Best Firestick And Alexa Review Guide For 2023-2024
This Best Firestick And Alexa Review Guide For 2023-2024 covers all of the most popular questions. Surrounding this new Fire TV Stick with Alexa Voice Remote, streaming media player device. Best Firestick And Alexa Review Guide For 2023-2024 is an unbiased review, and a “must-read” prior to buying. So let’s begin.
To start off with this new device is the replacement for the Fire TV 3 (Pendant). At this time, this is the best streaming device on the market in my opinion. Due to the outstanding features and it’s very low cost.
You’ll Discover:
You’ll discover this Fire TV Stick with Alexa Voice Remote, streaming media player includes 1.5 GB of DDR4 RAM. Also Technologies PowerVR GE8300 GPU, 8GB internal storage, and a 1.7 GHz quad-core CPU. At this time it is the most powerful Fire TV device available for purchase and it surpasses the Fire TV 3 Pendant.
HDR10,HDR10+ and Dolby Vision are all supported with the Fire TV Stick 4K. What the true audiophiles have been waiting for in a streaming device is finally here as it also is supported.
In this device Amazon is also showcasing their new WiFi antenna technology, that they created themselves. For faster streaming and fewer dropped connections than standard Wi-Fi this new device will include dual-band, and dual-antenna Wi-Fi (MIMO). Supports 802.11a/b/g/n/ac WiFi networks.There is no need to use the separately sold Ethernet adapter in my opinion as the WiFi performed extremely well in my testing.
The New Remote:
Furthermore, the new remote that comes with the Fire TV Stick 4K has been upgraded. So let’s take a look at what you can do with it. You will now be able to control your sound bar, compatible TV, and receiver with the new power, volume, using the Fire TV Stick 4K Remote and mute buttons.
Similar to the Amazon Fire TV Cube you can do everything with the voice-activated feature. Because of the new volume and power buttons I really like this new remote. Before I had to have the TV remote nearby to control the volume of the tv. But I don’t need that anymore with this new remote!
The remote is also capable of Alexa voice commands. By using the built-in microphone by way of the Voice Button. It is impossible for me to provide comparisons for every streaming device on the market there are too many to do that. I try to make comparisons where necessary throughout this review tho.
What’s In The Box?
Fire TV Stick 4K, two AAA batteries, HDMI extender, power adapter/cord, remote control, and manuals.
Setup Process: Lightning Quick
The Fire TV Stick 4K setup is very similar to other Fire TV devices. It is pretty much dummy-proof and Amazon does a great job of walking you through each step.
As far as equipment setup is concerned, it’s really just as simple as plugging the Fire Stick into your television’s HDMI port. And then connecting that to the USB power cable and power adapter.
Once I did that, my TV immediately recognized it and prompted me to choose my preferred language. The main part of the setup involved connecting to Wi-Fi and downloading the initial software update. If you have an Amazon account, you can log in to register the device (which is what I did). Or take the time to establish your account—this is a required step to move forward with the setup process.
One nice feature is the automatic updates that take place immediately when you first connect to your WiFi network or Ethernet adapter.
Streaming Sticks:
Streaming sticks offer the ultimate convenience—these USB- like devices plug into the back of your TV. Allowing you to summon all you favorite entertainment while barely taking up any space. You can even move it between televisions in your house take this power with you on vacation.
If your looking for an elevated streaming experience in a small physical stick format then the Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K is it. The device itself resembles a USB stick on steroids and is a rectangular shape. I also checked out how the plug-and- play experience was, as well as the quality of the software and design. All good.
Design: Slim & Simple
The Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K, like other streaming sticks is small. You’ll see it weighs about two ounces and it’s just under four inches long. But it’s still larger than some of the other streaming sticks like the Roku which is less than 0.5 inches long.
The Fire TV Stick 4K has some weight to it in your hand even tho it’s just a small black rectangle. Which makes it more convincing that it’s capable of doing everything it says it can do. Best part it’s small enough to put in your luggage or pocket if you want to take it with you traveling.
The Fire TV Stick doesn’t offer a completely cordless solution. So If you’re hoping to be a full-fledged cord-cutter in the literal sense it won’t happen. The USB power cable is really only cord you have to deal with.
To help you achieve a better fit for the stick if necessary and to offer increased Wi-Fi performance there is an HDMI extender cord provided. It’s easy to conceal the cords and the stick itself even if you use both. Which can be a plus if you have a limited amount of space, or you appreciate fewer visual distractions near the TV.
The Alexa remote, which has volume and mute buttons, a power button, and two kinds of directional controls (a pad and buttons) is the other big component to the Fire TV Stick.
The Pad
A nice option that can be faster and more natural to use in some apps instead of the forward, backward, and play/pause buttons further down on the remote is the pad.
The microphone icon and speaker are located right at the top,unlike other voice-assistant remotes, which is an intuitive placement for it. Even with the provided batteries loaded in the remote is lightweight. It has more of a plastic feel than the stick itself, but both offer a streamlined and modern look and feel.
