The Greatest Streaming Gadgets of 2023

Streaming devices and sticks are a straightforward way to get all of your streaming services to the most important place—your TV. All the streaming devices we recommended provide access to major streaming services like Netflix and HBO Max available from the get-go without all the hassle of dealing with a Smart TV’s UI.

One key factor to keep in mind with streaming players is that while all of these devices will have the most popular streaming services on them, you’ll want to make sure that the device supports less popular or more niche services (such as Viki or Philo). The interfaces for some of these devices can vary, but in general, they all work the same.

Almost all of our streaming device recommendations are 4K streaming devices. These devices are in the same price range (and sometimes even less) as their HD counterparts while allowing for HDR and 1080p streaming. Even if you don’t yet have a 4K TV, you’ll be able to use your streaming device when you do upgrade.

Now, let’s get into the best streaming devices today.

When most people get a streaming device, they tend to get a Roku, and it’s easy to see why. Roku provides a variety of options at a really great price, and generally, they don’t skimp on what’s most important.

So, it’s no surprise that the best streaming device is a Roku, specifically the new Roku Streaming Stick 4K. For just $50, you’ll have access to all the popular streaming services and then some, all on one device. Setup is a breeze, and you’ll get HDR10+ and Dolby Vision-compatible content on your TV in a snap.

Roku’s remote control can also be programmed to work with your TV, so you can control the volume and turn your TV on and off just with the Roku remote. What this remote doesn’t have, however, are programmable streaming service buttons or the ability to find it via voice—you’ll need to pay the premium of the Roku Streaming Stick 4K+ to get those features.

Other than a few missing features on the remote, the only other downside to the Streaming Stick 4K is that you can’t play your own content from the device. While that isn’t a concern for most, if you want to be able to play your personal collection of shows and movies from a storage device, our best Roku streaming device pick will be a better choice.

For everyone else, though, you can’t beat the price and functionality of the Streaming Stick 4K.

Roku Streaming Stick 4K

Best Streaming Device Overall

$47 $50 Save $3

The Roku Streaming Stick 4K is a cheap and painless way to stream all your favorite movies and shows in ultra-crisp 4K resolution.

If you’re looking to spend as little money as possible on a streaming stick, the Fire Stick TV Lite will be an alright bet. This streaming stick will plug effortlessly into your TV. All you need to do is turn everything on, and you’ll have your streaming services all in one place.

The Fire TV Stick Lite is only $30 at full price, making it the cheapest of the picks on our list. However, most of the other picks are only a little more expensive (our favorite of the bunch, the Roku Streaming Stick 4K, is only $50) and offer a variety of additional features. The Fire Stick TV Lite does not have 4K streaming capabilities, nor does the Alexa-enabled remote have TV controls on it.

Given the small price difference between the Fire Stick TV Lite and some of our other picks, we recommend giving some of the other devices on this list a read first. But, if you’re looking to spend as little as possible and know you’re not upgrading to 4K anytime soon, the Fire Stick TV Lite will get the job done.

Fire TV Stick Lite

Best Budget Streaming Device

Inexpensive, discrete, and providing plenty of streaming options, the Fire Stick TV Lite is a good way to upgrade a non-Smart TV without much fuss.

Any Roku device can be great for upgrading your TV to a media streaming system, particularly the Express 4K+ and the Ultra. But if you’re going to upgrade your viewing experience, why not go the whole way and pick a streaming device that also boosts the audio quality?

The Roku Streambar might be the most expensive product they offer, but it’s also the one with the most features. It brings high-quality 4K and HDR streaming to any compatible television, combined with the sort of cinematic Dolby audio experience usually only found on high-end and more expensive media setups. It can even be mounted on a wall if you don’t use a TV stand.

Clever Roku OS software helps to boost volume and speech clarity beyond what might be expected from a soundbar as relatively small as this one and can even be configured to automatically lower the volume during commercials or boost it for nighttime viewing. If there’s nothing worth watching, you can use the Streambar as a standalone Bluetooth speaker, playing music from your phone, tablet, or any other connected device.

Unfortunately, you only get a standard Roku Voice Remote rather than the improved controller that comes with the Roku Ultra. If that’s a dealbreaker, you could opt for the more expensive Streambar Pro. It’s nearly double the price but includes the remote with a headphone jack, upgraded audio drivers, and virtual surround sound.

