Amazon Fire TV Stick Review

The latest version of the Amazon Fire TV Stick is more powerful, easier to use and delivers an almost endless variety of content to watch. And with its small and sleek size, you can easily move it between multiple TVs and even carry it with you when you travel.

If you want to expand the range of content and apps beyond what your smart TV currently offers, the Amazon Fire TV stick is a great choice. Read on for our full review, including its best features and limitations.

Amazon Fire TV Stick Review

What Are You Buying?

1. 3rd Gen Amazon Fire TV Stick

Amazon says the newest version of the Fire TV stick is 50% more powerful than the previous model. This means faster streaming of full HD content and easier navigation between apps. You’ll definitely feel this when using the Fire TV stick. The interface feels snappier and there’s rarely any lag.

2. Alexa Voice Remote

The other major upgrade to the Amazon Fire TV stick is the remote control. It comes with additional buttons to make it easier to find the content you want to enjoy. This includes a TV Guide button that lists live content from various streaming channels and quick-access buttons for Prime Video, Netflix, Disney+ and Amazon Music.

Similar to the previous Fire Stick remote, the new remote also comes with Alexa voice control. You can use your voice to launch an app or search for content to watch.

3. Huge Library of Content to Choose From

You are probably wondering why you need to get an Amazon Fire Stick if you already have a smart TV. Afterall, you can already stream and access content from plenty of apps.

But most smart TVs cannot much the depth and range of content that the Fire TV stick offers. The Fire Stick aggregates a stunning variety of free and paid content, and makes it super easy to access it all from an easy to use interface.

The Fire TV stick offers three main types of content: TV, music and games.

You can watch TV from just about any service or app you can think of including Disney+, Prime Video, ITVX, My5, Channel 4, YouTube, Tubi, PlutoTV and more. Whether you want to watch movies, TV shows or live news and sports, it’s all there on the Fire TV stick.

Prime members also get access to additional content from BritBox, Paramount+, LIONSGATE+ and other channels without having to download any extra apps.

For music, you can access Spotify, Amazon Music and Apple Music depending on which subscription you have.

As for games, there are some available via Amazon Luna or the app store, but they are mostly lightweight games. Considering the Fire Stick only has 1GB of RAM and 8GB of storage space, it’s not the best place to play immersive video games.

4. Intuitive Interface

With this much content, it’s actually impressive how easy and intuitive the Amazon Fire Stick interface is to use.

The main menu on the homescreen has all your favourite apps, and you can even get a sneak peek into each app as you scroll over it. There’s also a dedicated tab to search for content. Here you can search TV shows, films and narrow down your search based on genres like action and dramas.

And by the way, you can search across all the apps so you can easily find what content different apps offer. This saves you the hassle of jumping from app to app as you hunt down a show or movie to watch.

There’s also a tab for live TV or you can just press the TV guide button on the remote (or ask Alexa to display the TV guide).

5. Support for Dolby Atmos Surround Sound

Enjoy cinematic surround sound when watching content on the Fire Stick thanks to Dolby Atmos. This only works with compatible sound bars and home audio systems. You’ll also need to check whether the content you are watching also supports Dolby Atmos.

6. Support for HD & HDR Videos

On the video side, the Fire TV Stick supports full HD (720p and 1080p, 60 fps) videos up to HDR 10+. Make sure your TV itself supports these standards and that you can access HDR content on whichever app you are using.

7. Live Camera Feeds

You can use the Fire TV stick to access some of Alexa skills including weather and streaming music. Our favourite is the ability to view live feeds from your cameras (security cameras, baby monitor etc.) right on your TV.

How Easy Is It to Set Up and Use?

The Amazon Fire TV Stick is ridiculously easy to set up. It’s a small dongle that you plug into the HDMI port at the back of your TV. You then connect the USB power cable to the dongle and a wall adapter plugged into a socket.

Now all you need to do is turn on the TV and follow the setup instructions which include connecting to your home WiFi and signing in to your Amazon account.

We like how compact the Fire stick is. It disappears neatly behind the TV so you don’t have yet another gizmo or box cluttering up your TV area.

Using the Fire Stick is easy. The updated remote control is intuitive to use, especially with the voice commands. The home screen also offers quick and easy access to apps and content.

What Accessories are Included?

The Fire TV doesn’t come with any extra accessories. Optional accessories you can get include a HDMI adapter if the HDMI port on your TV is positioned in such a way that you cannot plug in the Fire Stick. You can also get a longer USB power cable if the power outlet is too far from the dongle.

Pros

• Huge library of content.
• Easy to use homescreen. We especially love the search function.
• Easy to use remote control that includes Alexa voice commands.
• Full HD streaming.
• Support for HDR and Dolby Atmos.

Cons

• No support for 4K content.
• Power cable may be too short for some users — prepare to buy a longer cable.
• Additional preset buttons for other apps like YouTube would be great.

Anything Else You Should Know?

If you regularly watch 4K content on your smart TV and would like to keep doing so, you’ll need to get the Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K. It supports 4K content as well as Dolby Vision, HDR and Dolby Atmos.

It is only slightly more expensive than the regular Fire TV Stick. So if you have a 4K TV, there is no reason to get the HD Fire Stick. Get the 4K version instead.

And if you want better and faster 4K streaming, there’s the more powerful Fire TV Stick 4K Max.

Conclusion

The Amazon Fire TV Stick combines an extensive and versatile library of content with an easy to use interface that puts most smart TVs to shame. It’s a great addition to your entertainment centre if you want easy and quick access to a wider range of TV shows, movies, music and games.

It’s also useful if you have an older non-smart TV. The Fire Stick will essentially turn it into a smart TV without you having to buy a new TV.

Where To Buy?

• Amazon UK: > CLICK TO CHECK TODAY’S PRICE