AMAZON has revealed a simple mistake with your Fire Stick set-up that is ruining your 4K picture quality.
It could all be down to using the wrong cable.
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In a support page on Amazon’s website, the company urges customers: “Make sure you’re using a high-speed HDMI cable.”
While the Fire Stick dongle can plug straight into the TV, Amazon advises using a high-speed HDMI cable for streaming content.
Newer HDMI cables can transfer between 10.1Gbps and 18Gbps worth of data, which is over twice as fast as a standard speed cable.
Your 4K TV should come with a premium high-speed cable.
But if you’re relying on an old cable that you found lying around – or in the tangled ‘cable drawer’ every home seems to have – you might be missing out on picture quality.
This is all the more disappointing when you’re paying for 4K Ultra HD video in your subscription plans.
The vast majority of HDMI cables you shop for today will be high-speed or above, which means they can carry a 4K picture signal for DVDs.
Although premium high-speed cables, with an advertised bandwidth of up to 18Gbps, will be able to capture 4K picture with DVDs and when streaming.
Ultra high-speed cables can have up to 48Gbps bandwidth and allow for uncompressed 8K video – which you might need for fast-paced gaming.
But if you’re just looking to stream the likes of Netflix and Disney+ on your Fire Stick, a premium high-speed cable will suffice.
These cables are easily available online, and cost between £5 to £10.
Be sure to look for a cable that has the Premium High Speed QR code on the packaging.
And if you want 4K quality at 120Hz or 8K quality at 60Hz, look for the Ultra High Speed label.
If you are already using a premium high-speed HDMI cable, Amazon suggests you “unplug the HDMI cable and plug it in again” to see if that solves any picture quality woes.
How to cut streaming bills with top FREE TV
Netflix, Disney+ and Amazon Prime don’t come cheap – and year on year subscription costs seem to go up.
Fortunately there are loads of free streaming TV alternatives not everyone knows about.
And we’re not just talking about BBC iPlayer and ITVX.
Here are some free alternatives worth trying:
