Firestick in Thailand

[sirineou]

Ok simple question , can I use a Firestick in Thailand . what is it's functionality, or would another external smart TV device be better.

Some Background: I don't watch much TV, for the most part I watch YouTube via my laptop.  

  I am in the US now, getting ready to retire from work, and will be coming to Thailand in a few months, and since I would not be working anymore, so planning to spend more time there. 

 So I was thinking of bringing a fire stick with me,  I know it will work there, but how functional would it be?  Will I need a VPN , and what VPN would be best for connecting to US based apps. and programing.

Thank you

[FarangRimPing]

Works fine. I have several (for different TVs) and have used them for years.

 

However, I've tried many VPNs and still get blocked by Netflix (US) and Amazon Prime with all of them. 

 

Kodi runs fine on all on my Firesticks and FireTVs.

[Nelson52]

I have firesticks and they work well. Netflix works fine but you need to access the Thai one which is much the same as the US except some content will differ, it's all in English. Kodi works well on it and you can subscribe to an IPTV to get all the American channels you need.

[Tony125]

4 hours ago, FarangRimPing said:

Works fine. I have several (for different TVs) and have used them for years.

 

However, I've tried many VPNs and still get blocked by Netflix (US) and Amazon Prime with all of them. 

 

Kodi runs fine on all on my Firesticks and FireTVs.

Try PrivateVPN , has section for Amazon Prime and Netflix

[DPKANKAN]

Mine and a few of my mates Firesticks have recently gone tits up.  But have bought an Android box off Lazada for under 600 baht that streams brilliantly. You can add USB's, sd cards, memory cards and all sorts. 

[Jeffrey346]

If you ever want to watch US TV just download the Cyberflix app. I believe they have a Firestick version

[IAMHERE]

ROKU is so much better. The firestick is only if you are a Prime member and want to watch video (which is not near worthwhile) from Amazon.  Most every think on Prime is not streamed to Thailand. There is even a section of Prime that is to be watched by people out of the USA, many of those are also not shown in Thailand. 

 

Short quick answer, leave the Firestick in America, bring the ROKU to Thailand.  If you've lost your ROKU remote, easy and cheap replacement from Lazada.

[DogNo1]

I use the Fire TV HD stick and it works quite well.  Many programs come already installed and I enjoy watching Amazon Prime.  I am looking forward the first episode of the new season of Jack Ryan tomorrow.  I find the Fire TV stick easier to use than the various android boxes that I have had.  There are several You Tube videos about how to use the features of Fire TV.  If you pay the subscription fees, all of the paid streaming sources are available: Netflix, HBO, Showtime, etc.  What I particularly like about Fire TV is that you can talk to Alexa through the remote and don’t have to laboriously type your searches.

[sirineou]

1 hour ago, DogNo1 said:

I use the Fire TV HD stick and it works quite well.  Many programs come already installed and I enjoy watching Amazon Prime.  I am looking forward the first episode of the new season of Jack Ryan tomorrow.  I find the Fire TV stick easier to use than the various android boxes that I have had.  There are several You Tube videos about how to use the features of Fire TV.  If you pay the subscription fees, all of the paid streaming sources are available: Netflix, HBO, Showtime, etc.  What I particularly like about Fire TV is that you can talk to Alexa through the remote and don’t have to laboriously type your searches.

 Both of my TVs at home are Rocu Smart TVs and I still use firestick on them. I find the Firestick easier to navigate, but that's probably because I am familiar with it, But mainly I like the voice recognition capability

I have Echo Dots through the house and I can verbally navigate to any show without even the remote. 

[Scottie12]

I have used a Firestick for 3 years and it beats boxes hands down. I am Scottish and get BBC iPlayer, All4, ITV Hub, All 5,UK TVPlayer,Scottish Tv app and more. For all sports I use Livenet TV and for movies and TV shows I use Morph TV both of which are free and work very well. My VPN is Browsec,I have tried virtually all of the others and this is by far the most reliable and reasonably priced. I also have TVMucho on my Firestick which gives me all U.K. Freeview channels and Sky news with a 7 day catchup, this is only 48 euros per year. It used to be a little flaky but is now working very well. I am sure the writer will have the same positive Firestick experience with US programmes.

