Keeps playing offline
Your last menu stays on screen through a bad Wi-Fi night.
Fire TV menu board
A Fire TV menu board, using the TV you own.
If your TV has Fire TV built in, or you can plug in a Fire TV Stick, you already have most of a menu board. We supply the software that runs it.
What “Fire TV menu board” means
Fire TV is Amazon's system for TVs. It comes in two shapes. Some TVs have it built in. Other TVs get it from a Fire TV Stick, a small plug-in stick that goes in an HDMI port on the back or side of the TV.
Either way, the TV can run apps. Wow Menu Boards is our own app. It plays your menu full screen, all day, as pictures and short videos. There is no big player box and no computer hiding behind the counter.
- TV with Fire TV built in: nothing to buy, just connect it to Wi-Fi
- Any other TV with an HDMI port: add a Fire TV Stick
- Full HD, 1920 × 1080, landscape
What you need
1. A TV with an HDMI port
Look on the back or the side of the TV for a small slot marked HDMI. A Fire TV Stick plugs straight into it. If your TV already has Fire TV built in, you will see the Fire TV home screen when you turn it on. At Sweet Aloha, three of our five TVs are built-in Fire TV models, so we did nothing but connect them to Wi-Fi.
2. Fire TV, built in or on a stick
Built in means the TV is the player. A stick means a small separate player. Two of our five TVs use sticks. Both ways run the same app and show the same board. Ask us before you buy a stick: some newer sticks cannot run Android apps, and we would rather you hear that before you spend money.
3. Power and Wi-Fi near the TV
A stick needs a power cable and an outlet close to the TV. Check this before you hang the TV, not after. Wi-Fi only has to reach the TV well enough to download your menu. After that the board plays from the TV itself.
4. Your menu and photos
Send us your items, prices and photos of your real food. We build the board with you. A good first board is one screen, three blocks and one featured photo, like the ones in our ice cream shop article.
How we run it at Sweet Aloha
We built this for our own ice cream shop first. Sweet Aloha Ice Cream in Davie, Florida runs 5 TVs: 3 have Fire TV built in and 2 use Fire TV Sticks. All 5 run Wow Menu Boards every day.
That is one shop, and we say so plainly. It is a real working pilot, not a pile of customers. It is also why we know what a busy counter needs from a screen.
Have a TV over your counter? We can check it before you buy anything.
Your hours, with no remote
You tell us your opening and closing times once. At closing the screen goes black. At opening your menu comes back at the exact minute. The TV stays on, so nobody has to find a remote.
Here is the real schedule on our shop's TVs today:
| Day | Menu on | Screen black |
|---|---|---|
| Sun–Thu | 1 pm – 9 pm | After 9 pm |
| Fri–Sat | 1 pm – 10 pm | After 10 pm |
Offline play and self-updates
Wi-Fi drops sometimes. Your menu is saved on the TV, so the board keeps playing and catches up when the internet is back. New menus and app updates arrive by themselves. No USB sticks, no staff training.
Updates itself
New menus and new app versions arrive on their own.
Honest limits
We would rather you hear these from us.
Amazon Appstore listing
Not live yet. Today we help you install the app. Later you will search “Wow Menu Boards” on your Fire TV and install it yourself.
Your own dashboard
Today you send us changes by text or the contact form and we update your board. Editing it yourself is coming.
One more limit: Amazon's newest Fire TV Sticks run Vega OS, which cannot run Android apps. Sticks that run Fire OS, and TVs with Fire TV built in, work fine. We will check your device before you buy anything.
Questions owners ask
Do I need a Fire TV Stick?
Only if your TV does not have Fire TV built in. If it does, you already have the player. If it does not, plug a Fire TV Stick into a free HDMI port.
Is Wow Menu Boards on the Amazon Appstore?
Not yet. The listing is Coming soon. Today we help you install it on your TV when you join the trial.
Does it work on every Fire TV Stick?
Not every one. Amazon's newest sticks run a different system (Vega OS) that cannot run Android apps. Sticks that run Fire OS, and TVs with Fire TV built in, work. Tell us what you own and we will check it before you buy anything.
What if the Wi-Fi goes down?
The board keeps playing. Your menu is saved on the TV, and it catches up when the internet comes back.
Do my staff need to use a remote?
No. The board starts itself, turns on and off with your hours, and updates itself.
Keep reading
How to turn a TV into a menu board
Five steps, with examples from our shop.
Digital menu boards for restaurants
The plain guide: what to buy and what to ask.
Ice cream shop menu board: 7 ideas
Seven ideas from a shop that runs them, with our real boards.
All features
Live today and coming soon.
Use the TV you already own.
We open free trials a few shops at a time, and we set up your first screen with you.
14 days free, no cardNo contract. Cancel anytime.