🚨 Everyone’s Replacing Firesticks with ONN (But Should YOU?)

0:00 Over the last few months, my comment section has been absolutely flooded by hundreds of you asking the exact same question. What device should I replace my Fire Stick with? People are mass migrating to other devices, and the name that keeps coming up over and over again is the Walmart Onn 4K Pro. Right now, it's looking particularly appealing with Walmart's release of the Onn 4K Pro 2026 model. On paper, I completely understand the hype. But, before you pull the plug on your Amazon setup and try to track one of these down, there are some massive

0:45 catches that a lot of US-based reviewers aren't mentioning. Today, we're going to look at the reality of making the switch, the new restrictions coming to Google TV, and what I actually recommend you do. Hit that subscribe button, and let's get into it. Let's start off with the elephant in the room. Why are so many people abandoning Amazon? It comes down to control. Fire OS has become incredibly ad-heavy, but the real breaking point is the Vega OS threat. As we've covered lots already on the

1:31 channel, Amazon is moving its future lineup entirely away from Android to a Linux-based system called Vega. What does that mean for you? It means zero side-loading of third-party APKs on future devices. For power users, that is a deal-breaker. We also know Amazon has been actively blocking certain third-party apps on existing sticks, which is a perfectly valid reason to want out. But, I do need to give you a quick reality check here. A lot of people are rushing to switch because popular third-party apps like HDO Box and Nova TV, which we covered in another recent video, have stopped

2:18 working altogether. Let me be clear. Changing your device will have zero impact on that. Those apps, which have been completely abandoned by their developers, means a new box won't bring them back to life. Now, if you're leaving for hardware reasons, the limitation on the Fire Stick is obvious. If you want to expand a Fire Stick's storage or hardwire your internet, your TV setup ends up looking like a science experiment. Amazon is giving you a locked-down dongle. Walmart, on the other hand, appears to be offering something completely different. Enter the 2026 Onn 4K Pro.

3:05 At a $60 retail price in the states, Walmart has completely changed the design. It drops the old square look for a flat fabric-wrapped puck that looks exactly like a clone of the more expensive Google TV streamer. They've kept the physical microphone kill switch on the back, and the remote finder button is now built directly into the clickable fabric top of the box. Press it and your remote under the cushion starts buzzing. Now, under the hood, they've swapped the old processor for the new Amlogic S905X5M chip, paired with 3 GB of RAM and 32 GB

3:51 of storage. On paper, it looks like an absolute beast. And this is why people are excited. Because for years a Fire Stick users have been asking for the same basic things. More storage, proper ports, less clutter, and less messing around. Onn looks like it ticks those boxes. So, it has a faster processor, more storage, and a built-in remote finder. Case closed, right? Not exactly. Here is the massive hardware reality check that a lot of reviewers are skipping over. First of all, I can't actually physically test the Onn 4K Pro for you today because I'm here in the UK.

4:39 The Onn is a US, Puerto Rico, and Canada Walmart exclusive. If you remember when the Onn 4K Plus released, I actually bought one and did a whole video showing you the absolute nightmare of shipping fees, inflated reseller prices, and import duties. Not to mention having zero warranty if it breaks. But even worse, these Onn boxes are hard locked to the US. When I imported mine, I was hit with a region unsupported error right out of the box and had to use a complicated VPN workaround just to get the device to boot up past the setup screen.

5:26 On top of that, not all UK free catch-up apps are fully supported. But even if you live in the States or ignore the import nightmare, let's talk about how Walmart secretly cut corners on the hardware. On the original Pro box, you got a fast USB 3.0 port. On this new 2026 version, they've downgraded it to a much slower USB 2.0 port. Then there's the built-in Ethernet port. It sounds great, but it is still throttled at a basic 100 megabits per second. Because this box is equipped with Wi-Fi 6, the wireless speed is actually five

6:13 times faster than plugging it in. So weirdly, if your Wi-Fi is strong, plugging in Ethernet may actually be slower. And for my power users, here is the absolute killer. Despite using a brand new powerful 64-bit processor, Walmart locked the operating system down to a 32-bit version of Android 14. This means some modern emulators and advanced third-party apps that require 64-bit system won't work properly. To make matters worse, it completely fails to support Dolby Vision Profile 7 or lossless audio pass-through for local

7:01 Plex servers. If you're trying to build a high-end local media library, this box is going to force your server to transcode everything, meaning you're losing that original high-fidelity quality. It is definitely not the cheap Nvidia Shield alternative you were hoping for. So the hardware isn't perfect, but let's say you don't care about emulators or Plex servers. You just want a clean device that isn't Amazon, so you can sideload your basic apps in peace. Well, let's not pretend Google TV is a wide-open utopia anymore. As I covered in a recent video, Google is actively making side loading much

7:47 more restrictive across their entire ecosystem. They're putting a new advanced workflow in place for unverified apps. This includes jumping through multiple warning screens, a mandatory device restart, and a 24-hour security lock specifically designed to slow users down before an app will actually install. You're essentially just trading Amazon's walled garden for Google's. It might look cleaner on the home screen, but the days of instant unrestricted side loading on Google TV are rapidly coming to an end. So, what is the honest verdict from a

8:33 user point of view? On is better than Fire Stick in the areas Fire Stick users complain about most. But, it is not better than everything. First, if you hear in the UK, do not buy an Onn Box. The import fees, the region locks, the VPN headaches, and the lack of UK catch-up apps make it a terrible choice for a main television device. Second, if you only use mainstream streaming apps like Netflix, Prime Video, or Disney Plus, and your current Fire Stick is working fine, just stick with it. Moving to a new device isn't going to change your day-to-day experience. However, if you are absolutely desperate

9:20 to leave the Amazon ecosystem because you hate the heavy ads and the direction of Vega OS, but you still want a certified Google TV box that works perfectly into our market, look into something like the Google TV streamer that we also covered on the channel. But finally, if you are a true power user, if you're sick of Amazon blocking apps, tired of Google's new 24-hour side loading locks, and you want absolute unfiltered control over your hardware and storage, stop buying cheap streaming sticks altogether. Setting up a dedicated mini PC is the ultimate solution, and I have a full step-by-step guide on exactly how to do it, linked right here on screen and in

10:09 the description. So let me know what you think. Are you starting with Amazon, or what device are you planning to jump to next? Let me know down in the comments. I read every single one. Hit that like button. Thanks for watching, and I'll see you in the next one. >> [music] [music]