The back cover opening is kind of concealed. You won’t find any arrow or grip point indicating where it opens. Look for a groove for your thumbs where you need to press down in order to slide the cover off. This is a simple detail, but incorporating it creates a sleeker and smoother-looking remote.
Dive Right Into The System In Less Than 10 Minutes
In less than 10 minutes I was able to dive right into the system. During the setup process I found a few noteworthy security-related items. The system will ask you about saving your Wi-Fi password in your Amazon account for example. Later on you can always change this in the settings portion of the Fire TV interface if you want.
A very nice feature is the parental control preference. You can set it so it requires a PIN to be entered when viewing content. If you have kids. Once I made my choices about these items, the remote paired. This is actually the last step before I was up and running. It only took me less than 10 minutes from the initial plug-in.
Streaming Performance:
I found it to be speedy and sharp (especially Prime content). The Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K boasts 4K and HDR streaming capability. If you’re new to both concepts, 4K TVs fall into the Ultra HD category of televisions that have screen resolutions up to 2160p. That’s quite an increase from the standard HD display that features only 1080p.
So it may be easy to confuse the two as HDR is another term you’ll hear bounced around along with 4K. HDR stands for “high dynamic range.” It relates less to a TV’s screen resolution. And has everything to do with brightness, enhancing the color, and color contrast of content on your screen. A lot of HDR content also happens to be 4K. I tested on an HDTV and not on a 4K-capable television. I have to tell you I was very impressed by the crisp picture quality. Also with the ultra-responsiveness when playing, selecting new content to view and stopping.
I felt like I was able to take advantage of the stick’s picture quality strengths and speed. Even without a 4K TV. And since this device does work on older TVs, it’s also an option for upgrading in the future to a 4K television, if you feel compelled to.
Crisp Picture Quality & Responsiveness:
I was very impressed by the responsiveness when stopping, selecting content and playing. This is an Android TV, but at its core, it’s an Amazon product, which means Prime content is prominently featured.
And it’s where I went first.
The picture quality was very sharp and all the content I chose loaded instantaneously. I did not find any lag with the remote. Or even when moving through menus. I did notice tho that the Amazon Prime content did appear ever-so-slightly sharper than Hulu or Netflix content. But all of it was good—and lightning fast.
The swift performance likely has a lot to do with the quad-core processor, combined with 1.5GB of RAM and 8GB of internal storage. Streaming boxes, because they’re usually physically bigger, often pack in a lot more memory power and storage than stick formats.
Despite its smaller size the Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K, packs a punch when it comes to memory and internal storage. These are important for maintaining fast performance, and for storing all the apps you download. Whether that’s playing certain media, opening and closing apps, deleting items, etc. The Fire TV Stick also holds an 802.11ac wireless chip, which is the Wi-Fi standard that offers the fastest speeds.
Software:
I found that this software performs mostly without a hitch. In the Amazon Fire TV interface, it’s easy enough to search for content. Unless you’re already used to using other Amazon devices or the Amazon Prime app. there may be a bit of a learning curve for you.
The apps you’ve downloaded and featured content (usually Amazon Prime titles), is what the home screen features a mix of and what the system recommends. You’ll notice other recommendations based on your viewing habits but I found lot of the content is from Prime.
After I downloaded Netflix and viewed some movies there, I started to see Netflix recommendations based on my view history. Other content is organized by media type or genre. When you come to “Your Video” page you’ll see a mix of movie and TV content. Movies on one page and TV shows on another. Also a catchall Apps page you can sort through by category.
Let’s just say, there’s a lot of room for repetition and overlap. Even if you’re looking at these different screens. At times, I felt just bombarded with content that was not organized at all. The repetition don’t necessarily make it difficult to search for new content, which you can do using voice commands or the search function.
After finding what you want to add, all you do is click on it and select the download action. You’ll see the progress and completion of the download which, during my testing, happened in a blink of an eye.
Ideal for Amazon Prime subscribers and for anyone who wants a lot of content streaming options. And of course, if you’d rather forgo typing or sifting through all the search menus, asking Alexa is a really easy way to find what you want.
Pros:
- Fast performance
- Great streaming quality
- Few cords involved
- 4K and HDR
Cons:
- No YouTube app available
- User interface can feel cluttered
- Though there may be a few compromises, it’s possible to meet all your streaming desires with the Amazon Fire
- TV Stick—even without a 4K TV.
Conclusion:
An excellent streaming stick with universal appeal. The Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K is ideal for Amazon Prime subscribers and for anyone who wants a lot of content streaming options—whether in 4K or just regular HD. Ultimately, it helps to be an Amazon or Alexa user to really get the most out of it. But for the price, quality, and speed, this is a good buy for anyone. I hope I was able to help you in this Best Firestick And Alexa Review Guide For 2023-2024.
