the thought of using a mobile phone worries her.
So far with stick I've tried to make it as easy as possible for her to use and the easiest way I imagined would be the default amazon account with the stick and paying for the prime service but this is a little too confusing for her as so far she has clicked tv shows and movies that have taken her interest and unknowingly selected signing up for starszplay, Netflix and other things that aren't included in the prime account but still continue to flash up as a choice... I've even select in app purcheses off and it has still allowed her to sign up to different packs including itv hub ( when did this become costly ? its free on windows) anyways I've managed to turn them all off again but she is afraid to select anything incase it involves a subscription and isn't free with the prime account.
I then opted to try and remove the Amazon set up completely by using a different launcher and installing free movie/tv apps like teatv or stremio however this isn't great either... the launcher doesn't startup as the default launcher.
I Also have a VPN that would be perfect if I continued down the streaming free apps however even when I set it to have the killswitch and to load at boot... I've noticed im still manually having to go in and start it up and at times it has failed to load an I.P due to the killswitch.
And even using these free apps she is unsure of what streat to select etc... sometimes there will be links showing up for a show that wasn't selected etc...
So basically im looking to bypass the amazon launcher and just have either a plain launcher with only the apps I've installed for her to use and seek movies and shows.. something very basic that will show just movies and tv shows to select and continue watching section... and will auto find the best link and play the correct file similar to ones that pick the 1080p file first and then just loads.
And also have the vpn up and running from boot with no worry of it disconnecting or not running while streaming something.
Just whatever you guys can suggest, she is very much a novice and even with me showing her I don't think she will get until she plays around with it for a while... but she wont do this is if she is worrying about clicking wrong things or purchasing things etc.
How would you setup a Firestick for someone that is new to it just so they could watch movies and shows and be able to resume things they are enjoying with ease.
Thanks for any help.
Kodi with a simple skin. You can customize the skins in their own options even further to remove menu items.
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I know the unit wasn't designed for this, but in theory can a Fire TV or even Fire TV Stick be used to just play back locally stored content?
I'm on the fence to get one of these for my home use (especially seeing it run Kodi/XMBC), but if I could use it for work presentations or backyard projectors, I'd be sold in a heartbeat! To be clear, these are situations in which there is no WiFi signal or device streaming to it... rather, I'd like to have locally stored media that it can play back in either Kodi or the Android version of VLC. Having a nice little device and remote seems far simpler and enjoyable versus hooking up my honking laptop to do those things.
Thoughts?
I was going to just pick up a Stick today for the $24 sale price and figure it out myself, but it appears I was too late. Am I better off with something else?
It should work as a local player with apps like MX Player, Kodi and VLC. Just that the stick has a few gbs of storage that can be used to store movies and to add movies you need to do it wirelessly or through adbfire. The Fire TV box can use HDs which can help with having the movies there. But if a portable player is what you want just use your phone with movies in a microsd, install mx player or Kodi and use a HDMI to microusb cable. That way you always have your player with you and only need that 6 dlls cable.
solorzano_felipe said:
It should work as a local player with apps like MX Player, Kodi and VLC. Just that the stick has a few gbs of storage that can be used to store movies and to add movies you need to do it wirelessly or through adbfire. The Fire TV box can use HDs which can help with having the movies there. But if a portable player is what you want just use your phone with movies in a microsd, install mx player or Kodi and use a HDMI to microusb cable. That way you always have your player with you and only need that 6 dlls cable.
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Might want to double check that.... In theory you are correct, but in personal experience no internet means no loading of the home menu, meaning can't run anything at all. This may have changed or there may be a way around it, not 100% sure.
Solorzano, the idea is to have a dedicated player, not use my phone. That's why I originally dismissed the idea of a Chromecast... Sometimes I set up these boxes at fundraising events and hand all the hardware over to someone else to project. I'm often handling other technicalities of the event, or not even on location once they play it! I've been using my laptop to feed the presentation until now, but I'd rather not dedicate my laptop to the cause each time.
I'm actually leaning more towards one of those Kit-Kat quad core media boxes from china for this reason. They have USB ports (multiple ones!) and are much faster than the Fire TV Stick, maybe even faster than the Fire TV Box, for half the price. Only catch is that I won't be able to stream Amazon content if I ever wanted to do that at home (looking to make this a dual-purpose work and home purchase), but I think its a better suited device for everything else I want to do.
Thanks guys!
I posted a similar question elsewhere here, one responder stated that if you have Firestarter installed then you can go to that home screen and use apps, even though you can't go to the standard FireTV home screen. I haven't tried it yet, I'm not home where my Stick is.
