Developer Console

Get started with React Native for Fire OS

Anisha Malde Aug 13, 2024

How to

If you are already working with React Native, you can easily target Amazon Fire OS devices without learning a new tech stack or maintaining separate codebases. The Expo framework provides an easy and fast development experience — covered in this guide for how to get up and running with React Native for apps on both Fire TVs and tablets.

✅ Pre-requisites for this guide

Before getting started, install the following:

Node.js: The JavaScript runtime environment
npm or Yarn: Package managers for JavaScript
Android Studio: the IDE used to compile and run your Fire OS apps locally

Configure Android Studio and its command-line tools:

Follow this guide to set your ANDROID_HOME environment variable
Install the following emulators from Android Studio’s virtual device manager:

For tablet:

For TV:

📱 Building for Fire tablets

In the terminal, create a new React Native project with the expo package installed:

npx create-expo-app FireTabletDemo --template blank

Running on Fire tablet emulator

List the available avds then launch the Android Tablet:

emulator -list-avds
emulator -avd name-of-your-tablet-emulator

Navigate to the project directory (e.g. FireTabletDemo) and run the app using npx:

cd FireTabletDemo
npx expo start -a

Your app is now running on the emulator using a local development server and Expo Go without having to create the Android build.

Running on a physical tablet device

Follow these instructions for connecting to Fire tablet through Android Debug Bridge (ADB). Afterwards, confirm it is available as a device:

adb devices -l

Navigate to the project directory then run a development build on your target device (e.g. KFTRWI)

cd FireTabletDemo
npx expo run:android -d [deviceName]

The development build will now install within the Android directory:

📺 Building for Fire TVs

Building for Fire TVs is a similar process as tablets. In a new directory, create a new React Native project with the expo, this time using the with-tv example:

npx create-expo-app FireTVDemo -e with-tv

Running on Fire TV emulator

Launch the Android TV emulator:

emulator -avd name-of-your-tv-emulator

Navigate to the project directory and run your app:

cd FireTVDemo
npx expo start -a

Similar to the Fire tablets, your app will run on the avd emulator without having to create the Android build:

Target the build for TVs

In order to build for TVs, set the isTV prop to true in your app.json:

{
  "expo": {
    "plugins": [
      [
        "@react-native-tvos/config-tv",
        {
          "isTV": true,
        }
      ]
    ],
    "name": "FireTVDemo",
    "slug": "FireTVDemo"
  }
}

Running your project on a Fire TV device

Follow these instructions for connecting to Fire TV through Android Debug Bridge (ADB). Afterwards, confirm it is available as a device:

adb devices -l

Navigate to the project directory then run a development build on your target device (e.g. -d AFTSS)

cd FireTVDemo
npx expo run:android -d [deviceName]

You now have the development build installed on your device:

💡 You can verify your Android builds are optimized for TV by checking that your app is using the Android leanback features in the Android manifest file.

Conclusion

Congratulations on building your first React Native app for Fire OS! Check out these additional resources for building for Amazon devices with React Native:

ASO 101: App store optimization for Amazon Developers

How to promote your Fire TV app

4 ways to use AWS for your mobile app

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