[sirineou]

3 minutes ago, Scottie12 said:

I have used a Firestick for 3 years and it beats boxes hands down. I am Scottish and get BBC iPlayer, All4, ITV Hub, All 5,UK TVPlayer,Scottish Tv app and more. For all sports I use Livenet TV and for movies and TV shows I use Morph TV both of which are free and work very well. My VPN is Browsec,I have tried virtually all of the others and this is by far the most reliable and reasonably priced. I also have TVMucho on my Firestick which gives me all U.K. Freeview channels and Sky news with a 7 day catchup, this is only 48 euros per year. It used to be a little flaky but is now working very well. I am sure the writer will have the same positive Firestick experience with US programmes.

 Glad to hear from all on the positive experience with Firesticks, It is settled then, The fire sticks are coming.

I will also bring a couple pf echo dots and see how they work, I like to be able to remotely control a few devices via smart plugs from anywhere in the world, as I travel a lot.  

I like to take this opportunity to also thank all for your replies and advice, 

[Speedhump]

4 hours ago, IAMHERE said:

ROKU is so much better. The firestick is only if you are a Prime member and want to watch video (which is not near worthwhile) from Amazon.  Most every think on Prime is not streamed to Thailand. There is even a section of Prime that is to be watched by people out of the USA, many of those are also not shown in Thailand. 

 

Short quick answer, leave the Firestick in America, bring the ROKU to Thailand.  If you've lost your ROKU remote, easy and cheap replacement from Lazada.

You don't even try to explain to him why you believe ROKU is 'so much better'. Hardly very helpful. 

[Scottie12]

I have used a Firestick for 3 years and it beats boxes hands down. I am Scottish and get BBC iPlayer, All4, ITV Hub, All 5,UK TVPlayer,Scottish Tv app and more. For all sports I use Livenet TV and for movies and TV shows I use Morph TV both of which are free and work very well. My VPN is Browsec,I have tried virtually all of the others and this is by far the most reliable and reasonably priced. I also have TVMucho on my Firestick which gives me all U.K. Freeview channels and Sky news with a 7 day catchup, this is only 48 euros per year. It used to be a little flaky but is now working very well. I am sure the writer will have the same positive Firestick experience with US programmes.

The gentleman who says you must have Amazon Prime with the Firestick is talking rubbish,I do not have this and have detailed the varied programmes I get which is more than adequate.

[Jeffrey346]

10 hours ago, Scottie12 said:

I have used a Firestick for 3 years and it beats boxes hands down. 

Firesticks are decent but does not beat boxes like the Nvidia Shield and SkyStream 3 hands down.

Both SkyStream and the Shield will run circles around the Firestick.

 

[sirineou]

36 minutes ago, Jeffrey346 said:

Firesticks are decent but does not beat boxes like the Nvidia Shield and SkyStream 3 hands down.

Both SkyStream and the Shield will run circles around the Firestick.

 

How is Nvidia shield and Sky stream  beat Firestick  3 hands down? (that's a odd number of hands) LOL

[Jeffrey346]

1 minute ago, sirineou said:

How is Nvidia shield and Sky stream  beat Firestick 3 hands down? 

Nvidia is known as the number 1 streaming box. The processor is designed for streaming and gaming. Buffering on my box is far and few. The SkyStream is more or less a copy of the Shield. It was specifically designed for streaming but does use an off the shelf processor.

Both the Shield and the SkyStream have 3G of Ram. The Shield is Google certified and will stream 4K and Netflix flawlessly. Most other boxes and sticks will not support 4K.

The Firestick Cube supports 4K but the stick does not. If you do not have a 4K TV then this may be a moot point.

Don't get me wrong, the Firestick will work fine here in Thailand and since you have a couple, I say use them. 

