If you’ve bought a TV in the past five years, you know that pretty much all new TVs come with some form of smart platform; whether it’s Roku or Android TV, there are many options out there. Of course, that doesn’t mean that you’ll necessarily like that platform it’s on, and if you’re already in the Amazon ecosystem, there’s a relatively easy way to get back into it, and that’s the Fire TV sticks from Amazon. There are quite a few options, but the 4k and 4k Max are the cheapest, and even better, they both have great deals for Labor Day, so if you want to grab one, now is the perfect time.
Fire TV Stick 4K — $25, was $50
The cheapest option when it comes to Fire TV is the Fire TV Stick 4k, and it’s pretty great. Besides being able to work with 4k TVs, Amazon has somehow managed to support HDR 10+, which is not something you’ll usually find on such budget-friendly streaming sticks. Even better, the remote has a built-in microphone, so you can control the whole TV experience using voice; plus, it gives you access to Alexa, which is a huge plus in and of itself. That said, the stick is a little bit clunky to install, and if the HDMI ports on your TV are close together, you might have to give one up just to fit the Fire TV Stick. Even so, that’s not really a dealbreaker, especially since it comes with an HDMI extender, although the dangling aspect might be a bit off-putting for some.
Fire TV Stick 4K Max — $27, was $55
Truthfully, there’s not a lot of difference between the Stick 4K and the Stick 4K Max, although for just an extra couple of dollars, it might be worth the upgrade. The primary difference is that the 4K Max is a modern upgrade to the previous model, with inclusions of features like Wi-Fi 6 rather than the Wi-Fi 5 that the Stick 4K uses. It also comes with an upgraded and nicer remote for you to use, a new quad-core processor, which should provide a smoother overall experience, and an extra half a gig of RAM, which you likely won’t consciously feel but is a nice upgrade. If you have the option, it’s absolutely better to go for the Stick 4k Max, although if you’re thinking of some other options, such as the 1080p Fire Stick TV lite, then be sure to check out our Fire TV Stick vs. Fire TV Stick 4K Max vs. Fire TV Cube breakdown for more information.
Editors’ Recommendations
Services Marketplace – Listings, Bookings & Reviews