Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Select UK Review: Not There Yet

Amazon’s newest streaming stick feels like paying to be a beta tester.

The Fire TV Stick 4K Select marks a significant turning point for Amazon’s streaming platform. It’s the first Fire TV device to abandon Android entirely, running instead on Amazon’s brand new Vega OS.

On paper, that sounds exciting – a fresh start, a leaner operating system, potentially lower costs. In practice? It means starting from scratch with apps, accepting limitations that didn’t exist before, and hoping developers will bother creating new versions of their services for what is, initially at least, a tiny user base.

I’ve been testing the Select for almost a week, and whilst the hardware itself is perfectly capable, the overall experience feels like a step backwards. The interface looks familiar, performance is smooth, and the major UK streaming services are all present – but scratch beneath the surface and you’ll find features missing, apps absent, and questions about what the future holds.

Is this the future of Fire TV? Almost certainly. Should you buy one right now? That’s a much harder question to answer.

Who Is The Amazon Fire TV 4K Select For?

The Fire TV Stick 4K Select is Amazon’s first streaming device to run on the new Vega OS – ditching Android after more than a decade.

So why the switch? Most likely, it’s about creating a leaner, more efficient operating system. Android has become rather bloated over the years, requiring more powerful (and expensive) hardware to run smoothly.

With Vega OS built directly on Linux, Amazon can use less powerful components and sell devices for less money.

Plus, they gain complete control over the platform – no longer beholden to Google’s Android development cycle or licensing terms.

In other words, Amazon wants to be Roku.

And that’s worked brilliantly for Roku – their closed ecosystem has been around for years, so app availability isn’t an issue. Their sticks are reliable, affordable, and just work.

The problem? Amazon is starting from scratch with Vega OS. Every single app needs to be completely rewritten. And whilst Roku sticks cost less (the Streaming Stick Plus is £39.99 for 4K), the Fire TV Stick 4K Select comes in at £49.99 – only £10 less than the standard Fire TV Stick 4K.

So for that £10 saving, you’re getting less. Fewer apps, fewer features, and a somewhat uncertain future regarding which streaming services will actually be available six or twelve months from now.

The hardware itself is perfectly fine – it’s fast, smooth, and the interface looks almost identical to what you’re used to. But at this price point, the compromises are hard to justify when the better-equipped Fire TV Stick 4K is just a tenner more.

Are the limitations and missing features that big of a difference for the casual user? Probably not. And when this stick gets heavily discounted with special sales, it might be perfectly fine as an entry-level 4K stick. But what incentive does Amazon provide for people to get the less-capable (for now) Firestick, with its new OS that mainly benefits Amazon?

Still, let’s dig into the details and see how it all actually works in practice.

Setting Up The Fire TV Stick 4K Select

The Fire TV Stick 4K Select has the same rounded design we’ve seen on recent Fire TV sticks – though frustratingly, we’re still stuck with the old Micro-USB port.

In 2025, when practically everything has moved to USB-C, this feels like a strange choice. Sure, it preserves compatibility with the optional Fire TV Ethernet adapter – but really, how many people are keeping old power cables around?

In the box, you’ll find the power adapter, the Micro-USB power cable, an HDMI Extender (in case there’s not enough room behind your TV to connect the stick directly), batteries for the remote, and the stick itself.

The Fire TV Stick 4K Select comes with the standard Alexa Voice Remote, which includes three app shortcut buttons and TV volume controls.

Once you sync it with your TV (by choosing your TV model in the settings), you can control the volume on your telly or soundbar directly from the Fire TV remote (that’s assuming it works with your TV model – it failed to work on my Metz TV).

There’s also the dedicated “Live TV” button, which opens the live TV section on the Fire TV.

And of course, there’s the blue ‘Alexa’ button, letting you use Amazon’s voice assistant to search for content, ask questions, or control your Smart Home devices.

When you first turn the Select on, you’ll need to connect it to the internet via WiFi. The Select supports WiFi 5 (not WiFi 6 like the pricier Fire TV sticks) – but for most people, that won’t make much difference unless you have loads of devices competing for bandwidth on your home network.

