Discussion
Other than the higher resolution, is the 4K fire stick any better than the standard one? I've given up trying to use my standard one to watch iplayer though a VPN as it keep buffering so often, while my laptop has no problems so it's presumably the power of the firestick itself rather than the VPN or wifi/internet speed.
Am I likely to see an improvement if I upgrade to the 4k one?
Am I likely to see an improvement if I upgrade to the 4k one?
Didn't realise they'd updated the non 4k. The 4k one is currently £29.99 which is what got me wondering. The Cube appears to be £70 at the moment, is it that much better?
ETA: It appears the big difference with the cube is has an Echo Dot built in, sitting that next to my Echo might confuse them
ETA: It appears the big difference with the cube is has an Echo Dot built in, sitting that next to my Echo might confuse them
Edited by RizzoTheRat on Tuesday 24th November 18:56
In case anyone finds this on a search due to having the same issue... the answer is yes it makes a massive difference, the old SD fire stick I had was everlastingly buffering when trying to watch iplayer through a VPN. I got the HD one in the black friday sales and no more buffering. Huge difference.
I have the 4K and an older non 4K one.
The software/device seems to be a lot quicker in the 4K one. I’m not sure if that’s in my head or not but presume the 4K one would have a speedier processor.
Obviously picture quality is way better but that’s a given. All the menus are in 4K which is nice as well as content.
The software/device seems to be a lot quicker in the 4K one. I’m not sure if that’s in my head or not but presume the 4K one would have a speedier processor.
Obviously picture quality is way better but that’s a given. All the menus are in 4K which is nice as well as content.
For another comparison - I have a Fire TV cube in my TV and the new 4K Firestick in my home cinema. I cannot see any noticeable difference between the two except for the automatic hands free on the Fire TV cube.
For posterity - both are great in my opinion but I wouldn't necessarily fork out the extra for the cube.
For posterity - both are great in my opinion but I wouldn't necessarily fork out the extra for the cube.
I think the cube is basically a 4k firestick and an echo dot merged in to one.
Re wifi vs wired, I have a wifi mesh node sitting behind the telly about 6 inches from the stick, but it may be that the 4k has faster wifi transfer due to the more powerful processor. The 4k also seems a lot faster response too, plus they've now added TV volume controls and power button to the remove which is a nice touch.
Re wifi vs wired, I have a wifi mesh node sitting behind the telly about 6 inches from the stick, but it may be that the 4k has faster wifi transfer due to the more powerful processor. The 4k also seems a lot faster response too, plus they've now added TV volume controls and power button to the remove which is a nice touch.
I have recently come across 2 firecubes and used them
There is an odd issue thats difficult to pin down. I installed Kodi on them (I currently have 2 Fire TV' Boxes with it on) its used to playback files from a media server not for hooky content
Anyway the oddity is that the Firecube seems to buffer frequently and at random when playing back media via Kodi.
Whats odd is that this is via ethernet which I have always used on the older FireTv Boxes)
If I remove the ethernet and connect via wi-fi its fine
I googled this and some information came up suggesting others had issues via ethernet
The difference between the cube and the older units is that on the cube it connects into an adapter that connects to the tv via micro usb
There is an odd issue thats difficult to pin down. I installed Kodi on them (I currently have 2 Fire TV' Boxes with it on) its used to playback files from a media server not for hooky content
Anyway the oddity is that the Firecube seems to buffer frequently and at random when playing back media via Kodi.
Whats odd is that this is via ethernet which I have always used on the older FireTv Boxes)
If I remove the ethernet and connect via wi-fi its fine
I googled this and some information came up suggesting others had issues via ethernet
The difference between the cube and the older units is that on the cube it connects into an adapter that connects to the tv via micro usb
4k is faster and not much more expensive. My old SD version was slow to navigate menus , sometimes slow to start playing and occasional buffering. It just felt annoying to use.
My new 4k is slick and fast with no buffering over wifi. Its only a few quid more so go with the 4k. The remote is better too.
My new 4k is slick and fast with no buffering over wifi. Its only a few quid more so go with the 4k. The remote is better too.
Dodsy said:
4k is faster and not much more expensive. My old SD version was slow to navigate menus , sometimes slow to start playing and occasional buffering. It just felt annoying to use.
My new 4k is slick and fast with no buffering over wifi. Its only a few quid more so go with the 4k. The remote is better too.
Yeah, the 4K Firestick is actually pretty good. I bought one on a Black Friday deal. I don't use it much as I have a couple of Shield TVs but in terms of computing power it's on a par with my First-Gen Fire TV box ... plus it supports h265 and 4k which the original Fire devices didn't. Definitely an under-rated device for the price.My new 4k is slick and fast with no buffering over wifi. Its only a few quid more so go with the 4k. The remote is better too.
A no-brainer to pay a little extra for it.
anonymoususer said:
I have recently come across 2 firecubes and used them
There is an odd issue thats difficult to pin down. I installed Kodi on them (I currently have 2 Fire TV' Boxes with it on) its used to playback files from a media server not for hooky content
Anyway the oddity is that the Firecube seems to buffer frequently and at random when playing back media via Kodi.
Whats odd is that this is via ethernet which I have always used on the older FireTv Boxes)
If I remove the ethernet and connect via wi-fi its fine
I googled this and some information came up suggesting others had issues via ethernet
The difference between the cube and the older units is that on the cube it connects into an adapter that connects to the tv via micro usb
Much will depend on how fast the device is connecting to the network and what you're trying to stream.There is an odd issue thats difficult to pin down. I installed Kodi on them (I currently have 2 Fire TV' Boxes with it on) its used to playback files from a media server not for hooky content
Anyway the oddity is that the Firecube seems to buffer frequently and at random when playing back media via Kodi.
Whats odd is that this is via ethernet which I have always used on the older FireTv Boxes)
If I remove the ethernet and connect via wi-fi its fine
I googled this and some information came up suggesting others had issues via ethernet
The difference between the cube and the older units is that on the cube it connects into an adapter that connects to the tv via micro usb
I have some new UHD 4k content playing via Kodi (via my Android TV in this instance) and it was right on the edge of its capability, occasionally buffering.
Then I realised the TV only has a 10/100 ethernet port. So I connected it up to 5Ghz wifi and the issues went away.
Modern wifi will typically be quicker than a 10/100 ethernet connection.
So if you're streaming 4k content and the network connection is at best 100mbps (you won't get that sort of throughput, you'll typically get a fraction of it unless every link in the chain is perfect), you may well struggle.
If it's working over wifi, just use wifi.
Murph7355 said:
Much will depend on how fast the device is connecting to the network and what you're trying to stream.
I have some new UHD 4k content playing via Kodi (via my Android TV in this instance) and it was right on the edge of its capability, occasionally buffering.
Then I realised the TV only has a 10/100 ethernet port. So I connected it up to 5Ghz wifi and the issues went away.
Modern wifi will typically be quicker than a 10/100 ethernet connection.
So if you're streaming 4k content and the network connection is at best 100mbps (you won't get that sort of throughput, you'll typically get a fraction of it unless every link in the chain is perfect), you may well struggle.
If it's working over wifi, just use wifi.
Thanks for your reply. I did wonder if the micro usb slot had something to do with it maybe creating a bottlekneckI have some new UHD 4k content playing via Kodi (via my Android TV in this instance) and it was right on the edge of its capability, occasionally buffering.
Then I realised the TV only has a 10/100 ethernet port. So I connected it up to 5Ghz wifi and the issues went away.
Modern wifi will typically be quicker than a 10/100 ethernet connection.
So if you're streaming 4k content and the network connection is at best 100mbps (you won't get that sort of throughput, you'll typically get a fraction of it unless every link in the chain is perfect), you may well struggle.
If it's working over wifi, just use wifi.
Having continued to have issues with the 4K after my above post, I tried one of the new Chromecast with Google TV sticks, and IMO it's way better than the firestick. Much more responsive to button presses, voice search works well, and no problems using Amazon Prime, Plex and iPlayer. With the added bonus that it's nice and easy to stream to from other devices.
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