Regarding a "standard" Android box, I have a Matricom G-box Q, I can watch Amazon videos with it using the Amazon Instant app. It basically takes you to the Amazon Instant home page (I have this defaulted to use Chrome), then when you select a video just choose the Amazon Instant app for playback. I seem to remember it was a little weird to install, something like: I installed it, I ran it, and then during the first run it asks if you want to install the app again, if you do it seems to work.
Terry T, yes with firestarter you can get to kodi. You can also go to the settings manage apps way of launching provided parental control is not on. The pin is verified on Amazons server. However, assuming you at least have wifi with an internet outtage you can also launch Kodi with firestarter, wukong remote or Apps Shortcut for FireTV. These methods bypass the parental PIN number
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Thanks guys! Next question: If I go with the Stick version, which lacks expandable storage or USB storage, is there a relatively easy way to load files onto the internal memory? For example, if I need to play a specific mp4 file at an event, can I sideload it over Wifi at home first, then show up the event and play it with kodi?
Yes, sideload ES File Explorer. You can cut or copy (long press, then the file is selected and options are at the bottom of the screen) from either a shared drive on your network or from a cloud source like Dropbox to the Stick. You will have to tell Kodi or whatever video player you are using where you saved the file.
Stupidly bought a FireTV Stick with the intention of putting it in the offpsrings room so they can watch stuff from my Plex server in their own rooms.
Installed Plex, it wants to activate, £3.99, fair enough, bought it, it then says I can't watch stuff until I activate it, so I try again and it just errors..
Plex forums are about as much use as a fart in a cullender, so ended up here..
Any root or custom ROM options for the stick so it actually becomes useful?
Same LAN network correct?
I've noticed that if Plex uses a WAN address it behaves differently and nags for money. If your on a local network and you've attached to the correct server than you should be good to go.
Maybe you've already done this but make sure you are connected to the correct server and on your local network. And also if the content is HD make sure you are using h.264 encoding. I've noticed the firetv stick struggles with MPEG2 HD.
I've got my Plex server locally with a static as well as the FireTV stick having a static IP, the problem lies in the fact that you cant get Plex to work for more than a minute, says it needs activating, charges you the £3.99 then when you try to play something it again says it needs activating, try to activate it a second time and it errors...
Might have to go down the sideloading Kodi or similar although I would prefer something that just launched straight in rather than having to go into Settings, Apps, Manage Apps then fire kodu up from there, hence the request for some sort of custom ROM...
Trig0r said:
I've got my Plex server locally with a static as well as the FireTV stick having a static IP, the problem lies in the fact that you cant get Plex to work for more than a minute, says it needs activating, charges you the £3.99 then when you try to play something it again says it needs activating, try to activate it a second time and it errors...
Might have to go down the sideloading Kodi or similar although I would prefer something that just launched straight in rather than having to go into Settings, Apps, Manage Apps then fire kodu up from there, hence the request for some sort of custom ROM...
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I've never had that problem, ate you in the uk? Works gangbusters in the us. I'm also plexpass, so maybe that's why...
Trig0r said:
I've got my Plex server locally with a static as well as the FireTV stick having a static IP, the problem lies in the fact that you cant get Plex to work for more than a minute, says it needs activating, charges you the £3.99 then when you try to play something it again says it needs activating, try to activate it a second time and it errors...
Might have to go down the sideloading Kodi or similar although I would prefer something that just launched straight in rather than having to go into Settings, Apps, Manage Apps then fire kodu up from there, hence the request for some sort of custom ROM...
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I can't say much about plex. I tried it. It was good to very good, depending on my device, but kodi is better in my opinion. However, if that tedious navigation in getting to the app is really your only issue, you can use llama to put it right on the recent section, or boot right to it. Adbfire makes the setup simple. There's also firestarter that allows side loaded apps on the home screen.
I've been using Plex for years and I'm pretty regular on the forums, and I agree, the issue with the repeated activation requirement doesn't seem to fix itself. Here is the most complete thread on the subject (http://forums.plex.tv/discussion/151349/app-already-purchased-but-still-prompting-for-activation/p1), I seem to remember that the main suggestions are (1) do a factory reset on the stick, (2) contact Amazon, and (3) PM one of the Plex devs with your amazon account name and maybe the receipt info from the app purchase (I don't remember the details of that). Like ldeveraux I have a Plexpass membership, that seems to provide the magic to avoid the issue (but I'm not promoting the purchase, the price now is kind of high).
