Thinking About Buying An Amazon Fire Stick? Here Are 5 Things You Need To Know
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Amazon's Fire TV Stick lineup is a great way to make your old, dumb TV smart or to get an alternative to your TV's existing operating system. It's powerful, user-friendly, and gives you access to pretty much every streaming service you may want. Besides enjoying your favorite movies and TV shows, you can also use the Fire TV Stick to play games, from casual to even some AAA titles. You also get Alexa support to navigate and search your Fire TV Stick as well as to control compatible smart home devices.
However, in a market full of streaming devices, consisting of the Apple TV, Google TV, and Roku, it's a good idea to understand what you're buying to ensure you're getting the right device for your needs. More importantly, the Fire TV Stick is not a single device; it's a lineup of devices that have different capabilities. So, here are five of the most important things you need to know about Amazon's streaming dongle.
It needs an HDMI port
Like other streaming devices, one of the most basic requirements to use the Fire TV Stick is a TV with a free HDMI port. The dongle plugs into your TV's HDMI port, and that's how you get access to the Fire TV interface. If you have too many HDMI devices connected to your TV, you'll need an adapter like the Anker HDMI switch to connect the Fire TV Stick without needing to remove other devices.
If you own an old TV that doesn't have an HDMI port and only features composite RCA input, you can still get the Fire TV goodness, but you'll need a converter, like the HDMI to RCA converter. These converters are pretty affordable and typically work well. Along with a free HDMI port, you'll also require an extra power outlet to plug the Fire TV Stick's wall adapter. The USB ports on some TVs may be able to power a Fire TV Stick, but Amazon recommends using the bundled power brick.
There are three Fire TV Stick models
Buying a Fire TV Stick isn't as simple as ordering any model you come across on Amazon; as of September 2025, the company sells three distinct Fire TV Stick models to cater to different consumer needs and demands: the Fire TV Stick HD, Fire TV Stick 4K, and Fire TV Stick 4K Max. The Fire TV Stick HD, the base model in the lineup, is most suitable for full-HD or lower resolution TVs, as it's limited to 1080p video output. It's also the least powerful model, featuring 1GB of RAM, a MediaTek quad-core chip with four Cortex-A53 cores, and Wi-Fi 5 connectivity. While it lacks Dolby Vision support, it can handle HDR10 and HDR10+ content.
The Fire TV Stick 4K sits in the middle of the portfolio, and as the name suggests, it can deliver up to 4K video playback. It packs a more powerful processor than the Fire TV Stick HD, and is paired with 2GB of RAM. It also supports Dolby Vision, among other HDR formats, and has Wi-Fi 6 connectivity. Finally, the Fire TV Stick 4K Max is an upgraded version of the Fire TV Stick 4K, sharing most of its features. However, you get a slightly more powerful processor, Wi-Fi 6E connectivity, and double the onboard storage. So, unless you have a Wi-Fi 6E router and care about extra storage, the Fire TV Stick 4K is a more cost-effective option.
You need apps to watch live TV on a Fire TV Stick
If one of the main reasons why you're buying the Fire TV Stick is to ditch your TV subscription, it's important to remember that the Fire TV Stick, by itself, doesn't offer live TV broadcasts. Instead, you'll need apps to access any live TV content. You can either opt for the respective channel apps or options like Pluto TV, Sling, or YouTube TV, which provide most channels in one place. One of the Fire TV Stick's advantages is that it consolidates all your live TV content in one place, accessible through its Live tab for easier access.
The Live section features a handy guide, similar to the one found on your cable TV box, to view the TV schedule for the next seven days as well as shortcuts for apps offering live content. It's possible that you see some live TV channels in the Live tab out of the box, as the Fire TV Stick often ships with select apps pre-installed, such as the Fire TV Channels app that provides access to live broadcasts of various news, cooking, and sports channels.
There is limited storage space
One notable issue with Amazon's Fire TV Stick models is their limited storage capacity. Depending on which model you buy, you either get 8 GB or 16 GB of total storage, out of which you only have about 4.5 GB or 11.5 GB of usable space, respectively. The rest is used by the pre-installed system apps and services. If you're someone who likes to download tons of apps and games, this can be a problem, and there is really no easy solution for this, apart from deleting or offloading apps that you don't use often.
One workaround often recommended to somewhat bypass the storage issue involves using an accessory like the Rii Micro-USB Host OTG Adapter with a USB flash drive or external hard drive. However, even with this workaround, you can only use the external storage either for apps or media, not both. So, for most people, the simplest option is to pick up the Fire TV Stick 4K Max, which comes with 16GB of storage.
Don't buy it at full price
While you won't regret buying a Fire TV Stick at full price, as all three models are pretty reasonably priced, there is little reason to do so, given that these streaming sticks are available for a discount almost every other week. If you notice the Fire TV Stick you're planning to buy is selling at full price, it's best to wait for a few days to save a decent amount of money.
For example, the Fire TV Stick 4K Max — Amazon's most expensive streaming dongle – is often listed at $40, down from its full price of $60. Similarly, the Fire TV Stick HD is frequently discounted to $20 or $25 while its full price is $35. You can get even bigger discounts during major sale events, such as Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and Prime Day, but you'll have to wait longer.