Amazon is continuing its battle with Google, and luckily, we’re the beneficiaries. In order to compete with the Google Chromecast, Amazon has slashed the price of its Fire TV products. You can now buy the Fire TV Stick for $30 (it’s normally $40), while you can buy the 4K Fire TV for $50 (down from $70). For comparison, the Google Chromecast is $35, while the 4K version will set you back $70. That means that the Amazon offerings are now cheaper than its competitor’s.
While the Fire TV Stick is now a few bucks cheaper than the Chromecast, most experts will recommend that you spend the extra $15 to buy the 4K Fire TV. In our review of the device last December, we noted that the latest streaming device from Amazon was “powerful, easy to install, and adds support for HDR content,” and that it was “a more compelling streaming option than ever before.” And if you’re into leveraging Amazon Alexa for your entertainment needs, the 4K Fire TV is really the only way to go. Plus, the 4K Fire TV is very powerful and seems to be well-built, which means it’ll last you for quite some time.
Fire TV 4K also provides support for Dolby Atmos and High Dynamic Range content (using HDR10), which means if you have a pretty extensive home theater setup, this more expensive device is probably the way to go.
We wouldn’t be particularly surprised if Google decided to respond to this latest price reduction from Amazon with a sale of its own. After all, the two companies have been at each other’s throats for quite some time now. Amazon has continually refused to list most of Google’s products (if you want to buy the Google Chromecast or the 4K Chromecast, you won’t be able to find them on Amazon), and Google has refused to allow Amazon products to access YouTube directly. While much of this feels like petty back and forth, when it leads to serious price cuts, we can’t say that any of us are really complaining.
That said, Amazon’s reduced price offerings for the Fire TV sticks are a limited time deal, so you’ll want to move quickly.