Kodi+PlexBMC+Amber Skin works very well and looks similar to Plex Home Theater, sideloading is pretty easy (http://sideloadfiretv.com/sideload-apps-amazon-fire-tv-windows), and I think it's just a better solution to avoid any issues with surround sound.
Firestarter (http://forum.xda-developers.com/fire-tv/themes-apps/app-root-home-launcher-replacement-app-t3118135) is an awesome app to easily access your sideloaded apps.
Ahh, llama might sort me out then if I can boot the stick straight to Kodi/XBMC, dont have a Plexpass here which might be why its working for you guys and not me..
Hi all, I have been trying to think up a way for my parents to watch backup copies of their fav TV Shows and movies in avi/mkv/mp4 formats mostly.
I setup an older model Raspi for them with Kodi but it seems to be too much of a learning curve for them to work it and have been trying to think up alternatives that would be easier to switch on and navigate (Thinking simple "switch on and 1-2 buttons presses to a list of content to play with a remote control input" which they are used to).
Is this something feasable with the Fire Stick? Even if i had to install a custom rom or certain apps is fine as long as they dont have to do it, I can setup all that up beforehand for them. In my head the optimal setup would be: Switch on to a list of movie and tv shows they can navigate through and a simple button press to start it with the normal remote control input (Like pause and stop and play button useage). No need for any subscription based services (If anything that would probably only confuse them further with more options to scroll through, if anything i would like to remove that kinda stuff from the getgo).
Is this kinda thing doable or any alternatives that you think might be a better solution?
Thanks in advance for any advice you might be able to give!
If they cant use Kodi then I honestly cant say yes.
TimmyP said:
If they cant use Kodi then I honestly cant say yes.
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I think it was more the way that Kodi was setup, having to go through multiple layers of options to get to content, perhaps there is a way I could have set it up differently to mitigate that? Another reason was the way you would have to plug it in to switch it on which they didnt like, I thought a stick you plug into the TV would be more easy for them...
My parents are in their mid 60s and have multiple sticks with the kodi fork spmc, but they prefer Terrarium and Mobdro. They had no problems navigating them.
remember the stick still needs power so a plug or usb power on tv is required, may i suggest an alternative method which is plex, i download (for educational purposes) my content and then i put this on to a my cloud home nas drive which is connected to the network, i then use plex on firetv stick to watch any content on the nas drive with nice cover menus, movie info etc, the menu system is very easy to use as im sure you will find, maybe just investing that little bit into a nas drive may make the experience better for the parents
also as a bonus as long as they have an internet connection at home and an internet connection anywhere they may go to visit or holiday all they do is take the fire tv stick and the movies on their nas drive at home will still be watchable wherever they are :0)
Yes, it would be fine as long as you go through and teach them the basics every so often. Remember to teach them how to use the voice search and Alexa!
AFAIC, the short answer is NO WAY!
Too complicated, too confusing, too many stupid annoying thumbnails that can't be removed.
I had read on XDA that you could bypass logging into an Amazon account on a Fire TV Stick by using the remote app and pressing the gear icon on your phone, which would kick the stick directly into the settings menu; the Stick would essentially be just an Android set-top box at that point, which is my goal. But it seems like a recent firmware patched this, as trying to press the gear in the app just makes the TV screen flicker for a minute, then continue to prompt you to log in. Is there a way around this on newer firmwares that anyone has found? I'm just trying to use the Stick locally to do things like stream my Steam games over the same network, and if the Stick is anything like the Fire HD tablets, not associating an Amazon account with it would make it run a ton better. I also just like using things without having to rely on accounts whenever I can, and the Stick seems way more convenient than other Android boxes, so it would be great to be able to do that here. Thanks in advance for any insight!
I have a first Gen Firestick-E9L29Y-Green Head Droid-white eyes-White Antenna, described as Chinese tracking also Malware. In Notification Droid shows up with music. went in to ES files and deleted it-keeps returning in Notifications with Notification turned off.
I tried a refresh--no help. Heard by some users that tried reinstalled it still appeared- It must me permanently embitted in the root system. Am I better off purchasing another fire stick. I have a IPTV side loaded and have not had a problem in four years. So did I get this from amazon on an update or a program download-or is it in embitted in EES files of the File Manger. Is this too complex to fix. ust want to side load a IPTV Program with ease and try not to catch malware on a device. I also use Nord VPN on Firestick.. Is there a better device you can recommend. I am an Amazon prime member and get free access to many Amazon programs. Any help or ideas would be appreciated -Should I make a door stop out of this Firestick ?