Katarzyna Petru
Xiaomi has released an updated version of its TV Stick 4K dongle – a device that has seen virtually no major changes since December 2021. The new generation looks similar, but under the hood, it has several significant improvements. And while it’s not a breakthrough, it could be an interesting option in the lower price range.
Better chip, faster Wi-Fi, more HDRs
The heart of the new TV Stick is a chip with a quad-core Cortex-A55 and Mali-G310 graphics. According to Xiaomi, this is supposed to deliver +80% overall performance and +150% graphics. Sounds good, but we still only have 2 GB of RAM and 8 GB of storage – even though Google TV already requires 16 GB as a minimum. For some reason, Xiaomi decided to ignore this.
On the plus side – there’s Dolby Vision and HDR10+, Dolby Atmos, and now also DTS:X. The picture and sound are said to be noticeably better, and thanks to Wi-Fi 6, streaming should be smoother. Bluetooth 5.2 remains unchanged.
Android TV? No, it's already Google TV
The biggest change is the software. Xiaomi has moved away from Android TV and opted for Google TV. Users get a new, more modern interface and better content recommendations. Additionally, there's a subtly refreshed remote – featuring a new shortcut to Xiaomi's free live channels.
For now, there is no official release date or price in Europe. However, it is known that the device has already gone on sale in China – it can be purchased on AliExpress for 49 dollars (~185 złotych), which is much cheaper than the suggested 135 USD.
Is it worth it?
If you need something small, cheap, and portable for streaming – this could be a very sensible option. Especially after the withdrawal of Chromecast with Google TV from the market. But if you're after more memory, you’d be better off opting for something more powerful – like the Xiaomi TV Box S (3rd gen) with 32 GB of memory or the Thomson Streaming Box Plus 270 with 3 GB of RAM. The top pick in this class remains the Google TV Streamer with 4 GB of RAM.
