Amazon's Fire TV Stick 4K: A Great, Inexpensive Streaming Solution

Streaming television shows and movies on services such as Netflix, Prime Video, or HBO Max has become one of the most popular ways to consume media. My family uses all of these, including a couple more, way more than we use cable television. At this point, the only things we watch on cable are the news and Cubs games.

Having all these different services, while they offer a lot of content, can be inconvenient at times when trying to use them on the television. Even though a lot of smart TVs have apps for the services available right on the television, such as LG, not all of them do.

I have a Vizio TV, and while it does have the apps for the streaming services I use, it is painfully slow to load them up. Because of this, I wanted a streaming device that is quicker and more convenient to use than the apps on the TV.

I recently bought Amazon's Fire TV Stick 4K, and have been nothing but pleased. In this blog, I am going to discuss its apps and features, its price, and its compatibility with other Echo devices.

Tons of Features, Tiny Device

While the Amazon Fire TV Sticks are super small, usually only a couple of inches long, they have a ton of power.

You can get virtually any app you want on the Fire TV Sticks, including older streaming services such as Netflix and newer services including Peacock TV. There are also some games available to download, including the iconic "Pac-Man" and "Crossy Road." While you cannot get very powerful games on the TV Sticks, it is definitely a cool feature.

My favorite app to use, aside from the streaming services, is the YouTube app. I easily logged into my account after downloading the app, and it is very nice to have my recommendations and playlists accessible on the TV.

The Fire TV Stick 4K is also snappy. It is very responsive to inputs on the remote, and I never feel like it is lagging behind or slow. Furthermore, Amazon recently unveiled the Fire TV Stick 4K Max, which is even faster than the regular 4K Fire Stick.

One of my favorite features of the Fire Sticks, however, is the built-in Alexa on the remote. It has been super convenient to turn on my TV, hold down the Alexa button on the remote, and tell it exactly where to take me. I use this feature almost every time I use the TV, and I could not be more pleased.

Here is the box that my Fire TV Stick 4K came in. On the box, you can see the design of the remote with the Alexa button (the microphone) on the top. Photo taken by Ethan Roberts.

A Justifiable Price

One of the most competitive qualities of the Fire TV Sticks is the price. The regular price of the Fire TV Stick 4K is $50, but I constantly see it on sale for $35. Compared with the 4K Apple TV, which is $179, this is a great deal.

Of course, you will not get the perks that come with the Apple ecosystem if you get the Fire Stick, but you can do the most important thing on both devices - stream content.

I personally got my Fire Stick for $35, and I fully believe this is a great deal. For all the convenience of Amazon Alexa, the responsive controls, and ease of use, it was a $35 well spent.

One tip I have, however, is to always wait for a sale if there is not one going on. I have honestly seen it sell for $35 more often than its actual price of $50, so it is worth it to wait a little while for the lower price tag.

Home Theater System: Cool Concept, but Filled with Flaws

The feature I was most excited for was the ability to link Echo devices to the Fire Stick and create a surround sound system in my room. I was slightly disappointed to learn, however, that not all Echo devices are compatible, including my Echo Show 5.

I do have a fourth generation Echo, which is compatible, so I decided to still test that out. It was super easy to set up - all I had to do was create a group in the Amazon Alexa app on my phone. The next time I turned on the Fire Stick, it was ready to be used.

Don't get me wrong - having the sound come out of my Echo instead of the TV speakers was great, but only when it worked. I would constantly get a notification in the bottom right of the screen saying there were connection issues, despite having very fast WiFi.

It got to the point where the connection would drop so much that I just disconnected it. It is better to have worse sound than no sound at all. This is such a cool concept, but I just wish it worked better.

Overall Opinion

Despite some slight annoyances, I absolutely love my Fire TV Stick 4K. For only $35, my entertainment and streaming setup is even more convenient and easy to use.

If you are looking to get a similar device, I highly recommend the newer Fire Sticks. Amazon continuously makes such quality products, and I am excited to see what's next.

This is what the home screen looks like. All of my apps, including Netflix and Prime Video, are easily accessible. Photo taken by Ethan Roberts.