For the next step, you’ll be asked to log in to your Amazon account. Remember that whilst you don’t have to be an Amazon Prime subscriber to use the Fire TV Stick, you do need an Amazon account.

If you’ve had another Fire TV device before, the device will automatically download all your previously installed apps – or rather, place shortcuts for them, which will then download and install when you first try to open them.

And here’s where you’ll get your first taste of Vega OS differences. Some of those apps you’re used to seeing on your other Fire TV devices simply won’t be there. They haven’t been ported to Vega OS yet – or perhaps they never will be.

Welcome to the new world of Fire TV.

Using The Fire TV Stick 4K Select

If you’re coming from another Fire TV device, the first thing you’ll notice is… well, not much, actually.

The Fire TV Stick 4K Select feels genuinely quick and responsive. Apps load swiftly, browsing through menus is smooth, and there’s none of the sluggishness you might experience with older streaming devices or budget Smart TVs.

The interface looks virtually identical to what you’d see on any other Fire TV device. The same rows of tiles, the same layout, the same somewhat cluttered approach that Amazon has become known for.

In everyday use, you wouldn’t necessarily know you’re running a completely different operating system. Everything just feels like… a Fire TV.

The video quality on the Select is excellent. It supports 4K with HDR10, HDR10+ and HLG (though not Dolby Vision), and assuming you’ve got a decent TV, a reliable broadband connection, and a streaming service that offers 4K content, the Select will deliver a crisp, vibrant picture.

BBC iPlayer, for instance, supports 4K and HDR out of the box, and it looked brilliant during my testing – though I did experience one peculiar moment when iPlayer stopped working entirely for a couple of hours, throwing up error messages. Hopefully just early teething issues with a brand new platform.

In terms of sound, the Select supports Dolby’s codecs via HDMI pass-through, but it lacks native support, unlike the pricier Fire TV 4K and 4K Max sticks.

The Fire TV Interface

The Fire TV interface on Vega OS looks and behaves almost identically to the Android-based Fire OS you’re already familiar with.

You get the same thumbnail-based layout, the same mixture of content recommendations and sponsored messages, the same somewhat overwhelming approach where app icons, Prime Video promotions, and adverts are scattered throughout the interface.

There’s also a new(ish) “Free” tab on the main menu, which shows you everything you can watch for free, with your existing services – so via free services like iPlayer and ITVX, or via free trials that you can get on Prime Video.

If you’ve used a Fire TV device before, you’ll feel right at home – for better or worse.

The Fire TV fully supports user profiles, so everyone in your household can have their own personalised recommendations, watchlists, and viewing history.

Voice control via Alexa remains excellent – instead of hunting through menus, you can simply press the blue button and say “Alexa, open BBC iPlayer” or “Show me films with Tom Hanks.” It’s one of the Fire TV’s best features, and it works just as well on the Select.

But here’s where things start to diverge from the Fire TV experience you’re used to.

No Sideloading

Unlike Android-based Fire TV devices, the Select doesn’t allow sideloading – the ability to install apps from outside Amazon’s official App Store.

Now, let’s be honest: sideloading matters to a very vocal minority of users. For most people buying a Fire TV Stick, it’s something they’ve never heard of and will never miss.

Yes, there are legitimate uses for sideloading – installing apps that aren’t available in the UK, using alternative media players, or accessing niche streaming services. I’ve used it occasionally myself.

But the uncomfortable truth is that sideloading has also been central to the “dodgy Firestick” phenomenon, where modified devices were loaded with illegal IPTV apps and sold at dubious websites and on Facebook Marketplace.

Sky and the Premier League have been pressuring Amazon to lock down Fire TV devices, claiming they account for roughly half of all football piracy in the UK. Whether intentionally or not, Vega OS addresses that problem completely.

Roku disabled the ability to run uncertified apps a few years ago, and it didn’t hurt their sales or reputation. For the vast majority of casual users, this limitation simply won’t matter.

Still, it’s another feature that’s been taken away – and it raises the same question that keeps coming up with this device: why would you buy something with fewer capabilities unless there’s a compelling reason?

No VPN Apps (Yet)

At launch, the Fire TV Stick 4K Select doesn’t support VPN apps. Amazon has confirmed to us that VPN support is coming “soon,” with NordVPN estimating late October for availability.

