Why does Amazon need five TV streamers?

What’s in a name? Apparently quite a bit, according to Amazon. The company recently announced another change to its Fire TV hardware lineup, which means it’s rebranding some things again. The family now includes the $35 Fire TV Stick HD, $40 Fire TV Stick 4K Select, $50 Fire TV Stick 4K Plus, $60 Fire TV Stick 4K Max, and $140 Fire TV Cube.

This was painful to write and probably painful to read (my apologies). A couple of these devices were previously “renamed” within the past year, so if you’re confused, you’re probably not alone. What’s the humble shopper to do when she’s trying to decide the best (and budget-friendly) option for upgrading an old TV so she can watch Hunting wives And ask Alexa what the weather forecast is tomorrow?

I’ll make your decision very easy: just get the Fire TV Stick 4K Max. Really, if you are looking for the best streaming device, we recommend you turn to Google for that. But if you decide that the Amazon Fire TV lineup is where you want to spend your money, the 4K Max is the best option of the bunch. Not only has it remained “unrebranded” for some time, but it also has arguably the best balance of features and price of any Fire TV streaming device.

The Fire TV Stick 4K Max gives you 4K streaming capabilities with Dolby Vision and all the important HDRs, Dolby Atmos audio, Amazon Luna support, and Xbox Game Pass. (It also has some decent retro gaming chops, as Jeff Dunn previously pointed out.) Aside from not having the onboard Ethernet port found on the Fire TV Cube, the 4K Max has the same Wi-Fi 6E support as the more expensive Cube, as well as the same 16GB of storage and 2GB of memory.

When compared to other dongles in the Fire TV lineup, things get even more confusing. The $60 4K Max and $50 4K Plus are essentially the same stick, but the latter has less storage, only Wi-Fi 6 capabilities (not 6E), a standard Alexa Voice remote and no support for the Fire TV Ambient Experience, which turns your TV into an Alexa smart display when you’re not actively watching anything. Jump back to the $40 4K Select and you’ll miss out on Dolby Vision and the extra memory, and you’ll have to settle for Wi-Fi 5.

If you’re going to make all those compromises to save a few bucks, you should just get the $35 Fire TV Stick HD. The most important thing here is that it only supports 1080p streaming, but that will be fine for some people. We consider it the best budget streaming device on the market right now, and for people just looking to do a basic, cheap upgrade to an old set — go ahead and know that $35 is well spent (or pro tip: wait for a sale and pick one up for under $20).

The $140 Fire TV Cube case isn’t sturdy, but it’s a case that I’ll admit might be attractive to some users. It adds to the mix an Ethernet port, hands-free Alexa controls (which means you don’t need to press a button on its remote to activate the virtual assistant, you can just talk to it) and it can control other entertainment devices like a cable box and gaming console. It ultimately gives you more control over the other things in your entertainment system and Alexa, all in one device.

That means Amazon has three solid streaming devices with very clear value propositions: the $35 Stick HD, the $60 4K Max, and the $140 TV Cube. The affordable, mid-range and high-end categories are covered and most people will find something that suits their budget and needs with these three categories. The two sticks sandwiched in the middle do nothing but confuse consumers. Looking at the comparison chart of all Fire TV streaming devices, you might start asking yourself, do I really need Wi-Fi 6E over Wi-Fi 6? Would an extra gigabyte of memory make a difference? Can I live without the Alexa Voice Remote Enhanced?

You don’t have to ask yourself these questions; You have better things to do. There are only three Fire TV streaming devices worth considering, and I’ll take it a step further and say that most people should get the Fire TV Stick 4K Max when it inevitably goes on sale on Black Friday for around $35. You will spend less and get a better product.