Amazon Hearth TV Stick 4K vs. Roku Streaming Stick 4K

Environment friendly and easy

Roku Streaming Stick 4K

$42 $50 Save $8

The Roku Streaming Stick 4K options Dolby Imaginative and prescient help and streams in 4K and HDR. This could stream hundreds of thousands of titles and turns any TV into a wise TV with its HDMI compatibility.
Professionals

4K, Dolby Imaginative and prescient, and HDR10 help

Voice distant

Presents headphones mode
Cons

No Dolby Atmos help

Cannot join by way of Bluetooth
Nice for streamers and avid gamers

Amazon Hearth TV Stick 4K

$30 $50 Save $20

The Amazon Hearth TV Stick 4K can stream over 1,000,000 titles and connects by way of Wi-Fi 6. It plugs into your TV by an HDMI port and streams in 4K, Dolby Imaginative and prescient, and HDR10.
Professionals

Xbox GamePass capabilities

Wi-Fi 6 help

4K, Dolby Imaginative and prescient, and HDR 10 help
Cons

Cannot management different gadgets

No Hearth TV ambient expertise

It is by no means too late to rethink your streaming state of affairs. For those who’re somebody that loves their TV and has little interest in shopping for a brand new one, you might be most likely looking out for one thing that may improve it. Possibly it is a soundbar that delivers a real movie show really feel to your front room. Possibly it is adaptive lighting that syncs its lights to the temper on the display screen. Extra generally, it is most likely a streaming device that enhances your expertise.

Two of the preferred streaming system firms are Roku and Amazon. The Roku Streaming Stick and the Amazon Hearth TV Stick have been the flagship streaming gadgets for these firms, as each provide the flexibility to show your common TV into a wise one. Every firm provides loads of choices, however among the most budget-friendly ones are the Roku Streaming Stick 4K and the Amazon Hearth TV Stick 4K.

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Whereas they do not have all the highest options, they are perfect for anybody searching for the most important bang for his or her buck on a price range. Which one is best for you?

Worth, specs, and availability

They’re priced comparably

The Roku Streaming Stick 4K retails for $50 however is frequently discounted on web sites like Amazon or Greatest Purchase, although it could be a bit more durable to seek out than among the newer streaming gadgets. It may be plugged into an HDMI port into the again of your TV and comes with an influence cable and long-range Wi-Fi receiver. It measures solely 94.5mm x 21.1mm x 11.5mm and connects by way of Wi-Fi 5.

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Roku Streaming Stick 4K review: Bringing that Dolby Vision goodness

Roku has changed the venerable Streaming Stick+ with an up to date mannequin, that means extra help for the newest codecs.

The Amazon Hearth TV Stick 4K additionally retails for $50 and can be out there at retailers like Amazon and Greatest Purchase. It often will get deep reductions all year long, so that you may need to look ahead to a sale. It additionally plugs into an HDMI port and has an influence cable that plugs into an outlet. It is solely barely bigger than the Roku Streaming Stick 4K, measuring 99mm x 30mm x 14mm. This connects by way of Wi-Fi 6 with a higher Wi-Fi efficiency.

	Roku Streaming Stick 4K	Amazon Hearth TV Stick 4K
Model	Roku	Amazon
Working System	Roku OS	Hearth OS
Downloadable Apps	1000’s	1000’s
Decision	4K	4K, Dolby Imaginative and prescient, HDR10
Ports	HDMI 2.0b, USB for Energy & Lengthy-range Wi-Fi receiver	HDMI
Connectivity	Wi-Fi	Wi-Fi 6
Dimensions	3.7″ x 0.80″ x 0.45″	99mm x 30mm x 14mm
Integrations	Works with Apple AirPlay and HomeKit, Google House, Alexa	Works with Apple AirPlay and HomeKit, Google House, Amazon Alexa

They characteristic related designs

However the one has higher mind energy

As I stated, each of those streaming gadgets plug into the HDMI port and have cables which have Wi-Fi extenders. They’re related in measurement and plug into the HDMI port. The distinction you will discover between these two streaming sticks is the way you work together with their remotes.

They each provide voice options, so that you can provide them verbal instructions by urgent a selected button. The Amazon Hearth TV Stick 4K distant has Amazon Alexa constructed into it, so it is extra able to following advanced instructions than the Roku distant.