For anyone who uses VPNs – whether to access content from other countries or simply for privacy whilst streaming – this is frustrating. VPN apps have long been one of the Fire TV’s strengths compared to Roku, which has never supported them.

The apps are ready and waiting; this is purely a matter of Amazon pushing a software update to enable VPN protocols on Vega OS. But if you need a VPN right now, you’ll need to look elsewhere.

The Fire TV Apps

And here we arrive at the biggest challenge facing the Fire TV Stick 4K Select: the apps.

The good news? All the major UK streaming services are available. BBC iPlayer, ITVX, Channel 4, 5, NOW, Netflix, Disney+, Prime Video, Paramount+, Discovery+, YouTube – they’re all here, and they all work as you’d expect.

It’s worth noting that this is no small achievement. Amazon managed to convince all the major UK broadcasters, along with international streaming giants, to invest time and resources in creating native Vega OS apps for a device with zero existing customers.

That speaks to Amazon’s position in the streaming device market and the leverage they have with content providers. These services know that if Vega OS succeeds, they’ll need to be there from the start – and if it doesn’t, well, Amazon has the clout to make it worth their while regardless.

The less good news? There are roughly 900 apps available for Vega OS at launch, compared to over 30,000 on Android-based Fire TV devices.

Now, to be fair, many of those 30,000 apps are kind of useless – obscure channels, abandoned projects, and things nobody actually uses. But still, it’s quite a difference.

You’re bound to find some favourites missing. During my testing, for example, I noticed that the Talking Pictures TV Encore app – which launched late last year – isn’t supported on Vega OS yet.

Also, there are no games at all, at least for the time being – so if you were hoping to do some casual gaming on your Firestick, you’ll have to wait (or get one of the other ones).

Meanwhile, Amazon has implemented a clever workaround for apps that haven’t been ported to Vega OS: cloud app streaming.

For select apps that don’t have native Vega versions, Amazon will run the Android app on their AWS cloud servers and stream the interface to your device – a bit like how Xbox Cloud Gaming or Amazon Luna work, but not just for games.

It’s technically impressive, and it does help fill the app gap. But there are some significant caveats.

First, Amazon is only providing this service free to developers for “at least the first 9 months.” After that, they’ll start charging based on monthly active users.

What happens then? Do smaller streaming services decide it’s not worth the cost and pull their apps? Do they finally create native Vega versions? It’s genuinely unclear.

Second, games and utility apps won’t be available through this cloud streaming system. Amazon has explicitly stated that only video streaming services will be supported this way.

And, these apps may launch slightly slower than native apps, and if your internet connection isn’t stellar, you might experience laggy interactions.

Plex Limitations

If you’re a Plex user – and many cord-cutters are – there are some important limitations to be aware of.

Plex has confirmed that their Vega OS app, whilst available at launch, has significant restrictions. Direct playback of personal media is limited to H.264 video with AAC audio at a maximum bitrate of 7Mbps. Anything else will require transcoding.

During my testing, Plex felt noticeably slower with some content compared to my Android-based Fire TV devices. Some older videos (that were encoded years ago) simply wouldn’t play at all.

Plex Music and Photos aren’t supported yet, and several playback options like speed control, display mode adjustments, and advanced subtitle styling are missing.

Plex says they’re working with Amazon to support additional codecs, but for now, if you rely heavily on Plex for streaming your personal media library, the Select is a compromised experience.

The Fire TV Ambient Experience

One pleasant surprise: the Fire TV Stick 4K Select does include the Ambient Experience feature, which wasn’t available on the standard Fire TV Stick 4K (only on the Max).

This lets you display artwork, photos, or useful information like weather and calendar events when the TV is idle. It’s a nice touch, though hardly essential.

The Live TV Guide

The Fire TV’s “Live” tab has undergone significant evolution since its UK launch in 2021. What started as a rather barren feature with just a handful of channels has gradually become something genuinely useful.

The concept is simple: instead of jumping between BBC iPlayer, ITVX, and other apps trying to find something to watch live, you get everything in one place, complete with thumbnails showing what’s currently on and a proper electronic programme guide (EPG).

