I found a secret accessory that could make your Fire TV Stick faster

Nothing is more frustrating than streaming a show and being cut off by buffering at a crucial moment. Or trying to watch something in 4K and experiencing constant quality drops. These problems can happen when you’re streaming over Wi-Fi, especially if your connection isn’t strong.

One downside of using a streaming stick is that it relies entirely on Wi-Fi. So if your Wi-Fi signal struggles to reach your device, your streaming experience may suffer. However, if you’re using an Amazon Fire TV Stick and encountering these problems, there is a viable solution.

For years, Amazon has sold a little-known accessory called the “Ethernet Adapter for Amazon Fire TV Devices.” As its name implies, this adapter allows you to connect an Ethernet cable to your Fire TV Stick, providing a more stable connection. I purchased one of these adapters for $15 to test it out, and while it might seem like a great way to speed up your Fire TV Stick, your results may vary.

The speed of Amazon’s Fire TV Ethernet adapter is limited

It can only reach a maximum speed of 100 Mbps – not even close to gigabit

For starters, if you’re curious about how this adapter works, it directly connects to the Micro USB port on the side of your Fire TV Stick, where the power cable usually connects. It then extends to a hub with an Ethernet port and another Micro USB port used to supply power. The setup is very straightforward, and the only challenging part is just getting an Ethernet connection to it. If you already have an Ethernet cable connected to your router nearby, this will be simple. However, if you need to wire one yourself, it could make the setup more complex depending on where your router is and how far it is from your Fire TV Stick.

Now, usually, when you hardwire something directly to your router, you can expect to see better connection speeds. While this might be true if you use this Ethernet adapter on a Fire TV Stick, it might not always be the case. Let me explain.

The Ethernet adapter Amazon sells for its Fire TV devices has a very clear limitation: it only supports 10/100 Ethernet. This means its connection speed maxes out at 100Mbps, not gigabit. For reference, for 4K streaming, Netflix recommends having a connection speed of 15Mbps or higher, so in theory, this adapter provides more than enough speed.

If your Wi-Fi isn’t the greatest, and you deal with buffering or quality drops a lot, getting this adapter and hooking it to your Fire TV Stick may solve a lot of issues for you, granted you’re able to wire up an Ethernet connection to it without much hassle. I tested it out with my Fire TV Stick 4K Max, and all my streams loaded up quickly, and it had no issues maintaining 4K quality. However, since I have a solid 5Ghz Wi-Fi connection, I noticed virtually no difference compared to using the Fire TV Stick 4K Max’s Wi-Fi 6E capabilities. So, how can you easily find out if this adapter is worth purchasing for you? Luckily, all Fire TV Sticks have a built-in way to figure that out.

How to find out if the Fire TV Ethernet adapter is worth it for you

You can perform an internet speed test on your Fire TV Stick to find out

To determine if this Ethernet adapter is worth purchasing for your Fire TV Stick, Amazon offers a handy tool on all its Fire TV Sticks that lets you test your Wi-Fi connection speed. You can access this feature by navigating to Settings > Network. From there, hover over your Wi-Fi connection and press the pause/play button on your Fire TV remote. You’ll then see a screen appear where you can test the Wi-Fi speed on your Fire TV Stick.

If you run this test and your Wi-Fi speed is under 100Mbps, then this Ethernet adapter is probably worth buying to get a faster, more stable connection — assuming your internet speed from your ISP is capable of that. However, if your speed greatly exceeds 100Mbps, this adapter isn’t that helpful because, as I mentioned earlier, it maxes out at 100 Mbps due to its 10/100 Ethernet connection. My Wi-Fi speed tested at 308Mbps, so when I connect the Fire TV Stick Ethernet adapter to my Fire TV Stick 4K Max, I’m actually bottlenecking its maximum connection speed, as with the Ethernet adapter plugged in, I was only getting a maximum of around 90Mbps download.

Overall, that’s why I say Amazon’s Fire TV Ethernet adapter could improve your streaming experience with your Fire TV Stick. If your Wi-Fi signal is unreliable and your download speed is under 100 Mbps, this $15 adapter could be a game-changer, significantly boosting your Fire TV Stick’s internet connection and streaming quality. However, if your Wi-Fi is stable and fast, using this adapter might unintentionally slow down your internet to the Fire TV Stick due to its speed limitations. But if you prefer to keep your Fire TV Stick wired at all times to avoid any issues, then this $15 Ethernet adapter is worth it for the peace of mind that comes with a consistent connection.