More than ever, having a good way to stream content to your TV is important. With dozens of streaming services available today, and more and more exclusives becoming streaming-only shows, being able to watch original content and old favorites is an essential part of entertainment.
If you have never used a streaming device, the Fire Stick It’s a good place to start. Priced at just $29 for the base model, getting into the Fire Stick ecosystem is super easy, super affordable, and thanks to Prime shipping, it can arrive at your door in just a couple of days.
However, being part of the Amazon ecosystem, when you set up your Fire Stick, the setup app insists that you provide your Amazon account information. For most users, this is not a problem. In fact, it means that you can use Amazon Fire TV Stick without registering Amazon account.
How to use an Amazon Fire TV Stick without registering your Amazon account
Of course, Amazon is far from a perfect company, and many people want to use the excellent interface and app library that the Fire Stick offers, while avoiding further entanglement with Bezos’s empire.
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So, if you want to protect your privacy while using your Fire TV Stick, you might be interested to know how to configure yours without linking your personal Amazon account.
Buy a Fire Stick
The first thing you should know is the following: if you buy your Fire Stick Using a standard Amazon account, it will likely come preloaded with your Amazon account credentials. That means you’re better off buying a used Fire Stick from somewhere like or Craigslist, or just buy one through Amazon with a second account.
You can always cancel an Amazon account, which of the device completely. To some, this may seem like an invasion of privacy, but if you’re so worried about Amazon knowing what you do with your device, you probably shouldn’t. buy a fire stick.
The registration process
When you first turn on your Fire TV Stick, it launches a setup screen. Here, you will be asked to enter the details of an Amazon account to proceed with activating the device and gaining access to its feature set.
If you don’t want Amazon to know that you own this Fire TV Stickyou have two basic options:
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- Register your Fire TV Stick using your own account, and unregister later after you’ve installed an alternative method of accessing content.
- Register the Fire TV Stick using a disposable account.
Any of these options will help you keep your data and activity more or less private, so choose the option you prefer. I explain how to do either of the two.
Set up a Fire TV Stick with your own account
This is a very easy way to keep your Fire TV Stick separate from your personal Amazon account. However, if you’re really paranoid about Amazon knowing who you are, you’ll want to use the other approach. With this method, at least in theory they could know that this Fire TV Stick is connected to your account.
To perform this method, you just have to follow these simple steps:
- Connect the Amazon Fire TV Stick to your TV and your home network.
- Enter your account details when prompted.
- Load Kodi or another content management app.
- Choose Settings->My Account->Amazon Account.
- Choose Deregister.
This method will allow you to continue streaming content through Kodi or a similar app without Amazon being able to track your activity through your Fire Stick.
Set up a Fire TV Stick with a blank account
If you’re a little more concerned about your privacy than the average person, you may prefer to use a fake Amazon account to set up your Fire TV Stick.
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To set up your Fire Stick with a fake Amazon account:
- Buy a prepaid Visa gift card or a prepaid Visa credit card.
- Create a new Amazon account with a fake name and add Visa card as a payment method.
- Register your Amazon Fire Stick using this account.
The main problem is finding a card that works. Gift cards that require you to enter the CVV code three digits when paying for something will not work on Amazon.
For that reason, you may want to invest in a full prepaid Visa card. Once you have that card associated with your Amazon account, you can use your balance for something else, so the only thing it will cost you is the initial fee for the card (usually about $4.95).
Although this method may take a little more effort, it will ensure that Amazon cannot link your personal Amazon account, and therefore your personal information, to your Fire Stick in any way.
Installing Kodi
Let’s take a step back. If you have canceled the registering your Amazon accountyou’ll probably want to install Kodi or a similar program on your Fire TV Stick to have access to more content.
If you don’t know Kodi, you should know that it is one of the Internet’s favorite open source media players. Originally released over fifteen years ago under the name XBMC, Kodi works as a media center and home theater PC client, allowing you to stream and watch content from anywhere in the world.
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Kodi has a fantastic interface, a great theming engine complete with tons of options, preferences and skins, and the ability to add apps from multiple sources using software repositories.
This makes Kodi one of the most powerful media streaming applications available online, especially in a post-Windows Media Center world. If you’re looking for something with a lot of power behind it, Kodi is the app for you.
Alternatives to Fire Stick
Finally, it’s important to remember that sometimes it’s actually easier to turn to alternatives to the Amazon empire than simply use a fire stick. Obviously, if you already have one on hand – like if it was given to you as a gift – there is no reason to rush out and buy a new stick, but if not, you can consider one of these alternatives:
- : The most obvious choice is Roku, the last big player not owned by a multibillion-dollar corporation. Roku started out as a device built specifically for Netflix, but now they host almost every major streaming service under the sun. Plus, with plenty of models, it’s easy to choose the one that fits your budget.
- : Google’s new Chromecast with Google TV finally has a full interface and a remote control, and at $49, it’s the same price as the Fire Stick 4K. Google also develops TV, which is included in devices such as .
- Manzana: The latest Apple TV is super expensive, even for the 1080p model, but if you’re already in the Apple ecosystem, nothing works better with their devices.
- Video game consoles: If you have one or an Xbox One (or, if you’re lucky, a and an Xbox Series
Ultimately, there are several ways to get by using an Amazon account with your Fire Stick, but if you’re really worried about it, it may be time to .
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