Owners of 2020 Toshiba 4K UD Fire TV and Insignia 4K Fire TV smart TV models will now be able to stream content from their Apple devices using AirPlay, and integrate the smart TV sets into their HomeKit home set up, which enables remote Siri voice control features.
As announced on the Amazon Fire TV blog, the company is today rolling out free software updates for these smart TV sets that make them more useful for Apple users. Amazon says AirPlay/HomeKit support for additional Fire TV models will roll out later in the year.
Interestingly, Amazon have not yet announced support for HomeKit and AirPlay 2 for Amazon Fire TV sticks, even though that feature rolled out to Roku streaming sticks last year.
Assuming you have a supported TV model, AirPlay 2 will be enabled by default once the firmware update goes through. This means if you have an iPhone, iPad or Mac, you should be able to see your TV in the AirPlay output menu and wireless stream music, videos and photos to it — or even share your screen with AirPlay Mirroring.
Adding your Fire TV smart TV to your HomeKit home will require a little set up. To set up HomeKit on your Fire TV set, navigate to Settings -> Display & Sounds -> AirPlay & HomeKit -> Set up. You will then be able to generate the HomeKit QR code to scan with your iPhone and add your TV to your HomeKit home experience.
Once configured, you will be able to use Siri on your iPhone to control parts of the TV experience including turning it on or off, skipping ahead in a music playlist or changing volume.
Since March 2019, Apple has slowly been rolling out AirPlay 2 compatibility to smart TVs from various high-end and low-end brands. Previously, AirPlay had been exclusive to the Apple TV set-top box.
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.
Comments