Today, Amazon got into the streaming-stick game with the announcement of the $39 Fire TV Stick, an HDMI-port plugin for your HDTV that will replicate much of the functionality of the full-size Fire TV. Existing Amazon Prime members can preorder the stick for just $19 in the next couple of days, but it won’t ship until November 19, according to Amazon’s site.
It’ll have a few differentiating factors compared to the rapidly expanding field of streaming sticks. Those include a dual-core processor that should mean zippy reaction times, more onboard storage than its competition, and second-screen treats for Amazon tablet users that include X-Ray sync with onscreen content. Like the full-size Fire TV box, the stick will also offer faster load times for Amazon’s streaming content via the “ASAP” feature, and it’ll come with a free month of Prime.
But how does it compare to the Google Chromecast and the Roku Streaming Stick, which will be the new micro-streamer’s obvious competitors? They’ll all fit in your pocket, but here’s how they’ll fit into your life.
