If you are looking to buy an amazon fire TV device, the decision could be a bit overwhelming with five streaming devices on the market. We have the Fire TV Cube, which combines streaming TV with an Amazon Echo. We have four flavors of the Amazon Fire TV Stick: The Fire TV Stick 4K, The Fire TV Stick 4K, the Fire TV Stick, and The Fire TV Stick Lite. This article will explain the significant differences between the Amazon Fire TV Cube and various Amazon Fire TV Sticks and help you decide which one is right for you.
Four Types of Fire TV Sticks
Currently, the following Fire Sticks are available from Amazon:
- Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Max: $54.99
- Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K: $49.99
- Amazon Fire TV Stick: $39.99
- Amazon Fire TV Stick Lite: $29.99
Before we get into the Fire TV Cube, let’s look at the difference between Amazon Fire TV Stick, Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K, and Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Max. All Four Fire TV Sticks have the following features:
- Voice Support with Alexa Voice Remote (included)
- Dual-band, dual-antenna 802.11a/b/g/n/ac MIMO Wi-Fi
- Dolby Audio, 5.1 surround sound, 2ch stereo, and HDMI audio pass-through up to 7.1
- Support for Dolby Atmos Audio
- The apps and available content are the same.
- Supports HDR 10, HDR10+
- CPU 1.7GHz, GPU 650MHz
- At least 1 GB of Memory
- 8 GB of storage for apps
The Amazon Fire TV Stick costs $39.99 on Amazon. However, the Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K cost $10 more ($49.99) and adds the following features:
- Supports Up to 4K video
- Adds support for Dolby Vision
- Includes 1.5 GB of memory instead of 1 GB
For just $5 more at $54.99, the Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Max adds the following
- Support for Wifi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax)
- Live picture in picture to view things like your front door smart camera without interrupting what you are watching.
- Memory Upgraded to 2 GB
- CPU Upgraded to CPU 1.8GHz, GPU 750MHz
Which Fire TV Stick is Best for You
If you are happy streaming movies and TV in 1080p, go with the Amazon Fire TV Stick. However, if you need the picture quality of 4K in HDR, choose the Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K. If you have a router capable of Wi-Fi 6 and have a smart camera at the front door, then you may want to consider purchasing the Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Max.
Now, if you are okay with the 1080p video, you can save another $10 by going with the Amazon Fire TV Stick Lite. The only two differences between the Fire TV Stick and Fire TV Stick Lite Are:
- The remote control that comes with the Fire TV Stick has TV buttons allowing you to control the power and volume on your TV while the Fire TV Stick Lite does not.
- The Amazon Fire TV Stick supports Dolby Atmos, Dolby Digital, and Dolby Digital+ surround sound while the Lite version only supports those features via HDMI audio passthrough.
Amazon Fire TV Cube
Price: $119.99
If you are merely looking for a streaming device, I recommend going with the Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K. However, if you are looking for a streaming device that doubles as an Amazon Alexa device with a built-in speaker, you may want to opt for the Amazon Fire TV Cube.
The Amazon Fire TV Cube was released before the Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Max, so the Amazon Fire TV Cube does lack Wi-Fi 6. Instead, The Cube comes with Dual-band, dual-antenna 802.11a/b/g/n/ac MIMO Wi-Fi. However, the cube does has the following features in common with the Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Max:
- Voice Support with Alexa Voice Remote (included)
- Dolby Atmos Audio, 5.1 surround sound, 2ch stereo, and HDMI audio pass-through up to 7.1
- Supports Up to 4K video and HDR 10, HDR 10+, and Dolby Vision at 60 fps
- Live picture-in-picture for things like checking you front door camera
In addition, the Amazon Fire TV Cube provides:
- Better Menu response times due to better processor
- Far-Field Voice Controller fire TV and other smart devices
- Built-in Speaker
- The Power of Amazon Alexa, even with the TV off
- Support for Ethernet with the included Fire TV Ethernet Dongle
- 16 GB of storage for apps
- a Hexa-core CPU 2.2GHz + 1.9GHz with a GPU at 800MHz
In addition to it being a great streaming device, it acts as a hub for your smart home. You’re getting all the functionality of an Amazon Echo in your Fire TV.
Fire TV Stick or Cube
Those looking to experiment with cord-cutting should look to grab one of the Fire TV Sticks. The low price makes it an easy investment. Most people have more than one TV, so you can always pick up another one for other TVs. If you can sacrifice watching video in 4K, you can save $10 and go with the Fire TV Stick. If you can go a step further and not have a remote that powers on your TV and controls the volume, you can save $10 with the Fire TV Stick Lite.
However, if you are looking for a device that can stream and hub your smart home, you may want to go with the Amazon Fire TV Cube. I’ve done reviews of all these devices for those looking for a deeper dive on a particular Fire TV streaming device:
- Review of Fire TV Cube
- Review of Fire TV Stick 4K Max
- Review of Fire TV Stick 4K
- Review of the Fire TV Stick and Fire TV Stick Lite
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