Need Some Help - How Do I Download Movies/Shows from a Firestick?

**Second Chance** · 10-11-2022, 11:09 AM

Originally Posted by dryfly

What is the average size of the downloaded file if in high def? Can you just DL in standard def to save space on hard drive?

The Amazon Prime video app downloads to a proprietary file format in a hidden directory, but it gives you four choices for quality for download:

Best - 1 hour of video uses about 2.4 GB of data and storage

Better - 1 hour of video uses about 1.1 GB of data and storage

Good - 1 hour of video uses about 0.5 GB of data and storage

Data Saver - 1 hour of video uses about 0.3 GB of data and storage

I use the "Good" setting and it looks fine on my laptop (HD OLED display).

Rob

**MJMCCAND** · 10-12-2022, 07:57 AM

Picked and tested the Lightning-to-HDMI adapter (Apple) last night and it worked just fine. Only problem is finding anything decent to download. I had better results with Amazon Prime than Hulu which has so much garbage in its downloadable content...I'm amazed at the filth that's being produced and put out there for anyone to watch. No wonder we're in such a dilemma with violence and just plain crassness in our society.

Anyone know of a streaming source for decent movies and programs? We really like classic movies (1940 - 1960).

**MoonShadow_1911** · 10-12-2022, 08:01 AM

Originally Posted by MJMCCAND

Picked and tested the Lightning-to-HDMI adapter (Apple) last night and it worked just fine. Only problem is finding anything decent to download. I had better results with Amazon Prime than Hulu which has so much garbage in its downloadable content...I'm amazed at the filth that's being produced and put out there for anyone to watch. No wonder we're in such a dilemma with violence and just plain crassness in our society.

Anyone know of a streaming source for decent movies and programs? We really like classic movies (1940 - 1960).

Good luck. Since most streaming services cater to the movies that bring in the most bucks, that is the what we are stuck with. I have found that searching Netflix from my computer and adding the movie to my list is the best way to go. It's easier than endlessly scrolling through the app.

**ajg617** · 10-12-2022, 08:11 AM

Originally Posted by MJMCCAND

Anyone know of a streaming source for decent movies and programs? We really like classic movies (1940 - 1960).

Yup, same here but the free movie channels that Roku provides are of poor quality recordings. VZ gives me Hulu but I won't even subscribe to it - been there. Prime has some older movies but they are extra cost. I've always relied on TCM for that genre, but I think it's only available through a cable/dish provider at extra cost and it's also live streaming so you don't get to choose what you want.

**MoonShadow_1911** · 10-12-2022, 08:37 AM

You might want to look at Sling.tv, they have some "cable" channels and TMC is one of them. There only problem is you need internet access to watch anything, even "recorded" things because the DVR is "in the cloud".

**Soundsailor** · 10-12-2022, 10:45 AM

Originally Posted by MJMCCAND

Thanks all! Apparently our TCL TV in the camper does not have wifi or BT, but I will check again tonight. I looked for a way to screen share from my iPhone to the TV directly, but the TV never showed on the iPhone Screen Sharing screen. We have a Sony Blu-ray player that is wifi/BT and does have screen mirroring capabilities, just NOT for Apple products, go figure!

The Lightning to HDMI adapter is intriguing. We will play around with the wife's laptop though to see if we can just run a HDMI cable from it to the TV.

I did figure out how to download Amazon Prime programs via their mobile application. I think the same can be done with the Hulu mobile application, but I haven't tested that yet. Maybe tonight.

I appreciate all the guidance!

If you don't have wifi in the coach, consider adding a travel router like this one (https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B09N72FMH5/). Makes it easy to share via wifi when off grid.

**Soundsailor** · 10-12-2022, 10:47 AM

Originally Posted by MJMCCAND

Just ordered an Apple adapter from Walmart, that should do the trick...I kind of hate to even consider doing this. My how I have strayed from the truer form of camping when we'd sit out by the fire til late, then climb into a tent to maybe play cards by the light of a flashlight hung from the tent poles. Oh well, seasons change as do people and our preferences. Though I must say we do still hang out by the fire, but not quite as late as we used.

Fireflies don't require any plugins!

**daemonic3** · 10-17-2022, 12:31 AM

There are many options for this, but here is what works for me. We have a firestick on the main tv and a roku stick in the bedroom. Both can do screen mirroring. Nearly all the apps on firestick or roku allow downloading to an authenticated device like an android or iphone.

While we can do this with any family member's phone and screen mirror, that person's phone is now basically hijacked as the media server. What I've done over the years is when upgrading various family member's phones, if it has a cracked screen we won't get any trade credit (maybe like $30 at most) so I just buy it and keep it. Now I've got a fairly modern device I can wipe and make a useful spare device for things like this. It's just a wifi-only android and they have plenty of space to download a bunch of media. I do this for RV trips, plane trips, etc. (or recording my kid's sports or band performances, but that's irrelevant here)

Anyway, the screen mirroring built into the sticks works great and I recommend it especially if you have a spare device.