The Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K has been released today. Before digging into the performance of the new streaming device, here’s a comparison of how it physically stacks up against previous Fire TV Sticks as well as a look at what comes with the Fire TV Stick 4K. Of course, one of the items included is the new Alexa Voice Remote, which now includes power and volume buttons for the first time, so here’s a comparison of the new and old remotes as well.
Included with the Fire TV Stick 4K is the new Alexa Voice Remote, an HDMI extender, a USB power adapter, a USB-A to micro USB cable for power, a pair of AAA batteries for the remote, and documentation. The micro USB cable is just shy of 5 ft long.
1st-Gen Fire TV Stick (top), 2nd-Gen Fire TV Stick (middle), Fire TV Stick 4K (bottom)
Right off the bat, you can see that the new Fire TV Stick 4K is longer than both the 1st and 2nd generation Fire TV Sticks. The body of each model is essentially been as long as the body + HDMI plug of each previous model. While the length of the Fire TV Stick 4K is getting close to the maximum size device that I’d like to have hanging on a horizontal HDMI port, its size is not nearly as concerning as the Fire TV 3 (pendant) or something like a compute stick. At 53.6 grams, the Fire TV Stick 4K is noticeably heavier than the 32 gram 2nd-gen Fire TV Stick, so there may be, for the first time, metal heat sinks inside.
Fire TV Stick 4K (top), 2nd-Gen Fire TV Stick (middle), 1st-Gen Fire TV Stick (bottom)
The width of the Fire TV Stick 4K is thankfully the same as the 2nd-Gen Fire TV Stick, so it won’t be any harder to fit it next to adjacent HDMI ports, but if that is a concern, then the included HDMI extender should solve the issue. The new Fire TV Stick 4K is ever so slightly thicker than the older Sticks, but not enough to really matter in any way.
Even though the Fire TV Stick 4K is part of the “Stick” family of devices, it has replaced the 3rd-gen Fire TV (pendant) in Amazon’s lineup. At 53.6 grams, the Fire TV Stick 4K weights much less than the Fire TV 3’s 87.1 gram weight. While the Fire TV 3’s weight was within the allowable HDMI port specification, many people were still concerned with it dangling off of their TVs and resorted to taping it to their TV or using a mount.
Fire TV Stick 4K HDMI Extender (top), Fire TV Stick HDMI Extender (bottom)
The HDMI extender that is included with the Fire TV Stick 4K seems more premium than the on that came with previous Fire TV Sticks. The new one is a little bit slimmer, which should help it fit into tighter spaces. The center cable connecting the male and female ends is notably thicker and less flexible on the new extender. This causes the Fire TV Stick 4K to hang more horizontally when connected to a side HDMI port, instead of just flopping down into a vertical position. This might help keep the Fire TV Stick 4K further away from other TV components and improve WiFi signal strength.
The Fire TV Stick 4K comes with the same 5 Watt / 1 Amp that previous Fire TV Sticks and other Amazon devices use. This should mean that you can power it off of the USB port on some TVs, although you really should use the included power adapter instead. Amazon has printed “IMPORTANT – For best performance, use the included power adapter and USB cable” on the plastic wrapper of the Fire TV Stick 4K. While it may seem like the Fire TV Stick 4K is initially working fine while powered from the USB port of a TV, certain power-hungry operations may fail or cause issues.
Left to Right Remotes: Fire TV Stick 4K/Fire TV Cube (updated bundle), Fire TV Cube (original bundle)/3rd-gen Fire TV/2nd-gen Fire TV/2nd-gen Fire TV Stick, 1st-gen Fire TV, 1st-gen Fire TV Stick
The new Alexa Voice Remote that ships with the Fire TV Stick 4K and the new Fire TV Cube bundle will feel right at home for anyone with one of the more recent Fire TV models. That’s because the microphone button, directional circle, and first row of buttons (back/home/menu) are in nearly the exact same position as the previous Alexa Voice Remote. This is great because you won’t have to rewrite your muscle memory if you’re coming from the old remote, which is surprisingly annoying to do, as anyone with a Fire TV Edition television remote will tell you. The playback control buttons (RWD/Play/FF) have been shifted up to make room for the new vertical volume and mute buttons. With your finger on the directional circle, which is where mine usually rests, the new power button in the top left is easy to reach.