Earlier this year, the BBC finally joined the Live tab, adding all their channels – BBC One, BBC Two, BBC Four, BBC News, and the rest.

Combined with ITV’s channels, Channel 4, Channel 5, and various FAST (ad-supported) channels from Pluto TV and others, it’s become a decent way to browse live TV without opening multiple apps. When you choose something to watch, it opens up in the relevant app.

It’s not quite as comprehensive as Freely – the streaming-focused platform that launched last year as the successor to Freeview – but it’s a nice touch for those who still enjoy live telly.

There’s just one problem: the Fire TV Stick 4K Select offers a more limited Live TV experience than other Fire TV devices.

On Android-based Fire TV sticks, the EPG includes BBC iPlayer, ITVX, Channel 4, Channel 5, Prime Video channels, Pluto TV, and even Plex live channels if you’ve set them up.

On the Select? For now, you get BBC iPlayer, ITVX, Channel 5, Prime Video, and Pluto TV. That’s it.

Plex live channels don’t appear in the guide – which is disappointing for anyone who uses Plex to stream over-the-air TV or other live content.

More significantly, Channel 4’s channels are missing from the EPG entirely. You can still watch Channel 4 live – just open the Channel 4 app and select “Watch Live” – but it won’t appear in the unified guide alongside everything else.

Channel 4 told me they’re committed to enabling Live Tab integration “in due course.” In the meantime, viewers will need to access live channels directly through the app rather than the EPG.

It’s another example of something that worked well on other Fire TV devices – and was actually expanding and improving – being cut down on the Select, at least for now.

The Live tab is still useful, particularly with the BBC’s full lineup available. But if you’ve grown accustomed to the complete experience on another Fire TV device, you’ll notice what’s missing.

The Bottom Line: Not Ready For Prime Time

In terms of the hardware and the basic user interface, the Fire TV Stick 4K Select is a perfectly capable 4K streaming stick. It’s fast, responsive, and you’d be hard-pressed to notice any difference from other Fire TV devices when you’re using the apps that are actually supported.

The problem is everything else.

At £49.99, you’re essentially paying to help Amazon usher in a new era of Fire TV – but there are no real upsides for you as a customer. Everything the Select can do, the other Fire TV sticks can do better.

For just £10 more, the Fire TV Stick 4K gives you Dolby Vision, Dolby Atmos, WiFi 6, double the RAM, and access to over 30,000 apps instead of 900. You get VPN support right now rather than “soon.” You can sideload apps if you need to. The Live TV guide includes all the channels it should.

Or, if you want to spend less, the Fire TV Stick HD costs just £39.99 – a full tenner less than the Select. Yes, it’s limited to 1080p rather than 4K, but it runs the established Android-based Fire OS with the complete app library and all the features Fire TV users have come to expect.

And if you’re genuinely in the market for an affordable 4K streaming stick, and you don’t care about sideloading or VPNs, Roku’s Streaming Stick Plus costs £39.99 – the same as the Fire TV HD and £10 less than the Select. You get 4K with HDR10, HDR10+ and HLG, Roku’s clean and simple interface, and all the UK apps you’d expect. No app availability questions, no waiting for features to arrive.

Perhaps in the future – when there’s better feature and app parity with Android-based Fire TV devices – the Select will be easier to recommend. If it drops to £20 during Black Friday or Prime Day, it becomes quite tempting for anyone who just needs basic 4K streaming from the major services.

And who knows? Maybe Amazon’s full control over Vega OS will eventually enable features and capabilities that weren’t possible when they relied on Android. But they’ve clearly prioritised making Vega OS look and feel as similar as possible to the old system for now, so we’ve yet to see any real benefits from the switch.

What we do know is this: Amazon is clearly committed to Vega OS. They’re testing it on the Select, gathering data, working with developers to expand the app ecosystem. If it proves successful, there’s every chance the entire Fire TV lineup will eventually transition to the new platform.

So if you buy a Select now, you’re essentially an early adopter – helping Amazon iron out the bugs and prove the concept, whilst accepting limitations and uncertainties about long-term app support.

That’s fine if you’re the sort of person who likes being first with new technology. But for most people? At £49.99? It’s a hard sell.