It’s a really great streaming device but I have a few reasons it doesn’t get 5 stars.
Firstly, the menu is really laggy. It’s odd for a brand new device to be choppy and take a few seconds to load the Home Screen. So I wasn’t too impressed with that.
Next, it has ads. I am really dissatisfied with this. They are few and far between, but I paid in full for my fire stick and I pay my subs. I shouldn’t be getting ads for McDonald’s on my Home Screen. Even if it is just a quick picture on the top, or a quick screen when the screen saver comes up. It’s gross. I hate this ads on everything culture we’re getting pushed into. If it’s not something I can watch or potentially sub to, it shouldn’t be on my fire stick.
Thirdly, the Alexa for searching kinda sucks. I was trying to teach my kids to use it to find their shows, but for example, I’ll say search for “Daniel Tiger” and it will bring it up but only the season our subs don’t cover. It’s not even the most recent season, or the first one. So my kids can’t just select and go, I have to manually go in and switch seasons, choose episodes, etc. Same with things like TOTS the kids show on Disney plus. If you say play tots or search tots it doesn’t even bring that up. You have to say the full title “Tiny one’s delivery service” which is a pain in the butt. So we don’t even use Alexa anymore. It takes less time to type what you’re searching in. I thought Alexa was supposed to be a little smarter lol.
I wish that the home screen was a little more customizable. Like I almost wish you could just have a screen with your selected apps, instead of having to load all the little pictures of the things I’m not gonna watch.
As for the good things, I also have a lot to say! We got it initially to stream discovery plus, as our ps4 didn’t have the app to run it. It runs phenomenally! We don’t get any lag, no “potato vision,” and it rarely buffers. We have the thing hardwired to the modem, which helps. It is so nice to have one convenient remote to access all our services. It can turn the tv on and off and change the volume as well which is awesome. It has live tv (stack tv) for us which is awesome in addition to all the big services. I love the integration of Amazon photos so you can have your own photos as a screen saver, which can be conveniently uploaded from your phone! It really has all we need as a family and we’re overall satisfied!
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Compare Fire TV streaming devices
| Price | From: $49.99 | From: $49.99 | From: $59.99 | From: $61.99 | From: $169.99 |
| Ratings | (5,521) | (32,765) | (26,385) | (16,932) | (387) |
| Best for | Essential streaming under $50 | HD streaming with convenient TV controls | Cinematic 4K streaming with Dolby Vision support | High performance 4K streaming with Wi-Fi 6 support | Ultimate 4K streaming with hands-free voice control |
| Supports 1080p Full HD |
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| Supports 4K Ultra HD & Dolby Vision (HDR for ultravivid picture quality) |
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| Live View Picture-in-Picture |
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| Hands-free with Alexa |
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| Connect & control your devices (cable box, game console, webcam, etc) |
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| Wifi support & connectivity | Wi-Fi 5 | Wi-Fi 5 | Wi-Fi 5 | Wi-Fi 6 | Wi-Fi 6E + Ethernet port |
| Storage | 8 GB | 8 GB | 8 GB | 8 GB | 16 GB |
| Memory | 1 GB | 1 GB | 1.5 GB | 2 GB | 2 GB |
| Audio support | HDMI passthrough of Dolby-encoded audio | Dolby Atmos | Dolby Atmos | Dolby Atmos | Dolby Atmos |
| Processor | Quad-core CPU 1.7GHz, GPU 650MHz | Quad-core CPU 1.7GHz, GPU 650MHz | Quad-core CPU 1.7GHz, GPU 650MHz | Quad-core CPU 1.8GHz, GPU 750MHz | Octa-core 4x 2.2GHz 4x 2.0GHz, GPU 800MHz |
