Amazon doesn't refresh its line of Fire TV Sticks all the time, but the latest update shook up the company's assortment of streaming sticks: meet the Amazon Fire TV Stick HD, its newest movie- and TV-watching dongle.
The Amazon Fire TV Stick HD replaces both the low-end Fire TV Stick Lite and standard Fire TV Stick as the company's most affordable way to turn your TV set into a smart TV.
Simplifying Amazon's line-up in quite a dramatic way, the Fire TV Stick HD could prove wildly successful during the upcoming Black Friday sales, which often see Amazon's tech discount dramatically.
If you're curious about this new gadget, here's everything you need to know about the Amazon Fire TV Stick HD.
Amazon Fire TV Stick HD specs at a glance
Amazon Fire TV Stick HD price information
- Costs $34.99 / £39.99
- Price puts it between Lite and standard sticks
You can buy the Amazon Fire TV Stick HD for $34.99 / £39.99, so after replacing the TV Stick and TV Stick Lite, it's the most affordable streaming stick that Amazon offers. The next step up is the Fire TV Stick 4K which costs $49.99 / £59.99.
For context, the Fire TV Stick Lite cost $29.99 / £34.99 while the Fire TV Stick cost $39.99 / £44.99, so the Stick HD sits exactly between them.
Bear in mind that these prices are the standard RRP ones, but Amazon often discounts its tech in the sales. If you wait, you could find the Fire TV Stick HD for a nice discount, though it's not certain that it'll do so for Black Friday (on Friday, November 29) as the Stick HD will still be pretty new then.
Amazon Fire TV Stick HD release date
- Announced and released in October 2024
The Amazon Fire TV Stick HD was announced and put on sale in mid-October 2024.
The two streaming sticks that it replaces were taken off sale then, but you can still pick them up second hand or refurbished for a discounted price.
Amazon Fire TV Stick HD video features
- 1080p resolution
- 60 frames per second
- HDR10, HDR10+, HLG support
Like Amazon's previous entry-level Fire TV Sticks, and as you can tell by the name, the Amazon Fire TV Stick HD supports videos up to a resolution of 1080p, otherwise known as HD or High Definition.
While many people now own 4K TVs, which is a higher resolution than HD, many videos you'll find on streaming services are only in HD. You generally need to pay for higher tiers in order to access the limited 4K libraries.
You also might prefer to buy an affordable 1080p streaming stick for smaller TV sets that aren't your main one: maybe you have a TV in your kitchen or bedroom, are kitting out an Airbnb or guest room, or need a screen in your office.
If you have a TV that supports high refresh rates, the Fire TV Stick will show you videos at up to 60fps. If you don't know what this means, it affects how many times the screen updates per second (24fps is 24, 60fps is 60) and the result is that it affects how smooth motion looks on screen.
The Fire TV Stick HD supports a few video technologies that its pricier brethren do. There's HDR, HDR10 and HDR10+, all of which improve color accuracy, brightness and vibrancy (they make colors look better, basically), as well as HLG which is a video format that does similarly but more often affects broadcast TV (it was made by the UK's BBC and Japan's NHK).
Amazon Fire TV Stick HD audio features
- Supports Dolby Atmos sound
- (If you have TV or soundbar that supports it)
Some of the benefits of Amazon's pricier streaming sticks is that they support fancy audio technologies... but now the basic one does too!
The headline feature is Dolby Atmos. Dolby Atmos is an improved kind of surround sound, so when you're watching a movie you'll hear things happen where they do on the screen.
So you might hear the squeal of tires on your left as a car passes in that direction on-screen, or a helicopter flying overhead as it passes our characters. Unlike audio surround sound, Dolby Atmos pans sound up and down as well as left and right.
Bear in mind that to use Dolby Atmos, your TV or soundbar will need to support it too. Most do nowadays, including the affordable Amazon Fire TV Soundbar.
Amazon Fire TV Stick HD software
- Runs Fire TV
- Supports most entertainment apps and many others
The Amazon Fire TV Stick HD lets you access the exact same software as its siblings. When you plug it into your TV and switch it on, you can access Fire TV, which is Amazon's home-made streaming software on its TVs and sticks.
Fire TV offers you access to most of the apps you'd want for entertainment. There are subscription services like Netflix, Prime Video, Disney Plus and Apple TV Plus as well as free streaming services like Plex, Pluto TV and Tubi. Non-video apps are available too like Spotify, news feeds and kids' entertainment services too.
You can link Fire TV to your smart home of devices too if you use Amazon's Alexa ones. This lets you control your TV or streaming stick with a separate device.
Amazon Fire TV Stick HD remote
- Uses Amazon Alexa Voice Remote
- Lets you navigate using verbal commands
An upgrade in the Fire TV Stick HD over the Lite is that it has the Amazon Alexa Remote, just like all of the other streaming sticks from the company.
The big benefit here is that it has a button you can press and hold to summon voice assistant Alexa. This way you can easily ask for something you want to watch: "show me Only Murders in the Building" or even a brief suggestion: "show me horror movies" or "open Netflix".
Beyond that you can use the remote to control Fire TV (and your actual TV, here's how to switch off your TV with your Fire TV remote). It's quite small and relies on AAA batteries.
Who is the Amazon Fire TV Stick HD for?
If you don't own a 4K TV, then the Amazon Fire TV Stick HD is definitely the one you want to opt for. There's no point in paying more for one of the pricier sticks since you won't be able to appreciate their benefit: 4K support.
That's also true of people who own a 4K TV but don't subscribe to any streaming services that offer 4K videos, and don't think they'll change that any time soon.
I'd also recommend it as an entry-level option for currently own a standard (ie non-smart) TV, but think they want to upgrade. At a low cost it'll let you get a taste of the app-heavy world of internet TVs, so you can decide whether you'll buy a real S
