- VERDICT
If you’re already invested in the Alexa and Echo ecosystem (and even if you’re not), the Fire Stick TV 4K provides a fast and easy way to make your TV even smarter and connect you with amazing content that you wouldn’t normally be able to access and enjoy it in high quality.
The Amazon Fire Stick TV 4K has landed in Australia and gives users the ability to make their TV even smarter and access apps and streaming services that they usually couldn’t reach.
With the new Amazon Fire Stick 4K you also get 4K quality if you own or plan to buy a 4K TV. It’s priced at $99 which is $20 more than the full HD version so it’s worth extra spend because of the huge amount of 4K content you can stream.
The Fire Stick TV 4K includes the Alexa Voice Remote – of course you can talk to it – as well as a dongle that plugs into your TV’s HDMI port.
Users can also use the device like a smart speaker to connect to and control smart devices including lights and switches through Alexa.
The dongle is long and thin and also comes with a short HDMI extension cable to make it easier to connect to your TV.
You also have to connect the dongle to power with a USB cable and the included power adaptor.
The remote control is also small and light with a button layout that’s easy to navigate.
There are also shortcut keys to Netflix, Prime Video, Disney+ and Amazon Music.
You can even control your TV’s volume through the remote and also power it on and off.
Voice control is also available through the remote to find content and also control it.
Set up is really simple and starts with connecting your dongle and linking to your wi-fi network all via the included remote.
If you have an existing account or want to sign up to Amazon, you can actually do that on your browser on your smartphone before linking the Fire Stick TV 4K to your account using a code that’s displayed on the screen during the set-up process.
This takes just a few minutes but what will take a little longer is the software and firmware update.
Once that’s done the next step is to choose the app you’d like to add to the pre-loaded apps including Prime Video.
Not only do you get access to popular streaming services like Netflix, Stan, Disney+ and Apple TV, you can also watch catch up TV apps including 9Now, 7Plus, Tenplay, ABC iView, SBS On Demand.
If you’re a sports fan you can also download and install Optus Sport, Major League Baseball, Red Bull TV and WWE.
There are also news apps like Bloomberg, Aljazeera, Fox News Channel, CBS News and TED.
What you don’t get are access any of Foxtel’s apps including Foxtel Now, Binge and Kayo Sports – so if these are important to you ‘ll need to go down the Chromecast path.
Chromecast also offers something the Amazon Fire Stick TV 4K doesn’t – and that’s casting which is sharing content from your mobile device to your TV.
Users can have up to six profiles with the Fire Stick TV 4K.
The home page has shortcuts to all of your installed apps and services.
When you scroll over each service with the remote, it shows you the highlights and most popular so you can jump right in and start watching.
The Fire Stick TV 4K serves up impressive picture quality and also delivers the added benefits that come with 4K like HDR (high dynamic range) to make your viewing experience even better.
And it’s not just about watching TV. If you’ve already invested in the Amazon Alexa ecosystem you can use the Fire Stick TV 4K like a smart speaker to access and control your smart devices like lights, smart plugs and security cameras.
The Fire Stick TV 4K is priced at $99 and is available now.
VERDICT
If you’re already invested in the Alexa and Echo ecosystem (and even if you’re not), the Fire Stick TV 4K provides a fast and easy way to make your TV even smarter and connect you with amazing content that you wouldn’t normally be able to access and enjoy it in high quality.
