Amazon Fire Stick HDMI 1 or 2

Q: How do I know if my Fire Stick is Gen 1 or 2?

All other Fire TV Stick models use either a logo that says Amazon” with an arrow under it or a logo that is just the Amazon arrow without any words. So, if your Fire TV Stick says Fire TV” then it is without a doubt a 1st-gen Fire TV Stick 4K Max. A 2nd-gen Fire TV Stick 4K Max has not been released.

If you're one of the bazillion people who just got an Amazon Fire TV Stick media device, you may have some questions about how to set up and start using Amazon's tiny streaming stick. With the Fire TV Stick ($23 at Amazon) attached to your smart TV, you can access streaming video from Netflix, Hulu and YouTube TV ($65 at YouTube TV).

Índice Show

Hook the Amazon Fire TV Stick to the TV
Set up the Fire TV Stick with Alexa Voice remote
How to connect Fire TV Stick to your TV
How to set up Fire TV Stick
Does it matter which HDMI port I use for Fire Stick?
Can I plug my Fire Stick into HDMI 2?
How do I know if my Fire Stick is Gen 1 or 2?

Amazon's device especially shines when paired with its companion Prime Video streaming service, letting you watch original hit shows like The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Tom Claney's Jack Ryan and original movies like The Report without needing another streaming device or service.

As part of the setup, you connect the Fire TV Stick to your TV, configure the remote and link your streaming services. Here's how to get started setting up your device.

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Hook the Amazon Fire TV Stick to the TV

Ready? Here's how to connect your Fire TV Stick to your smart TV.

1. Plug the Fire TV Stick's power adapter into an electric outlet, and connect one end of the USB cable to the power adapter.

2. Plug the other end of the USB cable into your Fire TV Stick, and then plug the Fire TV device into your TV's HDMI port.

3. If you have the 4K version of the Fire TV Stick, make sure you are using your TV's HDMI HDCP 2.2 port. The port should be marked 4K or HDCP 2.2. You might need to shine a light on the port labels to find it.

If space is tight around your TV's ports, use the included HDMI extender cable to give yourself some room to work with.

Having a hard time plugging everything in? Try using the included extender cable.

Sarah Tew/CNET

Set up the Fire TV Stick with Alexa Voice remote

Now, let's pair the Fire TV remote that came in the box with the Fire TV device and get everything set up.

1. Grab the remote, and install the included AAA batteries that come in the Fire TV Stick box.

2. Turn on your TV and select the appropriate HDMI input as the source.

The remote should automatically pair with the Fire TV device. If the remote doesn't pair, try removing and reinstalling the batteries. If that doesn't work, press and hold the Home button until the LED starts to rapidly flash an amber color.

3. Press the play/pause button on the Fire TV remote, and follow the on-screen prompts.

4. Choose your language, select your Wi-Fi network, enter your network password using the onscreen keyboard and select Connect.

If you are having trouble with the Wi-Fi signal, try using the included HDMI extender to improve the wireless connection.

5. Next, either sign in to your Amazon account or create one on screen using the remote.

6. On the next screen, enable parental controls for your Fire TV stick if want. This will let you control what content your kids can purchase.

7. Finally, follow the prompts to complete the setup, including setting up your audio and selecting the streaming services you subscribe to.

8. Use the controls on your Fire TV remote to navigate around, or press and hold the Voice button at the top of the remote to have the Alexa voice assistant do it for you. For example, say, "Alexa, open Netflix."

For more, see our guide on all the Alexa commands you can give and how to step up your Amazon Echo game.

Originally published earlier this week.

If you have a Fire TV Stick or Fire TV Stick 4K, you need to connect the device to your TV and then run through the setup procedure. The following discussion takes you through all the steps.

How to connect Fire TV Stick to your TV

Your Fire TV Stick connects to your TV’s HDMI port, which on most TVs is labeled HDMI. If your TV has multiple HDMI ports (as most modern TVs do), then the ports are usually labeled HDMI 1, HDMI 2, and so on, as shown. Newer TVs usually have all their HDMI ports on one side of the TV’s back panel, while on older TVs it’s common to have one HDMI port on the bottom of the TV’s back panel and a second HDMI port on the side of the back panel.

Modern TVs have all their HDMI ports together on the back panel.

The location of the HDMI port is important because the length of the Fire TV Stick (especially the longer Fire TV Stick 4K) often means that there isn’t room between a bottom HDMI port and whatever surface the TV is sitting on for the Fire TV Stick to fit. If that’s the case for you, then you have three possible solutions:

Plug the Fire TV Stick into a side HDMI port, if you have one available.
Mount the TV on the wall (which gives the Fire TV Stick plenty of room because there’s no longer a surface immediately under the TV).
Use the HDMI extender cable that came with your Fire TV Stick. In this case, insert the smaller end of the extender cable into the HDMI port on your TV; then connect your Fire TV Stick to the larger end of the extender cable.

With your Fire TV Stick connected to your TV, grab the USB cable that came with your Fire TV Stick. Connect one end of the USB cable to the port on the side of the Fire TV Stick, plug the other end of the USB cable into the USB port on the power adapter that came with your Fire TV Stick, and then plug the power adapter into a power outlet.

Turn on your TV and change the input source to your Fire TV Stick’s HDMI connection.

How to set up Fire TV Stick

Your Fire TV Stick comes with an Alexa Voice Remote that you use to navigate the Fire TV interface (either by pressing buttons or by using voice commands). Before proceeding with the Fire TV Stick configuration, remove the back cover of the Alexa Voice Remote, insert the two batteries that came with Fire TV Stick, and then reattach the back cover.

