Amazon's refreshed Fire TV Stick 4K is faster, but the switch to Vega OS comes with a major catch

Published Sep 30, 2026, 9:07 AM EDT Patrick O'Rourke is XDA's News Editor and Entertainment Segment Lead. Previously, he was Pocket-lint's Editor-in-Chief, the Editor-in-Chief of Canadian tech publication MobileSyrup, and earlier in his career, he worked as the technology editor at the Financial Post and Postmedia. He's based in Toronto. Over the past 15 years, he's written thousands of articles. Patrick has also interviewed dozens of tech industry executives and covered GDC, E3, Gamescom, WWDC, Apple keynotes, Samsung Unpacked events and more. Patrick has a BA in journalism from Toronto Metropolitan University. Summary The refreshed Fire TV Stick 4K is slimmer and features 20-40% faster overall performance. The new streaming stick runs Vega OS, which blocks Android app sideloading. Amazon is also launching a redesigned Fire TV remote with a new Find My Remote feature and a customizable Star button. Amazon has revealed a refreshed Fire TV Stick 4K (2026). The streaming stick features several expected specs, including 20-40% faster performance compared to its predecessor, with apps launching 35% faster and content playing 20% faster, plus a new, slimmer design and the ability to power the device directly from your TV's USB port. However, these upgrades come at a cost: the refreshed Fire TV Stick runs on Amazon's proprietary Linux kernel-based Vega OS instead of the more open Android-based Fire OS. This means you can't sideload Android apps on the refreshed streaming stick, locking down the new Fire TV Stick 4K and preventing users from relatively easily installing the less-than-legal streaming apps that are a big part of what made the device so popular in the first place. Credit: Amazon While Vega OS also doesn't offer as many apps as Fire OS on paper, Amazon claims the situation has improved a lot since the Vega OS-powered Fire TV Stick HD's release last year. Amazon says Vega OS now has over 2,000 more apps, including Spotify, Xbox, VLC, and several VPNs. The company also highlights that Netflix, Disney+, YouTube, Prime Video, HBO Max, Peacock, Tubi, and more are all now available on Vega OS. Along with revealing its refreshed Fire TV Stick 4K, Amazon has ditched the Select (Vega OS) and Plus (Fire OS) labels that previously split up its 4K streaming lineup. Other notable Fire TV Stick 4K specs include 8GB of internal storage, a quad-core 1.7 GHz processor, support for Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.3, and Bluetooth Low Energy. The streaming stick also supports HDR10, HDR10+, HLG, H.264, VP9, and AV1 video formats in 2160p, 1080p, and 720p, with frame rates up to 60fps. The new Fire TV Stick 4K (2026) also includes Alexa+ support and Amazon's new Fire TV experience out of the box. Amazon's Fire TV Stick 4K Max and Fire TV Cube still run on Fire OS. Amazon says that the new Fire TV Stick 4K costs $60 and starts shipping now in the United States. Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K (2026) Brand Amazon Wi-Fi Wi-Fi 6 A sleek-looking redesigned Fire TV Remote is also on the way Fire TVs are getting a new Alexa+ hub with AI prompts, too Credit: Amazon Along with the new Fire TV Stick HD, Amazon has redesigned the Fire TV remote with "more tactile controls" to make it easier to "hold and navigate key buttons." Along with a flat top and a curved, weighted bottom, the new Fire TV Remote features a customizable Star button that lets you launch your favorite app. It also includes a new Find My Remote feature that lets you say "Alexa, find my remote" so it plays a sound, and you can easily find it. Overall, it looks like a pretty sleek streaming device remote. Amazon says that the new Fire TV Remote is available now for $15 as a standalone purchase for anyone who wants to upgrade their current remote. A Fire TV Remote Plus that's expected to launch in early 2027 is also on the way. This more premium remote features an aluminum housing and backlit buttons (it replaces the Alexa Voice Remote Pro). Lastly, Amazon says that a dedicated hub is coming to Fire TV called the Alexa+ hub. This new menu aims to offer relevant prompt suggestions for Alexa+ interactions. This follows the launch of Alexa+ on Fire TVs last year and Amazon's cleaner (but still ad-filled) Fire TV Experience that it launched earlier this year.