The most significant physical exterior difference between the new and old Alexa Voice Remote is that the bottom of the remote now angles inward instead of outward. My guess is that this was done so that the battery door now slides downward instead of upward. The battery compartment on the new remote is much easier to open. Many people had trouble getting to the batteries of the old remote. So much so that Amazon starting printing instructions on the remote’s plastic wrapper for where to hold and push the old remote. The front of the new remote now has a shiny black cover for the IR emitters to function, since the new remote can control your home theater equipment.
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Great write up! I knew the remote was a bit smaller, and the stick much heavier, but I had not realized how much the stick has grown in size over the years.
For simplicity sake, I also question the need for a mute button. 99% of the time, I would rather just pause anyway.
Live TV streams that you can’t pause.
Good point! Also muting while browsing the Netflix app is a must, now that they constantly play preview videos everytime you pause the cursor for a split second.
Everybody getting there’s, some early, and mine is delayed by good ole UPS 2nd Day Air.
Last two deliveries from UPS delayed. I prefer USPS.
I suggest that FTV stick users:
1. Use the 5W power adapter instead of relying on HDTV USB power ports. Some HDTV’s cannot provide the power needed to keep the stick from resetting during play. The port literally drops out, then resets, followed by a reboot of the stick. Sequence repeats itself every 15 minutes.
2. Use a 3-foot HDMI extender cable (instead of the 6″ cable provided) to ensure that the stick is positioned well away from any ATSC tuners (usually located near the cable-in connector). This should eliminate interference (pixel/stuttering) issues while watching OTA broadcasts.
Is anyone else having problems trying to pair an older fire remote to the new 4K stick? I could not get it to pair no matter how many times I tried.
After a lot of testing, here is what I found.
There are 2 models of 2nd gen voice remotes (if you remove battery cover you will see the model number). I can confirm that model DR49WK/B will not work with the 4k stick (works with every other amazon device including the dongle though, haven’t tested with Cube). I believe this is due to being wifi direct instead of bluetooth technology.
Voice remote Model PE59CV is bluetooth and WILL WORK with the 4k stick. This model came with the dongle, cube and i believe with newer releases of the 2nd gen stick.
The regular remote from the 1st gen and 2nd gen Basic edition will work with the 4k stick as well, being bluetooth tech
Can you use the new remote on older devices or something like the nvidia shield tv
New remote works on 2nd gen firestick at least it does on mine. However my gen 1 voice remote won’t pair to the new fire stick 4k
Compatibility new remote.
Fire TV Stick 4K, Fire TV Cube, Fire TV (3rd Gen Pendant Design), Fire TV Stick (2nd Gen)
The new remote is also compatible with Nvidia Shield with the exception of the microphone. Set up the IR part first for TV power and volume using a Fire Stick. Then add a regular bluetooth accessory on the Shield whilst pressing Home on the remote for 5 seconds to enter pairing mode. Everything works except the mic which uses a protocol that Nvidia doesn’t support.
Do not understand why the 4k stick was made not compatible with the Amazon Game Controller. Deal breaker for me. I have carpal tunnel and need/always use the game controller. Amazon are you listening?
Not being rude, but there are plenty of $20.00 rechargable blue tooth controllers. Bad enough having to buy batteries for the Alexa remote. I have 2 cheap blue tooth controllers that work fine for gaming on fire sticks. Just a thought maybe. In case you’re interested, this is the one I got and works very well. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B012OZ8G22/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Thanks for the link. I have 4 Amazon controllers and would like to use these. Also have a Logitech F310 wired controller which works OK with FTV Gen2.
Will you be doing benchmarks? Would like to know if it’s much faster as they said, think “60%” if I’m correct
Any chance you can test using 2 of the new voice remotes with TV controls connected to a single Fire Stick 4K? We currently send the video from our Fire TV 2 box around the house over wireless HDMI and control it in each room with a couple of the basic amazon remotes. It would be great to use the new remote to control the different TVs while controlling the single Fire Stick 4K. Thanks!
I bought a 4k firestick a little over a month ago. Also recently bought another 4k stick yesterday. My question is what’s the difference in the remotes. The one I bought yesterday has a light in the upper right corner that turns blue. The other dosent. Could you please explain.
Still confused why the new remotes with the TV functionality doesn’t work with the second generation FireTV boxes. I’ve gone through the trouble of hard wiring all my boxes to the network and don’t really want to swap boxes and go wireless again.