Amazon has already said that all future Fire TV Sticks will run Vega OS, so it’s only a matter of time before the last Android-based models are replaced. That leaves the Fire TV Stick 4K Plus and Fire TV Stick 4K Max as the final holdouts before Amazon’s much-hated new operating system takes over the lineup. Even though the Fire TV Cube is the oldest model in the lineup and therefore seemingly next in line to be replaced, it now looks like Amazon may purge its remaining Fire OS sticks sooner than originally expected.
Amazon typically announces new devices in September and usually includes at least one new Fire TV model among them. Guessing which Fire TV model would be replaced next used to be as simple as looking for the oldest one, but that hasn’t been the case lately. Amazon’s eagerness to move its cheapest models away from Fire OS and onto the more restricted Vega OS has pushed new devices like the Fire TV Stick 4K Select and Fire TV Stick HD to the front of the release line.
Of the remaining models, the 3rd-gen Fire TV Cube is the oldest, having been released in 2022. The Fire TV Stick 4K Plus was technically introduced under that name in 2025, but it’s really just a renamed version of the 2nd-gen Fire TV Stick 4K, which was released in 2023 alongside the Fire TV Stick 4K Max. By age alone, the Cube would seem like the obvious candidate to be updated next month, but one indicator says otherwise.
Anyone who has paid attention to Fire TV pricing knows that the entire lineup goes on sale every few weeks, so deep discounts aren’t necessarily a sign that Amazon is clearing out inventory ahead of a new model. Counterintuitively, a Fire TV model not going on sale is a better sign that a replacement is coming. That’s because Amazon will often exclude models that are nearing replacement from sales to stretch the remaining inventory until a new model is ready to be announced. That appears to be happening with the Fire TV Stick 4K Max, while an unusually small discount on the Fire TV Stick 4K Plus may be another variation of the same strategy.
Every Fire TV model except the Fire TV Stick 4K Max is currently on sale. The Fire TV Stick 4K Plus is technically discounted by $10, but this is the first time it has ever gone on sale for so little off. Those are solid indicators that the two remaining Android-based Fire TV Sticks will be replaced next month by Vega OS models. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Amazon replace all three existing 4K sticks with a simpler two-model lineup that drops the confusing Select and Plus names and brings back the straightforward Fire TV Stick 4K name.
Either way, if you’re at all in the market for an Android-based Fire TV Stick, it’s probably best to pick one up sooner rather than later. Amazon will likely continue selling the current Fire TV Stick 4K Plus and 4K Max while supplies last even after Vega OS replacements arrive, but the Android era of the Fire TV Stick could be coming to an end as soon as next month.