Amazon's Fire TV Omni QLED: Better Picture and Smart Features

Amazon’s formal entry into making TVs arrived last year with the Fire TV Omni Series, a robust range of 4K televisions promising visual standards and an incredibly deep integration with all-things Amazon. Heck, you could even use your voice and Alexa to control the whole thing. Topping it all off, they were affordably priced and saw some wild discounts during peak sale holidays.

Now, the technology giant is kicking things up a notch with the Fire TV Omni QLED Series. It’s poised to have a shaper, more vibrant picture thanks to a Quantum Dot panel. It wouldn’t be an Omni without a slew of smart features--and now, Amazon is going after Samsung’s The Frame.

We're going to unpack all of your Fire TV Omni options, but if you’re already sold, preorders are open for the 65-inch and 75-inch models. They’ll begin shipping on Oct. 27.

• 65-inch Fire TV Omni QLED ($799.99; Amazon.com)
• 75-inch Fire TV Omni QLED ($1,099.99; Amazon.com)

Stepping Up Picture Quality

The original Fire TV Omni's weren't slouches, but Amazon is looking to raise the bar this year. Amazon kicks it off with the introduction of Quantum Dots which are frequently used by the likes of Hisense, Samsung and TCL. Quantum Dots are essentially a layer within the panel that acts as an additional filter to create the image, resulting in higher vibrancy and more clarity in the images. There should be less distortion and a significant reduction in any halo effect.

The Fire TV Omni QLEDs feature up to 96 local dimming zones which allows the onboard processor to get really specific with how it wants to create and display the image. The overall brightness can be automatically adapted to your room thanks to an ambient light sensor as well. For instance, in a room with a lot of light it will raise the brightness.

Let’s get technical: Both the 65-inch and 75-inch versions support HDR10+, HLG, HDR10+ Adaptive and Dolby Vision IQ. The latter is new, and adjusts Dolby’s picture optimizations to your exact space.

The Fire TV Omni QLED features three HDMI 2.0 ports, a single HDMI eARC 2.1 port and a gigabit Ethernet port. It also comes with an Alexa Voice Remote (including two AAA batteries).

The Fire TV Omni QLED Knows When You’re There

It sounds a little spooky, but thanks to presence sensors the Omni QLED will know when you enter the room, even if the TV is not actively being used. Instead of just a large black rectangle on your wall, Amazon is introducing an Ambient Experience. Much like an Echo Show, the Omni will display important notifications, smart home controls, act as a giant 65-inch or 75-inch photo frame, and even display artwork.

Yes, Amazon is replicating Samsung’s The Frame that also has its own Ambient Mode. Amazon’s twist on this is that when it’s displaying artwork, you can ask Alexa or hit a button to learn about that piece. They’re also not charging for access to this gallery service—you’ll get over 1,5000 pieces to pick from. These include selections from The Art Institute of Chicago and the National Gallery of Art. It seems very cool and our team will be eager to go hands-on with this.

The presence sensor is built into the bottom bezel of the Fire TV Omni QLED and sits near the far-field microphones. The latter will power the hands-free Alexa experience, and like on the non-QLED Omni TVs, you’ll be able to manually flip a switch to mute or unmute the microphones.

Alexa Widgets, just like on the Echo Show, are here as well. You can see a sticky note someone left for you, view a shared calendar or even check off reminders. You can also use voice control with Alexa, including triggering TV specific controls by saying the wake word.

Along with this new Ambient Experience screen, the Fire TV Omni QLED will still ship with Fire TV as the main operating system (OS). You'll get access to a bevy of streaming services and other apps, including Zoom for video calls.

Let’s Recap

The Fire TV Omni QLED is a pretty big step up over the standard Fire TV Omni. It’s set to deliver a much better viewing experience made possible by the introduction of Quantum Dots and many more dimming zones. It’s also exciting to see Amazon offer Dolby Vision IQ for picture optimization to your room.

It also builds on the convenience features by sticking with what works and rolling out a pretty unique Ambient Experience. Yes, it’s similar to Samsung, but we’re eager to see how Amazon’s version ends up performing, especially the deep integration with Alexa and other smart home devices.

Amazon is taking preorders for both the 65-inch ($799.99) and 75-inch ($1,099.99) Fire TV Omni QLEDs now and they’ll begin shipping on October 27 2022.

• 65-inch Fire TV Omni QLED ($799.99; Amazon.com)
• 75-inch Fire TV Omni QLED ($1,099.99; Amazon.com)

Prices are accurate and items in stock at time of publishing.