When you tune to the Fire TV Stick HDMI port on your TV, the Fire TV Stick starts up for the first time and takes you through the following setup process:

1. When you see the Searching for Your Remote message, press the Home button on the Alexa Voice Remote.

Pressing the Home button enables the Fire TV Stick and the Alexa Voice Remote to connect (or pair) with each other.

If nothing happens when you press the Home button, you can force the Alexa Voice Remote into pairing mode by pressing and holding the Home button for ten seconds, or until you see the Alexa Voice Remote’s LED rapidly flashing amber.

2. On the Alexa Voice Remote, press the Play/Pause button.

Fire TV Stick asks you to choose your language.

3. Use the Alexa Voice Remote to choose the language you want to use.

For now, you use the Alexa Voice Remote to “choose” something by using the navigation ring to press Down (the bottom part of the ring), Up (the top part of the ring), Left (the left part of the ring), or Right (the right part of the ring) to highlight the item you want; then press Select (the circular area in the middle of the navigation ring).

After a few moments, Fire TV Stick displays a list of nearby Wi-Fi networks.

4. Choose your Wi-Fi network.

Fire TV Stick prompts you to enter the network password.

5. Use the Alexa Voice Remote’s navigation ring to enter each character in your network password, and then choose Connect (or press Play/Pause on the remote).

If your network password requires one or more uppercase letters, you can switch to uppercase characters by choosing the aA button or by pressing Menu on the Alexa Voice Remote.

Fire TV Stick connects to your network and then checks to see if there is an available update to Fire OS, the operating system that runs Fire TV Stick. If an update is available, Fire TV Stick downloads and installs the software, which can take a few minutes. Note that Fire TV Stick may restart during this process.

Eventually, Fire TV Stick asks you to sign in to your Amazon account.

6. Choose I Already Have an Amazon Account.

Fire TV Stick displays the Enter Your Amazon Login ID screen.

What if you don’t have an Amazon account? No problem. Choose I Am New to Amazon; then use the Create Account screen to set up your account.

7. In the Email Address field, use the Alexa Voice Remote’s navigation ring to type your Amazon account’s email address, and then choose Next.

Fire TV Stick displays the Enter Your Amazon Account Password screen.

8. In the Password field, use the Alexa Voice Remote’s navigation ring to type your Amazon account’s password (see Figure 3-7), and then choose Sign In.

By default, Fire TV Stick hides the password by displaying each character as a dot. If you want to make sure you entered the password correctly, choose the Show Password button.

If you’ve enabled two-factor authentication on your Amazon account, Fire TV Stick will prompt you to enter a code to verify the sign-in. Type the code that was sent to you, and then choose the Next button.

Fire TV Stick confirms your Amazon credentials, signs in to your account, and then registers your Fire TV Stick. Fire TV Stick then asks which Amazon account you want to use.

9. Choose Continue.

Fire TV Stick asks if you want to save your Wi-Fi password to Amazon. This is part of a feature that Amazon calls Wi-Fi Simple Setup, which enables other Amazon devices you own (such as Echo smart speakers) to automatically connect to your network. This feature really makes setting up those devices easier, so it’s a good idea to let Amazon save your password.

10. Choose Yes.

Fire TV Stick now prompts you to enable parental controls.

11. Choose No Parental Controls.

Fire TV Stick next makes sure the volume buttons on the Alexa Voice Remote are working properly. Before continuing, make sure your TV’s volume is turned up.

12. Choose Next.

Fire TV Stick plays some music so that you can test the Alexa Voice Remote’s volume buttons.

13. On the Alexa Voice Remote, press the Volume Up (+) and Volume Down (–) buttons.

Fire TV Stick asks if the music volume changed when you pressed the Alexa Voice Remote’s volume buttons.

If the volume didn’t change, double-check that the TV volume is turned up loud enough that you can hear the music. Also, make sure you point the Alexa Voice Remote at your TV and that the TV’s output device (if any) is turned on and connected properly.

14. Choose Yes.

Fire TV Stick tells you that the Alexa Voice Remote is configured.

15. Choose OK.

Fire TV Stick asks if you want to set up your streaming services.

16. Choose No Thanks.

If you do want to set up your services now, choose Get Started, and then follow the onscreen prompts.

Congratulations! Your Fire TV Stick is ready for action.

Does it matter which HDMI port I use for Fire Stick?

Note: You do not want to plug your Fire Stick into an HDMI port that is labeled ARC or eARC. Also, if you have a 4K TV, you will want to plug your Fire Stick into an HDMI HDCP 2.2 port if you have one. Next, set your TV to the HDMI channel that you plugged your Fire Stick into.

Can I plug my Fire Stick into HDMI 2?

Even though you can connect an HDMI splitter to a TV – among all the other things it can do which we've explored in our guide – it's not a viable option, because you can't connect the Fire TV Stick. Using An HDMI switch is a much better strategy because it will give you an extra port for the Firestick.

How do I know if my Fire Stick is Gen 1 or 2?

All other Fire TV Stick models use either a logo that says “Amazon” with an arrow under it or a logo that is just the Amazon arrow without any words. So, if your Fire TV Stick says “Fire TV” then it is without a doubt a 1st-gen Fire TV Stick 4K Max. A 2nd-gen Fire TV Stick 4K Max has not been released.

amazon fire stick hdmi