[Peterw42]

 

2 hours ago, Scottie12 said:

I have used a Firestick for 3 years and it beats boxes hands down. I am Scottish and get BBC iPlayer, All4, ITV Hub, All 5,UK TVPlayer,Scottish Tv app and more. For all sports I use Livenet TV and for movies and TV shows I use Morph TV both of which are free and work very well. My VPN is Browsec,I have tried virtually all of the others and this is by far the most reliable and reasonably priced. I also have TVMucho on my Firestick which gives me all U.K. Freeview channels and Sky news with a 7 day catchup, this is only 48 euros per year. It used to be a little flaky but is now working very well. I am sure the writer will have the same positive Firestick experience with US programmes.

The gentleman who says you must have Amazon Prime with the Firestick is talking rubbish,I do not have this and have detailed the varied programmes I get which is more than adequate.

Cant you run any of those apps on any android box ? And have memory expansion sd/usb slots, ethernet etc. 

I dont get why people love firesticks, for me its just another android device with less features than any other android box.

[sirineou]

11 minutes ago, Jeffrey346 said:

Nvidia is known as the number 1 streaming box. The processor is designed for streaming and gaming. Buffering on my box is far and few. The SkyStream is more or less a copy of the Shield. It was specifically designed for streaming but does use an off the shelf processor.

Both the Shield and the SkyStream have 3G of Ram. The Shield is Google certified and will stream 4K and Netflix flawlessly. Most other boxes and sticks will not support 4K.

The Firestick Cube supports 4K but the stick does not. If you do not have a 4K TV then this may be a moot point.

Don't get me wrong, the Firestick will work fine here in Thailand and since you have a couple, I say use them. 

I don't know much about these things, and I don't play  computer games, but both of my firesticks are 4K, and I love the Voice recognition it makes searching for content a breeze.  I sit down and I say "Alexa play CNN news on fire TV" and it does

 

 

[Jeffrey346]

3 minutes ago, sirineou said:

I don't know much about these things, and I don't play  computer games, but both of my firesticks are 4K, and I love the Voice recognition it makes searching for content a breeze.  I sit down and I say "Alexa play CNN news on fire TV" and it does

 

 

The Shield is Alexa certified. I watch CNN USA everyday. From what I understand, [not 100% sure] Alexa will not function the same way here in Thailand. For some reason Amazon has limited it's functions. You need to verify this with Alexa users here in Thailand.

The new Shield that was released last week is more powerful then mine. The cost is $199. and you usually get what you paid for with upscale units.

With worldwide time differences, many like to download content and view it at a later time. You need SD slots or USB ports to do so. 

[Jeffrey346]

BTW, I suggest you pickup one of these while you are still in the States.

You will get much better results with an ethernet connection than a WIFI connection.

 

https://www.amazon.com/Amazon-Ethernet-Adapter-Fire-Devices/dp/B074TC662N

[IAMHERE]

13 hours ago, Speedhump said:

You don't even try to explain to him why you believe ROKU is 'so much better'. Hardly very helpful. 

Reread the post.

[elgenon]

21 hours ago, DPKANKAN said:

Mine and a few of my mates Firesticks have recently gone tits up.  But have bought an Android box off Lazada for under 600 baht that streams brilliantly. You can add USB's, sd cards, memory cards and all sorts. 

What else do you need beside an android box if you don't have a smart tv?

[Speedhump]

4 hours ago, IAMHERE said:

Reread the post.

Nope. The poster just says you don't get Amazon Prime on Fire Stick in Thailand. I don't want Prime anyway. And this hardly makes ROKU so much better. What else?

[DPKANKAN]

2 hours ago, elgenon said:

What else do you need beside an android box if you don't have a smart tv?

Scart connection and wifi. One of my TV's is over 8 years old and is connected with little problem, although it only picks up 2.4G wifi which slows it down sometimes!

[DPKANKAN]

24 minutes ago, Speedhump said:

Nope. The poster just says you don't get Amazon Prime on Fire Stick in Thailand. I don't want Prime anyway. And this hardly makes ROKU so much better. What else?

