Amazon is making another major change to its Fire TV Stick lineup, just months after launching its new Fire TV Stick HD.
The company announced a new Fire TV Stick 4K launching today, an entry-level 4K streaming stick that will replace not only the Fire TV Stick 4K Select in its lineup but also the Fire TV Stick 4K Plus.
The new Fire TV Stick 4K shares some design similarities with the refreshed Fire TV Stick HD that was released back in April, including a slimmer profile and USB-C. Notably, it can also be powered entirely by your TV’s USB port, so you don’t need a separate wall plug.
It also comes with a redesigned Fire TV remote, featuring a prominent orange Home button and a customizable Star button you can set to launch any app.
But based on its features, the new Fire TV Stick 4K seems more like a refresh of the 4K Select than of the 4K Plus. It has Wi-Fi 6, 8GB of storage, a quad-core 1.7 GHz processor and supports HDR10 and HDR10+. Unlike the 4K Plus it’s replacing, it doesn’t support Dolby Vision or Dolby Atmos.
Amazon has priced its new Fire TV Stick 4K at $60, $10 more than the 4K Select and $10 less than the 4K Plus. However, as a special launch promotion, it’s available at 50 percent off for $30.
Of course, one of the biggest questions about the new Fire TV Stick 4K is which operating system it uses, and if you’ve been following Fire TV news lately, you probably won’t be surprised by the answer.
- Brand
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Amazon
- What’s Included
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Fire TV Stick 4K, USB power cable
- Wi-Fi
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Wi-Fi 6
- Supported video
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4K
The new Fire TV Stick 4K runs Vega OS
Amazon is keeping the Fire TV Stick 4K Max available
Back in April, after launching its refreshed Fire TV Stick HD, Amazon announced that all future Fire TV Sticks would run Vega OS, its new Linux-based operating system. So, unsurprisingly, the new Fire TV Stick 4K runs Vega OS, not Fire OS.
This means that if you want to sideload Android apps or use custom launchers, you can’t, since Vega OS is Linux-based.
Amazon has highlighted several reasons for switching to Vega OS on its Fire TV Sticks, including greater efficiency and improved performance, as well as “enhanced security” due to the lack of sideloading. Vega OS’s power efficiency also allows the new 4K stick to run off a TV’s USB port, something no Android Fire Stick can do.
With the launch of the Fire TV Stick 4K, Amazon is simplifying its Fire TV Stick lineup to just three models again: the Fire TV Stick HD, 4K, and 4K Max. Although the new Fire TV Stick 4K replaces the 4K Select and 4K Plus, Amazon has said both older models will remain available while supplies last.
The Fire TV Stick 4K Max (2nd Gen) is now the oldest in the lineup, released in 2023, and the only Fire TV Stick that still runs Android-based Fire OS.
Pocket-lint asked Amazon whether it also plans to refresh the Fire TV Stick 4K Max soon, but the company declined to comment on future plans.
All in all, if you don’t care about Vega OS or Dolby Vision and Atmos and are just looking for a basic 4K streaming stick, the new Fire TV Stick 4K is just that, and its new sleek design and the fact that it can be powered just by a TV’s USB port are welcome changes. But if you prefer Fire OS, or want to stream in Dolby Vision and Atmos, the Fire TV Stick 4K Max remains the best option.
The new Fire TV Stick 4K is now available at a temporary discount, down from $60 to $30.
