This Fire TV Recast Review is unbiased and was penned by Troy from TROYPOINT. Troy bought this device himself. It wasn’t a freebie from Amazon.
The Fire TV Recast is a DVR (digital video recorder). It lets you watch and record over-the-air TV.
You can enjoy this at home. Use a Firestick/Fire TV or Echo Show. Or even watch on the go with a compatible mobile device.
Alexa-enabled devices can be used to control the Fire TV Recast. Give commands like “Alexa, open Channel Guide” or “Alexa, record Riverdale.” You can even watch live or recorded TV directly on your Echo Show!
There are two models of the Fire TV Recast.
- 2 tuners, 500 GB, 75 hours
- 4 tuners, 1 TB, 150 hours
Note: The 2-tuner model allows recording of up to two shows simultaneously. The 4-tuner model lets you record up to four at once. Both models support watching a live TV show on up to two devices concurrently via the Fire TV Recast.
Personally, I wouldn’t need to record more than two over-the-air shows at once. The 4-tuner option seems a bit excessive for my needs.
To use the Fire TV Recast, you’ll need a few things. These are not included.
- HD Antenna
- Fire TV/Stick or Echo Show. These must be on the same network and registered to the same Amazon account as the Fire TV Recast.
- Access to the free Fire TV app. You’ll need this on a Fire Tablet (5th Generation or Above), an iOS 10+ device, or an Android 5.0+ mobile device.
Fire TV Recast Review – Required Equipment
HD Antenna
I often recommend two specific antennas on the TROYPOINT Website. They are high-quality.
First, there’s the RCA Compact Outdoor Yagi HDTV Antenna with 70 Mile Range. This is an outdoor antenna that I personally use.
I prefer an outdoor antenna for optimal reception. It easily connects to the main splitter in my basement, allowing me to distribute the signal to all TV hookups in the house.
If you’d rather use an indoor antenna, I suggest the Mohu Leaf Indoor HDTV Antenna.
They offer various models with different reception ranges. Choose the one that best suits your location.
I recently upgraded my Dad’s old RCA indoor antenna to the Mohu Leaf 60-Mile Indoor model. The difference in channel quantity and quality was significant.
Mohu Leaf 65-Mile Indoor HDTV Antenna
Mohu Leaf 60-Mile Indoor HDTV Antenna
Mohu Leaf 30-Mile Indoor HDTV Antenna
Fire TV Media Player
You’ll need a Fire TV device to watch shows recorded on the Fire TV Recast.
The Fire TV Stick 4K is my top recommendation. However, other devices in the lineup are compatible as well.
The Amazon Firestick is a popular media device. Its affordability and jailbreaking potential make it a favorite.
I’ve heard that it doesn’t perform well with the 1st Generation Fire TV Stick. This is likely due to its limited processing power.
You can also enjoy live TV and recorded shows on an Echo Show.Amazon Echo Show or a compatible mobile device that has the Fire TV App.
Setting Up Your Fire TV Recast
Setting up the Fire TV Recast is a breeze. I connected mine directly to my router. I used an available LAN port and a network cable for optimal connection stability. I then hooked up my over-the-air coax cable and the power cord.
It’s worth noting that a network cable isn’t mandatory. The Recast can also function wirelessly through your WiFi router. As I mentioned before, you’ll need the Fire TV App to configure the Fire TV Recast. This app is compatible with all modern smartphones and tablets. You can easily find and install the Fire TV App through your device’s app store by searching for “Fire TV”.
Here’s a step-by-step guide taken directly from the Amazon Website.
- Begin by connecting your HD antenna to the Fire TV Recast, plugging in the power, and turning it on. Optionally, connect a network cable from your router’s LAN port to the Ethernet port on the Fire TV Recast.
- Ensure that you have the most recent version of the Fire TV app installed on your mobile device.
- Make sure the software on your Fire TV streaming media player, Fire TV Edition television, and/or Echo Show is up to date.
- Turn on the device you want to use with your Fire TV Recast. This could be your Fire TV Edition television, Fire TV streaming media player, or Echo Show. If it’s a new device, complete its setup process first, and then proceed with setting up the Fire TV Recast.
- Open the Fire TV app on your mobile device. Tap “Set up Fire TV Recast” and adhere to the on-screen instructions to complete the setup process.
Important Reminder: The device you intend to use with your Fire TV Recast must be on the same network. It should also be registered to the same Amazon account as your Fire TV Recast.
Fire TV Recast Review – Exploring the Features
After successfully setting up your Fire TV Recast, you can access its functionalities through the “DVR” menu item on your Fire TV/Stick.
The DVR section offers several options: Channel Guide, Scheduled Recordings, Recording Priority, and DVR Settings.
The Fire TV Recast features an intuitive electronic program guide. It’s designed for easy browsing through over-the-air channels. You can press the menu button on your remote to access options such as Filter Channels, Add to Favorite Channels, and Record.
When you launch a channel, you can access more options by pressing the menu button on your Fire TV Remote. These include Channel Guide, Jump to Live, Earliest Available, Captions & Audio, and Record.
The Captions and Audio section lets you customize subtitles. In my experience, they work flawlessly.
Pressing the down button on the remote reveals what’s currently on. It also lets you quickly switch between channels.
This device has amazing recording features. Below, you can see some test recordings which I added to my Fire TV Recast.
Check out this screen for a specific recording. It lets you play your selected episode or access recording options.
Easy access to Scheduled Recordings.
This gives you a really clear view of all your scheduled recordings.
Here’s the shortcut for Recording Priority.
It’s the same screen as before, but I’ve turned on the “Priority” setting. This is super helpful if you have more than two shows scheduled to record at the same time. You can choose which one is most important.
Quick access to DVR Settings.
