Amazon Fire TV Alexa Voice Remote Pro (newest model) with remote finder, TV controls, and backlit buttons

Ok, I have had this remote now for a good few months and I gotta say, I haven’t ran across any issues what so ever. The voice function works good. The (find my remote) alarm works great. And that function alone is worth buying this thing. These little fire remotes always seem to get lost. They can slide down in couch cushions, get wrapped up in blankets, fall behind beds, or just misplaced in general. So having the ability to ask Alexa where the remote is and she turns on an alarm on the remote itself so you can track it down is perfect. This remote also has back lit keys so you won’t be fumbling around in a dark room trying to make sure you’re hitting the correct buttons. Now the lighted keys only turn on when your fingers brush over the keys. So I’m sure that helps out with battery life, however, this is the only issue I have came across that does put a damper on the remote, is that this thing will drink up batteries very quickly. Not sure how often you will be using your remote, but I can drain a set of triple AAAs in a couple weeks in this remote. Now I shouldn’t have to tell you that batteries in remotes can last for many many months. I have even had some that last for over a year. So when I blow through a set in 2 weeks, you know it’s gonna start costing you. I decided to order a couple sets of rechargeable batteries so I always have a good set to toss in. One thing to note here is if you just leave your remote sitting on your couch or in your bed, some items coming into contact by brushing up against the keys, can cause the lighted keys to turn on. Now this is another reason the batteries can die out more quickly. All in all, looking past these personal things, I still think this remote deserves a 5 star rating. It is definitely better than the old stock remotes that came with the old sticks and cubes. And the added blank buttons that allow you to program in what apps you want to open for personalization is a game changer. Do I think this remote is a bit overpriced? Yes. But like most things, if you really want it, you pay the price. Would i suggest this to others? Yes. And I already have gotten a few of my friends to upgrade to this remote. They dig it also. Just make sure that if you buy a cover for this, that it is the correct cover to fit this remote specifically. Covers for the other fire remotes will not fit this one as they are about a half inch different in length, and the button layouts are different. I do hope this review helps some of you out trying to decide if this is worth buying.

So one of my crazy cats knocked my remote off the counter and was throwing it all over the place playing with it. Somehow the internal microphone must have broken as it no longer responded to voice commands (everything else worked fine). I picked up one of those super cheap ($6) no name remotes that supposedly works with my fire cube (the pop-up message stated that it works with all my fire devices). It did technically work for simple commands but none of the multi-button press shortcuts worked. I use “voice view” amazons built in screen reader for the blind. There are many times when that feature needs to be toggled on or off and the easiest way is by pressing and holding down the “back” and “menu” buttons simultaneously for a few seconds. Anyway, it seems that only the legit Amazon branded remotes can perform these tasks. So I had to order up this one as it was n sale for less than the basic version at the time (still pricy considering that for a few dollars more you can get a fire stick and remote). This remote pairs instantly, much faster and easier than with the no name remotes. As soon as it paired, it immediately asked to update the remotes software so I did. It also immediately generated an Alexa app message on my phone that a new device was found. I’ve never had that happen with a remote before. Ends up that’s part of the “find remote” feature that this remote has. It’s also backlit which is nice. With an Amazon branded remote everything, including the multi-button shortcuts work flawlessly. The only thing that I miss (having low vision) was the colored app buttons as those were easily identifiable. These buttons have the app name printed over a standard black button. At least the microphone button is still colored blue so I know which way is up at a glance.

I was having a lot of problems with the Apple TV in our guest room. Janky audio and video. I decided to try another platform to see if the problem was actually the Apple TV or the TV itself. I ordered the latest Amazon 4K Firestick Max and found it was indeed the Apple TV that had gone bad. The picture and audio on the Firestick is awesome. However, the one thing I was not all that impressed with was the remote that came with the unit. It's fine as it is, but didn't have several functions I wanted. I decided to see if they offered a more premium remote for the Firestick. They do ... It has several functions that I really like. For example, you can use Bluetooth headphones with it, and it has backlight buttons. The overall feel and heft of the remote is simply more premium than the one that comes with the Firestick. It's also smaller. The first thing I did was pair it with the Firestick (which took all of one minute) and then tried my Bose headphones with it. Again, it took all of one minute to pair it and it works flawlessly. Once paired, you simply push the headphone button on the top right side of the remote and that is all you need to do. The audio immediately switches from the external speaker to the headphones. And the backlight buttons are very helpful in a dark room. The remote also has two customizable shortcut buttons. I haven't done anything with those yet but will set one up for my Favorite Channels. One thing you need to do however is check the compatibility list on Amazon. Evidentially the remote doesn't work with some older Amazon Firestick products. It absolutely works with the latest Firestick 4K Pro. Granted, the remote was an additional cost, but well worth it from my perspective. Glad I purchased it. That said, Amazon should offer it as an optional SKU with the Firestick 4K Pro .... I bet they would sell a lot of them in that configuration.