Plex Has Issues On The New Fire TV Stick

One of the biggest highlights of Amazon’s most recent announcements was the introduction of a brand-new Fire TV Stick, the Fire TV Stick 4K Select, which comes with a brand-new, Linux-based operating system, Vega OS. Apparently, though, it needs some time before you can use Plex on it as well as you currently can on older Fire TV devices.

Plex confirmed that a compatible version of its app, featuring its newer user interface, will be available in the Vega OS app store at launch. So while you will be able to use Plex as soon as your new Fire TV Stick 4K Select reaches your doorstep, you’ll have to wait a bit for a fuller experience. The most significant restriction at launch involves direct media playback. For those of you who stream from your personal media libraries, the Fire TV Stick 4K Select will only be able to directly play video files encoded in H.264 with AAC audio, and only at a maximum bitrate of 7Mbps.

Any content that does not meet these specific criteria—such as files using the more modern H.265 (HEVC) codec, various surround sound audio formats like DTS or Dolby TrueHD, or any video with a bitrate exceeding the low 7Mbps cap—will require the user’s Plex Media Server to transcode the file in real-time. Which, as you’re probably aware, can be rough. Transcoding involves the server converting the media into a compatible format on the fly. This process is CPU-intensive and requires a powerful server for a smooth experience, especially with high-resolution 4K content. So if you’re running your Plex server off an old computer, it’s going to struggle. For users with modest server hardware, this limitation could lead to buffering or an inability to play much of their library. Plex has stated it is “actively working with Amazon to support additional codecs” to improve direct play performance in the future.

Beyond the core playback engine, several advanced features that users of other platforms have come to expect will be absent at launch. The app will not support variable playback speeds, nor will it allow for display mode adjustments to manage aspect ratios (such as zoom or letterbox). Furthermore, advanced video features like automatic refresh rate and resolution switching are not yet implemented. Plex noted that some of these capabilities are not yet supported by Vega OS itself, meaning their future inclusion is dependent on updates from Amazon rather than hinging on Plex’s side—something you’ll want to keep in mind as Plex catches up.

The initial app will also be limited to video-on-demand content. Support for personal Music and Photo libraries is not included in the launch version. And in terms of basic functionality, the “Automatic Sign In” setting is also missing, though Plex has indicated this will be added soon.

Keep an eye on upcoming updates if you’re getting an Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Select, but if you don’t mind them right now, then you’ll be glad to know Plex will be there from day one.

Source: Plex