This takes us to the same place. We can also get there via Fire TV Settings / Live TV.
Fire TV Recast Review – Live TV and Recording
Just so you know, I’m testing this with a Fire TV Stick 4K.
I’ve noticed that other similar products have some lag or stutter when you are playing live TV. But I don’t see any of that here. The menu button on the remote is handy when watching live TV. It gives you options like Channel Guide, Earliest Available, Captions & Audio, and Record.
You can pause live TV and then pick up where you left off. Or, hit the menu button on the remote and select “Jump to Live.” You can use the fast forward button to skip ahead 30 seconds, and the rewind button jumps back 10. These come in handy for skipping ads when you’ve paused live TV or when you are catching up on recorded shows!
The live TV quality is really impressive. No buffering at all. I’m loving it.
When it comes to recording, it’s pretty much like the DVRs you get with cable or satellite. All the same features are there.
Here’s what you can do when you record with the Fire TV Recast.
- Set Recording Priority
- Start/Stop Recording On Time or earlier/longer
- Protect (Never Delete)
- Keep At Most (number of episodes before automatic deletion)
- Recording Preference (new episodes or all episodes)
- Image Quality (HD Preferred, HD Only, SD Preferred, SD Only, No Preference)
Fire TV App
The Fire TV App is great for watching live or recorded TV. It works smoothly.
Want to record what’s currently on? No problem. But you can’t set up recordings in advance. That’s because the app doesn’t have a built-in TV guide.
Here’s where you’ll find your recordings in the app. Easy to access and manage.
The app also has a Settings section. You can tweak a bunch of stuff to your liking in there.
Fire TV Recast – Alexa Commands
Here are some of the most useful Alexa commands for controlling your Fire TV Recast:
- Record – Alexa, record “Name of TV Show”.
- Delete – Alexa, delete “Name of TV Show”.
- Cancel a recording – Alexa, cancel my recording of “Name of TV Show”.
- See the channel guide – Alexa, show me the channel guide.
- Tune to a channel – Alexa, tune to“Fox” (name of station).
- See your storage usage – Alexa, how full is my DVR? Ask her about your DVR storage.
- Show your recordings – Alexa, show my recordings. Have her display them.
Note: You can use Alexa to control Fire TV Recast on any Fire TV streaming media player with an Alexa Voice Remote, Fire TV Edition television, or Echo Show. You can also use other Echo devices for requests that don’t require video playback, such as scheduling, cancelling, or deleting recordings.
What’s In The Box
Fire TV Recast and power adapter are included. You’ll find a USB port on the back of the device.
As of this review, it doesn’t do anything. Rumor has it that Amazon will be rolling out a firmware update in the future. This update will activate the port and allow for additional external storage.
Fire TV Recast Review – Final Thoughts
The Fire TV Recast does a fabulous job but the question is whether most people really need it. There are other competing products, such as the Tablo. These work extremely well and provide the same functionality plus you can use it on non-Amazon devices.
One of the main drawbacks of the Fire TV Recast is that it lives within the Amazon Ecosystem only. What I mean by that is that we can’t play-back live television or recorded TV shows on an NVIDIA SHIELD or other streaming devices that aren’t compatible. Maybe this will change in the future with a compatible app but I highly doubt it.
If you only have Amazon devices within your home, this is a great choice. But, here is the big question. What do you plan on recording that isn’t available through various apps such as Cinema APK, Kodi, etc.?
Maybe you would like to record daily shows such as soap operas that aren’t readily available in these various apps. Or, maybe you would like to record sports and local news? In those cases, this is a great product.
Keep in mind that this device is only capable of recording over-the-air television. It’s not compatible with cable, satellite, or IPTV.
Prior to purchasing the Fire TV Recast, I had to switch my TV input to “Local TV” with the television remote to watch over-the-air broadcasts. Also, there is no electronic program guide for my channels on my television.
Now, I can stay within the Fire TV interface and watch all of these live stations (with a program guide) without picking up the TV remote, which is very handy. Would I pay over $200 for this time-saver? No. And the reason why I say no is because I personally don’t watch many of these channels. However, this may be different for you.
The determining factor on whether you would buy something like this all depends on your viewing preferences and budget. There is no doubt that this is a quality device. I would certainly recommend it to those who use Amazon products exclusively.
Thank you for reading my Fire TV Recast Review! I hope this helps with your overall purchase decision!
Fire TV Recast Review FAQ
Will Fire TV Recast work with all Fire TV devices?
Yes, Fire TV Recast will work with all generations of the Fire TV streaming players and Fire TV Edition televisions. From various reports on the Internet, the Recast doesn’t work well on 1st Generation Fire TV Sticks.
How do I setup my Echo Show to work with the Fire TV Recast?
Your Fire TV Recast and Echo Show will pair automatically if they are both connected to the same WiFi network. You also need to be signed into both devices using the same account.
Can I record IPTV with my Fire TV Recast?
No, the device will only record local over-the-air channels that are received by an HDTV antenna.
Will the Fire TV Recast work with my existing antenna or do I need to purchase a special one?
Yes, your Fire TV Recast will work with any indoor or outdoor digital HD antenna.
How Many Fire TV Recasts can I register to my Amazon Account?
You may register one Fire TV Recast per Amazon account.
How Many devices can I pair with the Fire TV Recast?
There is no limit. You can pair your Recast with as many Fire TV compatible devices as you would like.
What resolutions does Fire TV Recast support?
Fire TV Recast is capable of receiving all ATSC broadcast resolutions, including 1080i and 720p. When streaming to other devices, Fire TV Recast transcodes 1080i streams to a resolution up to 1440 x 720p using H.264. This ensures that all Fire TV streaming media players work with Fire TV Recast. It also delivers more reliable video streams over Wi-Fi.