Are ONN TVs Any Good, and Is This Streaming Stick Worth It?
Worth it, with a catch
Why your old TV feels left behind
You dig behind an old TV, find the HDMI port under a layer of dust, and plug in something barely bigger than a car key, hoping it turns a decade-old dumb screen into something that streams without a fight. It's the same question people ask about whether onn TVs are any good, just aimed at the cheap stick instead of the whole television. You plug it in, and the doubt sits right there in the first ten seconds: will this actually stay connected, or is it another sub-fifty-dollar gadget that buffers on you.
How the onn streaming stick turns any TV smart
Here's where your money actually goes: not into a screen, because this isn't a TV, it's a stick-sized Android computer with a WiFi radio and Google's Chromecast built straight into the chip. That's the mechanism worth tracing. Because Chromecast is native, you don't have to hunt for an app on the stick's own menu, you just cast from your phone or laptop and the stick catches the stream and plays it, turning any old TV into a mirror for whatever's already in your hand. The remote's mic button runs the same trick through voice: press it, ask, and the stick queries Google Assistant the way a phone would, then routes the answer to the right app. Underneath, it's genuine Android TV, so the Play Store apps you already use show up unmodified, not some stripped-down proprietary menu pretending to be a smart platform. The marketing skips the resolution part: this tops out at 2K, full HD, not 4K, which is the honest trade for the price, and it's fine on most sets since a lot of streamed content still tops out there anyway. The catch that isn't in the bullet points is geography. Chromecast and the Assistant layer lean on regional licensing and account infrastructure, and that infrastructure is built around the US and Puerto Rico, so outside that footprint the same hardware can behave inconsistently, apps missing, casting stalling, nothing to do with the stick itself failing.
So the real question was never really about onn TVs as a category, it's about whether a stick this cheap can do a smart TV's job through the back of a dumb one. It can, reliably, inside the US and Puerto Rico, because the hardware and the software are the same either way. Outside that footprint, or with shaky WiFi, you're paying for hardware that can't fully use the thing that makes it worth buying.
Who the onn streaming stick is for, and who should skip it
Worth it if
- you have an older TV with a working HDMI port
- you live in the US or Puerto Rico
- you want voice search and phone casting without buying a new TV
- you're fine with 2K full HD instead of 4K
Skip it if
- you live outside the US or Puerto Rico
- you already own a smart TV or streaming device that works well
- you need 4K resolution
- you want guaranteed rock-solid performance every single time
Not for anyone outside the US or Puerto Rico, or anyone set on 4K.
Are onn TVs worth it: the streaming stick verdict
If you've got an older TV with a working HDMI port and live where Google's services run properly, this is a quiet yes, it'll do what a much pricier streaming box does. If you're outside the US and Puerto Rico, or you're chasing 4K on a new set, spend the extra and get a stick built for that instead.
That old TV stops being the one nobody wants to use. Day one looks like plugging in a stick barely bigger than your thumb, pairing the remote, and finding every app you actually use already installed by the time the opening credits roll. You're not waiting on a firmware update or a return window, just deciding what to watch first.
Amazon shoppers rate it 4.1 out of 5 across 269 ratings. That is their number, not ours.
Before you go
How long do Onn TVs typically last?
ONN's television and streaming hardware are built to budget-price standards, so expect a few solid years of daily use rather than a decade, and that applies to this streaming stick too.
What is better, Vizio or Onn?
Vizio generally offers better panels and a more polished smart platform, while ONN's advantage is price; for a device like this stick, the fairer comparison is against Roku or Fire TV, and it holds its own at a lower cost.
Who makes TVs for Onn?
ONN is Walmart's in-house electronics brand, built by contracted manufacturers to a value-first spec, and that same approach carries over to accessories like this streaming stick.
How reliable is an Onn TV?
Reliability is generally solid for everyday streaming, though budget hardware means occasional slowdowns or dropped connections are more common than with premium brands.
By the numbers
We have reviewed 119 electronics products. 93% land where this one does: worth it, with a condition attached. Only 7% earn an unconditional yes at full price. Every verdict is published as open data in the Is It Worth It Reviews Verdict Dataset (CC BY 4.0).
Full spec sheet
| Display Technology | LCD, OLED |
|---|---|
| Resolution | 1080p |
| Refresh Rate | 120 |
| Aspect Ratio | 169 |
| Contrast Ratio | 10001 |
| Screen Finish | Flat |
| HDR Format Supported | HDR10 |
| Motion Enhancement Technology | True |
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