Simple to set up and use
1. Plug Fire TV Stick directly into your HDTV, or use the included HDMI extender.
2. Plug into wall outlet.
3. Connect to the internet and enjoy.
Technical Details
Fire TV Stick technical details
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Size |
86 x 30 x 13 mm |
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Weight |
32.0 g |
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Storage |
8 GB internal |
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Wifi |
Dual-band, dual-antenna wifi (MIMO) for faster streaming and fewer dropped connections than standard wifi. Supports 802.11a/b/g/n/ac wifi networks. |
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Bluetooth |
Bluetooth 5.0 and Bluetooth Low Energy. Pair with compatible Bluetooth speakers, headphones, video game controllers, and more. |
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Voice support |
Yes, with Alexa Voice Remote (included) or the free Fire TV app (available for download on Fire OS, Android, and iOS). |
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IR device control with included Alexa Voice Remote |
The included Alexa Voice Remote can control Fire TV Stick and certain functions (such as power and volume) on a wide range of compatible IR-enabled devices, including TVs, soundbars, and A/V receivers. Note: Certain functions may not be available on some IR-enabled devices. |
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Cloud storage |
Free cloud storage for digital content purchased from Amazon |
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Ports |
HDMI output, micro-USB for power only |
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Audio support |
Dolby Atmos, Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital+ surround sound and HDMI Audio passthrough for Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital+, Dolby Atmos. |
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Video content formats supported |
HDR 10, HDR10+, HLG, H.265, H.264, Vp9 |
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Output resolution supported |
1080p and 720p up to 60 fps |
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System requirements |
High-definition television with available HDMI input, internet connection via wifi, a power outlet. |
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TV compatibility |
High-definition TVs with HDMI capable of 1080p or 720p at 60/50 Hz. |
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Warranty and service |
1-Year Limited Warranty and service included. Optional 2-Year and 3-Year Extended Warranty available for Canadian customers sold separately. Use of Fire TV Stick is subject to the Fire TV terms found here. |
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Content availability |
Certain apps and services are subject to change or withdrawal at any time, may not be available in all areas and languages, and may require separate subscriptions. |
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Accessibility features |
VoiceView screen reader enables access to the vast majority of Fire TV features for users who are blind or visually impaired. Watch videos and TV shows with closed captioning displayed. Captions are not available for all content. You can also listen to Fire TV with compatible Bluetooth headphones. Learn more about accessibility for Fire TV. |
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Included in the box |
Fire TV Stick (3rd Gen), Alexa Voice Remote (3rd Gen), USB cable and power adapter, HDMI extender, 2 AAA batteries, Quick Start Guide. |
Alexa Voice Remote (3rd Gen) technical details
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Size |
38 x 142 x 16 mm |
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Weight |
43.4 g (without batteries) |
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Batteries |
2 AAA (included) |
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Technology |
Bluetooth |
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Compatibility |
Fire TV Stick (3rd Gen), Fire TV Stick 4K, Fire TV Stick 4K Max |
I thought I would give this a try because I also love my Alexa products, love them!I have been using roku products up to this point so that’s what I am essentially basing my judgement on.So to review this, I’ll start by saying it functions as it should essentially turns my tv into a smart tv and has all the apps I’ve looked for. That being said the set up is a little more difficult than a roku, not difficult in general but by comparison.Because it is Amazon, the home screen is essentially like logging in to your prime app but being able to navigate to Netflix and Disney+ etc from within the prime app. So that means unlike roku where your home screen can be customized for holidays and such.. unless Amazon is playing a Christmas movie ad or something you’re sort of stuck with the home screen you get. The same goes for screen savers, you download for example, a fireplace app on the roku and then set it as your screen saver easy as pie. You can download a fireplace app on the fire stick however you can only use it by launching the app, the only options for my screen saver on the fire stick are the generic Amazon photos or my personal photos from Amazon photos. Which is nice if you want to customize your tv as sort of a giant photo album display, but I’m not really into that being the only options. I like to use my tv as part of my decor so it was nice to be able to change my screensaver and home screen theme to fit the season or to even match my living room decor, so in that regard. I would say roku is the better option.One of the main reasons I purchased this was to use with my Alexa products, and with this you can ask Alexa to turn the tv off and on, control the volume, and to a degree, chose specific shows movies hands/remote free. There is only one problem with this and that is when you initially turn on the tv it takes you to your prime login and asks which account you’re watching from, I have not be able to find a way to give Alexa a command to choose a profile, which means I have to get my remote and select my profile anyways so it kid of defeats the purpose.And finally, the biggest missed opportunity.. I thought because my echo and my fire stick remote can connect that you would be able to set a command to find your remote if you misplaced it, but there isn’t. Like just say ‘Alexa find my remote’ and then it would beep or something but no luck.All in all it’s a good product just a little more work than a roku and a little less customizable, but you have the ability to pair with Alexa so I’d say it just depends on preference.
Images in this review
