Despite Amazon Prime Day coming in just a few days, we’ve already spotted deep discounts on three of Amazon’s Fire TV sticks – including the model I’d recommend for most viewers: the Fire TV Stick 4K Max. It’s the Fire TV flagship, and with 42% off right now it’s just $34.99 (down from $59.99). If you want the best, most future-proof Fire TV stick that’s the one I’d buy.
If you’re buying for an older TV or you just don’t need the extra power of the Max model, the Fire TV Stick 4K and Fire TV Stick HD are even cheaper. The Fire TV Stick 4K is currently 50% off at. just $24.99 (was $49.99). And the Fire TV Stick HD is down 49% to just $17.99 (from $34.99).
• See all of today’s best Amazon deals
These are really good prices for really good streaming sticks, so if you’ve got an older stick to upgrade or want to add streaming smarts to pretty much any TV then all three of these Fire TV Sticks are excellent options.
Early Prime Day deal: Amazon Fire TV Sticks
Which Fire TV Stick is best for you?
The three Fire TV Sticks on offer are very similar and all feature Amazon’s friendly software with voice control and support for all the key streaming apps. The main differences are in picture quality and in performance.
The Fire TV Stick HD is the baby of the bunch, delivering 1080p HD resolution; the other two models are 4K. It has HDR, but doesn’t support all the formats of its more expensive siblings, which have Dolby Vision. It also doesn’t have Dolby Atmos audio – although it can pass Atmos-encoded audio to hardware that can decode it, such as compatible soundbars.
And if you want to play Xbox games via Game Pass, this isn’t the Fire TV Stick for you: it supports Amazon Luna gaming but not Xbox Game Pass.
The 4K and 4K Max are essentially the same device in almost every respect. Both stream 4K UHD with HDR, Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos (where appropriate; what you get depends on the app you use and what you’re streaming), both have Game Pass as well as Luna, both have Live View picture-in-picture, and both have better Wi-Fi than the Fire TV Stick HD. The HD model has Wi-Fi 5 but the 4K model has Wi-Fi 6 and the 4K Max has Wi-Fi 6E.
The Max has a more powerful processor though, and should be slightly slicked to use.
I’ve already got a streaming box on my TV, but if I were buying for the first time or upgrading an aging Stick, I’d definitely go for the Max here. It’s only 10 bucks more than the 4K, has more storage and has better Wi-Fi. It also has the Fire TV ambient experience. Collectively I think that’s worth the ten dollars more, especially as these devices will serve you well for years.
