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Amazon is putting Fire TV into more … cars

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Amazon may have pulled out of CES 2022 (like so many other manufacturers), but it’s still got news coming down the pike. To wit: The Amazon Fire TV operating system is making its way into more vehicles in 2022. That perhaps sounds a little strange at first. But it’s another reminder that a TV really is just a video screen that happens to be the same place you are, whether it’s a living room or a Lincoln.

To that extent, look for Fire TV being built into the 2022 models of the Lincoln Navigator and Ford Expedition, Amazon said in a blog post, to go along with new Jeep Wagoneer, Grand Wagoneer, Grand Cherokee, and the Chrysler Pacific.

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None of this should be particularly surprising. Amazon has been dabbling with Alexa in the car space for a while now, and smart operating systems aren’t exactly new to the four-wheel set. There’s Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, of course, as well as Android Automotive, which is the baked-in version that runs far more than just the radio. Amazon’s Fire TV experience seems to be more of the former, whoever, meant to get video to passengers and parents alike, whether they’re using a remote control or their voice. There will be content controls, and you’ll be able to listen via Bluetooth, wired headphones, or the car’s speakers, which is a refreshing amount of customization.

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But there’s navigation, too, so the driver isn’t left out of the experience.

And Amazon says it’ll eventually (or “soon,” in their words) match profiles across the different platforms, and you’ll be in a familiar place whether you’re using Amazon Fire TV on a TV at home, or in the car. “This meets an important customer promise,” Amazon wrote, “that Fire TV is always getting better and will enable a feature we hope customers will love — the ability to pause a show at home and quickly resume in the car.”

It’s all still pretty limited for now, and for the foreseeable future. But it also should serve as notice that Amazon’s coming to the car space, too.

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Phil Nickinson
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