How to Install Kodi on Fire TV and Fire TV Stick
I have owned both Fire TV and Fire TV Stick for nearly 6 months now. I love them so much that I've recommended them to many family, friends, and co-workers. They are remarkably well designed and easy to use. I use them primarily to watch Sling TV and Prime videos. There are other apps to watch Hulu, NetFlix, and etc. In this article I will provide simple step-by-step instructions on how to install Kodi (formerly XBMC). You can find many internet guides on this topic, but many of them are outdated. I still can't believe how much Fire TV Sticks sell for on eBay, especially those with Kodi installed. Save yourself some money and do it yourself. The instructions are incredibly simple... if I can do it anyone can.
If you don't already own one, buy one at Amazon.
Fire TV Stick
Fire TV
Although they share many of the same features, Fire TV costs $60 more than the Stick. Fire TV comes with more memory, faster processor, and most importantly voice search on the remote.
OK let's get started...
Step 1. Download adbFire (v2.01) to your PC
IMPORTANT: Make sure you actually unzip the download. I had a lot of problem with adbFire not talking to the Fire TV on my first try because it was not unzipped. I was running it from the preview folder... dumb mistake. Right click the downloaded file and click "Extract All..."
Step 2. Download Android Kodi TV (ARM version) to your PC
Step 3. Enable Developer Options
- Navigate to the settings screen
- Scroll over to System option and select "Developer Options"
- Turn on "ADB debugging" and "Apps from Unknown"
Step 4. Obtain IP address of your Fire TV or Stick
You will need this IP address to allow your PC to communicate to your Fire TV or Stick so write it down. It will be used in the next step.
Step 5. Launch adbFire
- Click "New" to create a new profile for your Fire TV
- Type in the IP address in the "Device address" field and hit the "Save" button
- Click the "Connect" button and you should see the IP address of your FireTV in the box for "Connected devices"
- Click on "Install APK"
- Enter the Kodi APK file and hit start
Wait until the progress bar reaches completion... hit Stop ADB server and you're done! In the next steps you will test your install.
Step 6. Reboot your Fire TV or Stick
Step 7. Launch Kodi
- Navigate down to Settings, scroll over to Applications and hit the select button
- Scroll down to "Manage All Installed Applications"
- Scroll down until you find Kodi and hit select
You might realize at this point that this is a painful way to launch Kodi. Don't worry in my next post I will discuss how to launch this app from the "Recent" menu. Stay tuned.
Here are some additional accessories you may consider for your Fire TV or Stick:
