This article covers the unboxing and setup of Amazon’s Fire TV Stick 4K Max. I ordered this item on Amazon for £54.99.
What is Fire TV Stick 4K Max?
Fire TV Stick 4K Max is Amazon’s compact media streaming device. It requires a power adapter (included in the box) and plugs into your TV or monitor HDMI port. You connect it to your WiFi network and can start streaming using the apps it provides, such as YouTube, Netflix and Twitch.
Amazon has several similar devices, and they compare to each other as shown below:
Based on the features and price point, I think Fire TV Stick 4K Max is a good choice. Fire TV Cube has more powerful hardware, but I will see later if it’s good enough to justify the double price.
Unboxing
Since it’s a compact item, the box is relatively small and well-packed.
Setup
First, plug in the device to your monitor/TV via an HDMI port. Plug it into the power adaptor and plug the adaptor into a wall socket.
You should see the Fire TV logo on your screen and soon after a message saying it’s looking for the remote control.
Insert the batteries into your remote control and press the power button.
Once Fire TV has found the remote, it will ask you to press a button:
Then, select your language:
Then it will start scanning the WiFi networks around.
Choose your network and enter your passphrase for the device to connect.
You should see a “Connection successful” message on your screen. As soon as it connects, it starts to download the latest software updates:
Then, it installs the software. Make sure to keep it plugged in until it finishes the installation.
After a while, it reboots, and you should see the Fire TV logo again:
It checks for the updates one last time and finishes the installation:
Then, it asks you to log in to your Amazon account or create a new account. I don’t like this requirement at all. I specifically asked Amazon not to personalize the device when I ordered it. My goal was to use it without an amazon account because I primarily want to watch YouTube, which has nothing to do with an Amazon account. Unfortunately, the device is restrictive and doesn’t allow skipping this step.
If you don’t want to use your main Amazon account, just create a dummy one and use that one.
After either you’ve created a new account or logged in with an existing one, Fire TV will greet you:
Next, it will ask for some customizations. Firstly, it will ask if you want to save your WiFi password online. From a security point of view, I don’t believe this is a good practice so I’d recommend choosing no:
The next step is sound check. If you are using a monitor for your setup, make sure it has built-in speakers.
Next comes selling Amazon Prime. It offers a 30-day free trial which you can take advantage of.
Next, select the apps you would like to install:
Choose to enable or disable parental controls to your liking, and you will shortly see your home screen:
Conclusion
Overall, the setup was quite easy and straightforward. The only thing I don’t like is the mandatory Amazon account, but it’s easy to bypass by creating a dummy account. I hope you enjoyed this review, and it gave you some insights into what to expect if you have a mind of buying this device.