Exploring a streaming device in Kenya? Here are some options you can consider

There are quite a few ways to watch online content on your TV, including hooking up your PC/laptop to the TV using an HDMI cable, using your game consoles (PlayStation and Xbox) which are normally connected with streaming services, using your TV’s built-in apps, or buying a dedicated media streaming hub.

Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, Google TV, and Roku are the four main players when it comes to making devices that stream media, and choosing either of them to be your daily driver will provide you with all popular music and video streaming services that are available in Kenya ranging from Netflix to Spotify.

Should you want to access geographically locked content, you will need a VPN, but that is a story for another day.

Before you settle on a device, you first need to evaluate your media needs so that you purchase a streaming device that will take full advantage of your TV and speakers. If you have an excellent internet connection (faster than 25 Mbps) and a 4K TV, it is wise to pick a streaming stick that can serve 4K content as you have the infrastructure to support UHD streaming.

On the other hand, if you have an older 1080p TV, selecting a budget streaming stick that can handle HD content is a sensible choice unless you want a more expensive option for future-proofing when you ultimately upgrade your TV.

I have analysed a host of various streaming sticks in Kenya to come up with three at various price points i.e. budget, the best value, and high-end so that you can make an informed choice when deciding on what best suits your needs.

Budget – Amazon Fire TV Stick Lite

At a starting price of about Kshs 5,000 (and going all the way to Kshs 6,000) in different electronics shops in Kenya, the Amazon Fire TV Stick Lite offers the most inexpensive way to the streaming world while still remaining friendly to your pocket.

For this price, you get all the features and apps present in the more powerful Amazon Fire Stick, with the difference only being the more expensive Fire TV Stick has support for Dolby Atmos output.

This should not be a problem if you do not have an enthusiast sound set-up of more than 3 speakers and a subwoofer that can take advantage of Dolby Atmos sound output.

The Amazon Fire TV Stick Lite supports streaming in FHD and can also handle HDR10 and HDR10+ so you are ticking all the boxes at a very affordable price.

Best Value – Chromecast With Google TV

If you have a little more to spend on a streaming stick, the Chromecast with Google TV costs has a starting price of about Kshs 8,000 (going all the way to Kshs 10,000) in Kenya.

The increased price brings more features and performance than our budget option, the Amazon Fire TV Stick Lite.

First, you get support for 4K UHD streaming, Dolby Vision and HDR10. You also get access to Google Assistant for voice commands, as well as cast features to easily display your smartphone’s or laptop’s content on the big screen.

As indicated by the name, this Chromecast uses Google TV, which is a new user interface that better brings together content across different apps and services than the normal Android TV.

This device coming with its own remote is just the icing on the cake and easily makes it the best Chromecast in the Kenyan market.

High-end – Nvidia Shield

If you are looking for more performance, then the Nvidia shield might be right up your alley. At around Kshs 25,000 for the entry-level variant and up to about Kshs 30,000 for the Pro model, the Nvidia Shield is expensive, especially compared to other 4K streaming devices like the Amazon Fire TV stick and Chromecast with Google TV. However, you also get so much more from the Nvidia Shield that is not available on the other streaming devices.

The first standout feature is AI upscaling. This feature, normally found in high-end TVs, uses AI to improve the quality of whatever content you are watching. For instance, if you are watching an HD video, the AI upscaling will work on the video to output content that is at a 4K level of detail.

You also get a game controller if you buy the performance/gaming/Pro edition of the Nvidia Shield. Moreover, the Xbox and PlayStation controllers are compatible with the Nvidia Shield making game streaming using the shield convenient and easy.

The Nvidia Shield runs on Android, therefore you also have access to Google Assistant as well as other products and services from Google.

Despite the Nvidia Shield being more than twice expensive as its streaming counterparts, it has significantly more powerful hardware making things such as AI upscaling possible while you also get the ability to stream your PC games courtesy of Nvidia.

Conclusion

There are also quite a few streaming boxes in the Kenyan market that are not associated with the four main players (Fire TV, Google TV, Roku, and Apple TV). These boxes typically run on Android, and their quality varies from manufacturer to manufacturer.

They also cost a bit less, which usually translates to their performance not matching the established ones, since they normally cheap out on the processor and RAM. If you go down this route, do it with caution so that you are not disappointed with a subpar product that can not handle Full HD streaming without stuttering or crashing.