Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K MAX - Trial by Fire

I still remember what it was like as a kid if you knew someone lucky enough to go away on an overseas trip. Even if it was only Australia, they might come back with all manner of exotic tech gadgets that were simply unavailable in our remote, tiny market.

The selection of video games and computer brands was just so much greater in places like Asia and America. Even by the time I started travelling myself, in my twenties, the markets of Melbourne and Hong Kong offered a seemingly infinite selection of electronic devices compared to little old Aotearoa.

Thankfully, the advent of online shopping eventually brought the whole world to our doorstep, forcing prices down and increasing the selection dramatically.

And yet some major brands still left us out in the cold, and we were forced to pay exorbitant shipping fees or wonder if "parallel imported" items were really the genuine article.

I feel like 2022 is the year New Zealand really started getting access to some cool stuff.

Surprisingly, Amazon is one of those names that's been a bit sluggish to set its sights on New Zealand. While we still don't have our own Amazon Store, at least now we have direct access to the Australian site and this seems to coincide with the increasing availability of more and more Amazon hardware.

Case in point; the Fire TV Stick 4K MAX. Sure, it's actually a year old now and Amazon just launched a whole new Fire TV Cube but the 4K MAX is reputably Amazon's "Most powerful streaming media stick" so obviously I was keen to finally get my hands on it a give it a go.

If you haven't used a device like this before, instead of relying on a set-top box or perhaps the pre-installed user interface on your smart TV, you might initially be surprised at how compact and nondescript the Fire TV Stick is. Not even 10cm long, this almost featureless black dongle simply slots into an available HDMI port, with a USB-C cable for the power supply, which plugs in on the side. This can be run off the included wall charger or perhaps via a USB power slot on your TV - just be aware if your TV is like mine, that USB power cuts out when the TV is switched off, meaning the Fire Stick will turn off completely too - more on this later. There's also a short HDMI adapter in the box so you don't have to have the Fire Stick poking straight out the back of your TV - otherwise, a bit limiting if it's wall-mounted.

The first thing to really impress me about the Fire TV Stick 4K MAX was how easy it was to set up. From the moment you turn it on, it guides you with clear, easy-to-follow on-screen instructions on things like pairing your remote and connecting to the Wi-Fi. It seemed to have an uncanny ability to identify both my TV and its sound system automatically - the remote now controls both TV and sound and I haven't had to tweak any further settings from that point on. So simple. 

The remote is also simple - and that's a good thing. Amazon hasn't tried to reinvent the wheel here; for example, the power button is in the top-left corner. Logical. There's a nice, clear, thumb-adjacent volume toggle in the middle. There are useful shortcut buttons for common streaming apps and perhaps most helpful of all, three dedicated navigation buttons, including play/pause. I know that may sound like a small thing but often playing and pausing using the select button in the middle of a jog-wheel is a two-press scenario - a specific button saves you a whole press! As I mentioned earlier, although you can turn your TV off with the remote, if you're plugged into its USB slot to power the Fire TV Stick, that'll turn off too. While it only takes thirty seconds or so to boot up again, if you plug it into the wall charger instead you can leave it always on - allowing instant access the moment your TV screen comes to life.

Wi-Fi connectivity is definitely worth a mention. Although I've never used any of the previous Fire TV devices, one of the things they upgraded with this model is Wi-Fi 6 capability. This means as long as you're connecting to a Wi-Fi 6 router, you get a much stronger, faster and more reliable link.

The 1.8GHz Quad-core processor is also a dramatic step up from earlier generations and there's no doubt about it, the operation of this device is an extreme pleasure compared with navigating around your average smart TV. Apps also load quickly and I've certainly experienced no buffering or lag issues whatsoever. I believe it's technically possible to connect via ethernet using the right adapter but honestly, my connection over Wi-Fi 6 has been so rock solid, I haven't even been tempted.

Another major feature of the Fire TV Stick 4K MAX is its wide selection of format offerings; Dolby Vision, HDR 10, HDR10+ and Dolby Atmos audio - not to mention its titular 4K abilities obviously. Whether or not you can take full advantage of these features will depend mostly on the content you're viewing and how specced-up your TV and sound system are.

All I know is I've found the picture quality in particular to be absolutely superb - much brighter and clearer than any other external streaming device I've used. I really love it - especially when watching high-format video files via my wireless Plex server - Plex is easily downloaded from the Appstore, while all the common local streamers are already installed out of the box - from Netflix and Prime Video to TVNZ+.

You can search and even log in using the on-screen keyboard or via Alexa-enabled voice control, using the big blue button at the top of the remote. Being an Amazon device, you can also ask Alexa to access and control your other smart-home gadgets - including showing live feeds from your cameras or doorbell on screen, reducing them to a picture-in-picture if you want to keep an eye on the front door while you're watching your favourite show. You can also pair with Echo speakers if you don't already have a sound system for your TV.

If you really want to stretch the capabilities of this little stick, there are a few other things you can try, rather than just watching telly. You can download and play games, ranging in complexity from Hangman up to Asphalt 8. Some of these you can play using just the remote while others will require you to pair a compatible bluetooth controller. Bear in mind, you've only got 8GB of storage space so there's certainly a limit to how many games you can download. Some are free, some are not. Or, if you have a GamePass subscription, take it a step further and use the pre-installed Silk Browser to access Xbox Cloud Gaming, Yes, I've tried it and it actually works.

I also tried to access Sky TV via its SkyGo website using Silk Browser. This was less successful. I could play some things but I was unable to navigate the website properly so couldn't access the on-demand episodes I was looking for.

Lastly, you can mirror your screen from other Android and PC devices, although bear in mind, mirroring is not the same as casting. The way I think of casting is sending instructions to your device on where to access the video content you want to play, allowing it to be streamed directly from the source. Mirroring is just displaying what's on your phone or laptop on another screen. I generally found the results to be laggy and prone to interference and distortion. And unfortunately, although Apple TV+ comes pre-installed, there's no AirPlay for screen-sharing from your Apple devices either.

Take my advice, use the Fire Stick TV 4K MAX for what it was designed for; streaming. Setup is foolproof, the connection is bulletproof and the picture quality is superb. At around or just over NZ$100.00, I consider this to be excellent value viewing and I'm glad it's finally here.

    

Click here for more information on the Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K MAX.