You can actually stream free some of Amazon Prime stuff through the 600 baht Android box available on Lazada????????????

[DogNo1]

I get crystal-clear Amazon Prime on my Fire TV HD stick here in my serviced apartment in Bangkok.  Last night, I watched the first two episodes of the new season of Jack Ryan. The series is interesting and beautifully filmed.  The director has a great knack for making the background and composition of the shots visually pleasing.  I highly recommend the series to posters who are able to watch it.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

On 10/31/2019 at 10:33 AM, FarangRimPing said:

However, I've tried many VPNs and still get blocked by Netflix (US) and Amazon Prime with all of them. 

 

There are some that work. But it often comes down to just a few VPN providers, and then, not all of their servers, but often only a handful of specific ones that won't actually be blocked.

 

And it often is specific down to the particular streaming service. What works for Netflix won't necessarily also work for Amazon and Hulu. What works for Amazon and Hulu might not work for Netflix, etc etc... 

 

So it often can take some trial and error experimenting to check each particular server location with each of the services you may want to use.

 

In my experience, though, Express VPN usually seems to have enough servers that one or another will work for all of the main services. Same with Astrill VPN, among others.

 

 

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

On 10/31/2019 at 4:16 PM, IAMHERE said:

ROKU is so much better. The firestick is only if you are a Prime member and want to watch video (which is not near worthwhile) from Amazon.  Most every think on Prime is not streamed to Thailand. There is even a section of Prime that is to be watched by people out of the USA, many of those are also not shown in Thailand. 

 

Short quick answer, leave the Firestick in America, bring the ROKU to Thailand.  If you've lost your ROKU remote, easy and cheap replacement from Lazada.

 

That's silly and wrong. I have a bunch of Fire TV devices, and they all work perfectly fine here -- provided you use them with a good U.S. VPN server. You don't have to be an Amazon Prime member to use a Fire TV device, though being a Prime Member does add access to Amazon Prime video. But overall, pretty much every single U.S. based streaming resource that I could possibly want to watch, I can access via the Fire TV devices here.

 

And the main and overriding difference between Fire devices and Roku devices is Fire TV devices are basically Android OS based, meaning you can sideload and use a whole array of Android apps beyond those specifically made for Fire devices. Whereas with Roku, it's basically a closed ecosystem, and you only can get what's allowed in the Roku channels store and their related private channels.

 

[sirineou]

7 minutes ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

 

That's silly and wrong. I have a bunch of Fire TV devices, and they all work perfectly fine here -- provided you use them with a good U.S. VPN server. You don't have to be an Amazon Prime member to use a Fire TV device, though being a Prime Member does add access to Amazon Prime video. But overall, pretty much every single U.S. based streaming resource that I could possibly want to watch, I can access via the Fire TV devices here.

 

And the main and overriding difference between Fire devices and Roku devices is Fire TV devices are basically Android OS based, meaning you can sideload and use a whole array of Android apps beyond those specifically made for Fire devices. Whereas with Roku, it's basically a closed ecosystem, and you only can get what's allowed in the Roku channels store and their related private channels.

 

What is a good VPN to use for a firestick with access to the US market?

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

On 10/31/2019 at 5:15 PM, DogNo1 said:

 There are several You Tube videos about how to use the features of Fire TV.  If you pay the subscription fees, all of the paid streaming sources are available: Netflix, HBO, Showtime, etc.  

 

That's certainly true re the availability of the various paid streaming services on the Fire TV devices. In fact, Amazon has their Channels program where you can subscribe to a lot of them directly thru your Amazon account and pay for them in the same place, adding a certain level of convenience for those that want it.

 

However, there's also a TON of free content available on Fire TV devices when used with a U.S. VPN -- regular YouTube, Sony Crackle, Paramount app, Tubi TV, Pluto TV, IMDB TV, the various Filmrise apps, Sky News, NHK World, STIRR TV, and on the audio side of things, TuneIn, IHeart Radio, Spotify and MyTuner among others for music, radio stations, podcasts, etc.