Amazon finally just gave Fire Sticks the upgrade they desperately needed

When Amazon launched its new Fire TV Stick HD last month, a refreshed version of its entry-level 1080p streaming stick, there was a lot to unpack. For starters, it’s been completely redesigned and is now noticeably thinner and smaller than any Fire TV Stick Amazon has released before. And as you’d expect from a next-gen model, it delivers performance improvements alongside Amazon’s newly redesigned Fire TV interface.

But what ended up overshadowing much of the conversation around the new Fire TV Stick HD (and fairly so) is that it runs Vega OS, Amazon’s new Linux-based operating system. That means it doesn’t support sideloading apps the way Android-based Fire OS Fire TV Sticks do, with Amazon citing “enhanced security” as the reason. For enthusiasts who like to install third-party apps, that’s obviously disappointing. And on top of that, Amazon has also confirmed that all future Fire TV Sticks will run Vega OS, so it isn’t going away anytime soon.

However, while Vega OS is an annoyance and I do wish Amazon had stuck with Fire OS, for most people just looking to stream on their TV, it won’t be a particularly noticeable change. And once you move past the software changes and spend some time with the device, as I have recently, the hardware story starts to stand out more. In particular, with the new Fire TV Stick HD, there’s one long-overdue improvement that immediately caught my attention: Amazon has finally ditched the Micro-USB port in favor of something much better.

USB-C is finally on a Fire TV Stick

Better late than never

With the new Fire TV Stick HD, Amazon has finally added a USB-C port for the first time ever. After years of sticking with Micro-USB across its entire Fire TV Stick lineup — even as recently as the Fire TV Stick 4K Select last year — Amazon has finally ditched it in favor of the modern, universal USB-C standard.

While the USB-C port is used mainly for power, which might not sound all that exciting at first, it does open up some useful possibilities, including support for much faster USB accessories than Micro-USB can.

Amazon has already released a new USB-C Ethernet adapter for the new Fire TV Stick HD, and it claims to support speeds of up to 480 Mbps. That’s a strong hint we’re likely dealing with a USB 2.0 USB-C port rather than 3.0, which isn’t too surprising for a budget HD streaming stick, and it’s nice to see a Fire TV Stick finally capable of delivering above 100 Mbps through Ethernet.

Credit: Amazon

Beyond Ethernet adapters, the move to USB-C also means the new Fire TV Stick HD should support other accessories, such as a USB-C OTG (On-The-Go) adapter. In theory, that could allow you to connect external storage devices — like a portable hard drive or SSD — to watch personal media.

Ultimately, switching to USB-C may seem like a small change, but it has big implications for what Fire TV Sticks are capable of going forward. And hopefully, it’s a sign that when Amazon inevitably refreshes the Fire TV Stick 4K Plus and 4K Max at some point in the future (this is speculation on my part), they’ll also have a USB-C port too — and ideally, a faster one with USB 3.0 rather than USB 2.0.