If you’re entirely happy with your TV audio, the Ultra might be the best Roku streaming device for you. But if your media setup could benefit from a sound boost, the Streambar is a great way to get it for just a few dollars more.

Roku Streambar

Best Roku Streaming Device

The Roku Streambar brings the most popular streaming service to your TV while vastly improving your audio experience. It combines a Roku streaming stick with a soundbar!

Fire TV sticks are a popular choice among the varied streaming devices available, and for good reason. They’re cheap, easy to set up and use, and give instant access to a heap of free content if you have an Amazon Prime subscription. But if you want the best streaming experience, it’s worth looking beyond the basic Fire Stick models.

The Fire TV Stick 4K Max is Amazon’s most powerful and capable small streaming device. For just a few dollars more than the Fire Stick 4K, you get full HD or 4K HDR streaming, access to Dolby Vision, Dolby Atmos audio, and extras like live picture-in-picture. But more importantly, in terms of performance and stream quality, it also lets you use Wi-Fi 6.

Of course, most of those features are also on the Fire TV Stick 4K. What sets the Max apart, even more so than the faster Wi-Fi connectivity, is the hardware upgrade. The CPU, GPU, and memory have all been improved significantly, and it shows. Amazon itself suggests that it performs 40% faster than the 4K, and it certainly feels that way when you use it. Apps load in a blink, navigating the menus is smoother and more fluid, and input lag has been reduced.

If you’re looking for your first Fire TV stick, it makes sense to start with the best on offer and the one that’s the most futureproof. Even if you can’t use Wi-Fi 6, spending a few extra bucks on the Max is definitely the way to go.

Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Max

Best Fire TV Streaming Device

The Fire TV Stick 4K Max brings you all of the quality improvements of the 4K but with the addition of upgraded hardware and faster and more reliable Wi-Fi 6 connectivity.

In 2020, Google decided to take the minimal Chromecast to the next level with the Chromecast with Google TV. This Chromecast is actually a streaming device instead of older models simply casting your PC or phone screen onto the TV, so it’s a lot better for those who want a hassle-free, 4K streaming experience.

Google TV is a modified version of Android TV and comes with a few unique features. First, you can make a watchlist of everything you want to watch across all of your streaming platforms. This theoretically makes it easier to find what you want to watch. However, currently, there are no ways to organize the list you’ve made. While that’s no different than most streaming services, when you have a huge list of shows to watch from every service, what’s originally an annoyance turns into something more frustrating.

But it’s still easy to hop into any of your services and find what you want. And if you search via the Google TV UI or with Google Assistant, you’ll easily be able to figure out where the show or movie you want to watch is streaming or where it can be rented, without omitting competitor options. You can even find some niche options on Google TV, so you can stream everything you want to watch without issues or side-loading (though you still can).

One thing to note about the Chromecast with Google TV is that it’s slow. The interface loads pretty slowly, which can be annoying to deal with when you just want to watch something. This isn’t a Wi-Fi issue, either, but instead an issue with the minimal RAM built into the Chromecast itself.

Chromecast with Google TV (2020)

Best Google TV Streaming Device

With a dedicated remote and the ability to stream directly from the device, the Chromecast with Google TV is leagues ahead of the minimal older models.

Do you want it all, and do you need it all on Android TV, specifically? There are admittedly not a lot of good options for Android TV streaming devices with Google TV taking over the market, but one of the few will do a lot. The NVIDIA Shield Android TV Pro will give you beautiful Dolby Atmos and Dolby Vision in 4K.

If you’re a gamer, GeForce Now will allow you to stream and play games on the NVIDIA Shield TV. If you’re just looking for something to watch movies and shows with, that won’t matter much, but for those looking to try game streaming a try, this is pretty neat.

The problem is that the NVIDIA Shield Pro is expensive for a streaming device. Very expensive. With a $200 price tag, this is the most expensive pick on our list.

In addition, this is a 2019 device, and while that means it doesn’t work as well as newer devices, it does mean that we might see an update soon. A new NVIDIA Shield TV may not be cheaper, but will likely have updated tech and just be better overall, so it becomes difficult to recommend a $200 purchase when this may be an issue.