Amazon’s Fire TV lineup has expanded significantly over the years. After first starting out with the Fire TV Stick, Amazon has slowly added a variety of other streamers to its stable along with deep integration of its Fire OS into various third-party TVs and soundbars. Of course, one of Amazon’s biggest downfalls in this product category is that smart functionality has become deeply entrenched into just about every new TV on the market. And Amazon, of course, faces tough competition from Apple, Google, and various other streaming platforms. So if you’re considering buying into Amazon’s Fire OS lineup, it can be difficult to know which model is right for your needs. Head below for our Fire TV buying guide, which walks through the benefits and negatives of each model.
The budget-friendly champ: Fire TV Stick
Amazon’s Fire TV Stick delivers solid value with a regular price of $40. It often drops to around $25 when on sale a handful of times throughout the year, including Prime Day and Black Friday. This model offers 1080p streaming of all the most popular streaming services, including Amazon Video, Netflix, Hulu, and more.
A new remote that’s featured on Amazon’s streamer delivers access to Alexa and volume control, along with playback and various other features. You can learn more in our coverage here.
Need 4K? Consider upgrading to Amazon’s streaming stick of the same name. The Fire TV Stick 4K delivers many of the same features but adds support for ultra HD content plus Dolby Vision, HDR, and HDR10+. It sells for $50 typically before dropping below $40 (or lower) throughout the year.
Fire TV Cube: Amazon’s Ultimate Solution
Jumping up to the Cube delivers Amazon’s “fastest, most powerful Fire TV” comes with a bevy of features designed to really take your streaming setup to the next level. Most notably is the introduction of IR control, which can be used to power on and off your home theater system, manage volume, and various other typical TV-watching tasks.
Fire TV Cube also offers support for all of the major streaming services along with 4K and HDR support. A built-in speaker brings hands-free Alexa to the mix, making it a suitable cornerstone of your smart home experience. It retails for $120 regularly but will drop below $100 periodically.
Fire TV integration is also an option
Toshiba and Insignia have both partnered with Amazon to bake its Fire TV OS into a line of 1080p and 4K TVs. You’re essentially skipping the add-on streaming box here and bringing the functionality directly into the menu system. This is a particularly appealing option if you’re looking for a secondary TV in a bedroom or den, and don’t need the latest specs to enjoy quick-moving action films or sports.
These standalone TV sets are also largely affordable, with many prices around $200.
You can view Amazon’s entire line of streaming media players right here as well as its partnership TVs from various brands.
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