Amazon Ember Artline review: A stylish art TV

One unique feature is the free “Animated Artwork” function. Imagine a still painting where part of the artwork moves slightly, such as a river or fog over a mountain. It’s soothing and beautiful. There are at least dozens available, but I can’t add my own. The TCL NXTVISION also features slow-motion video format panels, but the video art on the Ember Artline looks more realistic. In particular, I was blown away by some of the precise cuts, including a scene showing the sun passing over a mountain range in extremely high resolution.

Another unique feature is room matching. It uses an image of where the TV is located, then creates AI images that match the color scheme of the space. Having TV show art to match the aesthetic of my family room’s brown walls and dark blue sofa made me feel like an interior designer.

Then there’s the Omnisense feature, which claims to know when you leave the room. At this point, the art display turns off, and then turns it back on when you return. (For comparison’s sake, the TCL doesn’t have a motion sensor; most Ember and Frame Pro models do.) During testing, the Omnisense worked about 90 percent of the time, occasionally failing to register my presence in the room and not turning on the Artline as it should. Amazon representatives told me they had never heard these comments before. However, this feature was mostly functional and has great power saving potential.

The Alexa+ voice search functionality proved limited in the Artline, although you can easily use it to raise the volume and launch apps by voice. Unfortunately, I couldn’t use it to search for classic masterpieces, like Van Gogh or Rembrandt. However, a virtual assistant can answer questions about the weather, play music, provide sports scores, and even chat with you about politics. I loved using Alexa+ to find movies and shows. I’ve made complicated requests like, “Show me every thriller from the past two years that has a rating of 80 percent or higher on Rotten Tomatoes,” and it actually worked. You can also display Amazon Photos, animated artwork, and use Alexa+ to create AI-powered artwork. The AI ​​artwork is a bit generic. However, using voice commands to make art is unique and fun.

The main drawback of the Ember Artline compared to the Samsung Frame Pro is that the contrast is a bit washed out. I couldn’t find Vincent van Gogh Starry night When I scanned the artwork available in Artline, I uploaded it as an image. When I did this on the Frame Pro, the amazing contrast and color quality delivered a lifelike, realistic texture, as if you could reach out your hand and feel the grooves of thick brush strokes. On Artline, the same painting lacked texture and contrast.

Turn on the screen

Photo: John Brandon

I was surprised to find that the Ember Artline doesn’t just use the new screen technology, it’s almost the same QLED technology Like previous Amazon Fire TVs and newer Ember TVs. This means that the contrast ratio (which Amazon doesn’t release) isn’t great, based on my experience watching multiple movies and shows. There’s a new anti-glare matte finish, which makes all your artwork (and whatever content you’re streaming) look more realistic.