What is an Amazon Fire TV Stick?

In the age of streaming services, there are a variety of ways you can watch your favorite shows, movies, and YouTube videos. Maybe you watch them all from your laptop in your bed, or your phone on the train, or from your couch in the living room. If you're trying to binge-watch from your TV, you'll have to connect your TV with a device that will connect you to all the streaming platforms you want — a device like a Roku or an Amazon Fire TV Stick, commonly known as the FireStick. But what is a FireStick, how does it work, and how do you set it up?

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What can you do with an Amazon Fire TV Stick?

There are a few different versions of Amazon Fire TV Stick: the classic Amazon Fire TV Stick; the Amazon Fire Stick Lite; the Amazon Fire TV Cube; and the Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K. Starting at around $35, Amazon Fire TV Stick essentially turns any TV with an HDMI input into a smart TV. Once you have the device set up, you can stream anything on it, from Netflix to Peacock TV to any video on YouTube or song on Spotify. It's a plug-in device, which makes installing and setting it up pretty easy. It comes with voice control via Alexa Voice Remote, so you can say: "Hey, Alexa, open Netflix" from your remote. You can also stream in 4K Ultra HD, Dolby Vision, HDR, and HDR10+ if those settings can work on your TV. You can also search the internet, connect to online games, and share photos on your TV.

What do I need to make my Amazon Fire TV Stick work?

An Amazon Fire TV Stick connects to a TV that has an HDMI port, which most TVs do, your internet connection, your Amazon account, and the usernames and passwords for all the streaming services you'll want to use. You'll need two AAA batteries for the remote, and then you can set it up.

How do you install, set up, and connect an Amazon Fire TV Stick?

It's remarkably easy to install, set up, and connect an Amazon Fire TV Stick — it only takes three steps. First, you'll plug your device into your TV's HDMI port, then you'll plug the Fire TV Stick into the wall outlet, and, finally, you'll follow the steps on the screen to activate it. The on-screen instructions will lead you through connecting to your internet, downloading the software updates, and setting up any other equipment — like your remote control — that you might want to pair. Now all you have to do is connect your streaming services to the device, and enjoy!