Learn our overview

Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K review: Superbly priced Prime streamer

The worth of the Hearth Stick 4K can’t be questioned in comparison with its rivals. Even for non-Amazon Prime subscribers it is an excellent 4K HDR hub too.

Every distant has buttons that may mechanically open up apps, equivalent to Netflix, Disney+, Paramount+, Hulu, and others, which suggests fairly a bit fewer handbook button presses in your finish. Each of the distant interfaces can be found within the corresponding producer’s app and permit you to flip your smartphone or pill right into a distant in case you lose yours or simply need a digitized model.

The buttons to mechanically open up streaming apps differ for the totally different streaming providers out there.

The software program variations are stark

The interfaces prioritize various things

Roku / Pocket-lint

By way of utilizing the working programs, they’re vastly totally different. Each provide entry to a ton of apps for streaming functions, however Roku OS is concentrated on laying out the apps and having you go into them. You may see advertisements on the correct aspect of the display screen, providing up strategies for sure content material.

However, Roku does not make a degree of suggesting exhibits to you or curate any kind of personalised content material. It leaves the apps to try this when you open them.

Hearth OS has an organized foremost menu that shows stream-able exhibits and which app they’re on. It’s also possible to seek for content material proper within the menu, and it’ll present you no matter is accessible by Hearth OS or Prime Video. It principally makes use of Prime Video’s interface as its foremost menu to recommend content material and preserve monitor of what you have watched — it is a way more custom-made effort.

Amazon Fire TV Stick against purple flames

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Hearth OS additionally has the choice to toggle over to Xbox GamePass with gaming choices constructed proper into the software program. When you’ve got a Roku TV, you might have gaming choices, however not with a Streaming Stick. It’s also possible to purchase issues straight out of your Hearth TV Stick 4K, because the system is linked to your Amazon account. Roku OS does make it straightforward to reorganize the apps in your menu and type them nonetheless you select.

Do not forget concerning the secret screens in Roku OS that present you diagnostic data and extra.

Each gadgets carry out very properly

However one does have an edge

The {hardware} for these streaming gadgets is spectacular, even a couple of years after they have been launched. The Hearth TV Stick 4K runs on a Quad-core CPU and has 8GB of storage and 2GB of RAM. So, it may possibly retailer lots of information as you employ it, and it runs effectively and shortly. It might probably additionally run sooner as a result of it may possibly connect with a Wi-Fi 6 connection (so long as it’s related to a router utilizing Wi-Fi 6) and may join by way of Bluetooth.

The Roku Streaming Stick 4K doesn’t have Bluetooth connectivity.

The Roku Streaming Stick 4K has an ARM Cortex A55 CPU and has 1GB of RAM and 4GB of storage. Whereas it may possibly’t maintain as a lot on it, the chances that you’re going to be utilizing up 4GB of storage for streaming functions are most likely slim. It connects by way of Wi-Fi 5 and doesn’t have Bluetooth connectivity.

Someone holding a remote with a TV in the background

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Each of those streaming gadgets help content material in Dolby Imaginative and prescient, HDR10, and 4K decision. So, in case your content material is sharp and clear, your stick will be capable of match it. This opens up prospects to view the perfect content material the way in which that it was meant to be considered. The Hearth TV Stick 4K provides Dolby Atmos audio whereas the Roku Streaming Stick 4K doesn’t.

Which one of many streaming sticks is best for you?

It comes down to non-public desire

A woman using voice search through an Alexa remote on a Fire TV

Amazon / Pocket-lint

Each the Amazon Hearth TV Stick 4K and the Roku Streaming Stick 4K are budget-friendly and infrequently discounted to provide you a fair higher deal. They help premium content material, when it comes to video formatting and determination, so you will be watching handsome exhibits and flicks it doesn’t matter what. It actually comes right down to which one you are feeling extra comfy utilizing. For those who’re used to utilizing Roku OS, you could need to go the Roku route. For those who like Hearth OS, or have used Prime Video earlier than, you could go for Amazon’s possibility.

I am siding with the Hearth TV Stick 4K.

Due to its customization choices and curated content material, I am siding with the Hearth TV Stick 4K. It has Xbox GamePass in-built and may connect with sooner Wi-Fi to run extra successfully. Seeing all of the content material choices on the principle menu is a big plus in my guide. Whereas it might not be for you, in case you do not have already got a desire between the 2 working programs, this one provides you a lot on your cash.