Roku

[frayne]

I just might be a Luddite as I had never heard of this little device before. Last night DW and I baby sat the grand kids and after they went to bed I started to play with this thing. Actually it is almost like having a video store at your finger tips. If I were a TV junkie I'd most definitely have one.

 

[audreyh1]

I have the Apple TV - same "video store at your finger tips". I like it because I don't have to record my own shows anymore, i.e., no need for a DVR. Let someone else archive all that video!

 

[Ally]

My son sent one to our house about six months ago. We've been able to watch many good shows by signing up for Netflix instant streaming and Acorn Tv, which is $25 annually. Acorn has tons of British shows. I was able to greatly reduce our cable bill by canceling some of the extra channels.

 

[Nodak]

I bought a Roku box a week ago. In addition to the sites listed in many places if you Google search Roku private channels there are many more that will give you codes that can be entered at the Roku my account page. The codes will add smaller sites or those that are under development.

 

[RitaR551]

I've had Roku's for a couple years now. Highly recommend them. I have an Amazon Prime yearly membership and can watch or purchase movies, tv shows and documentaries. We did have Netflix, but found Amazon had much the same to offer, so cancelled. We still have satellite, but a simple plan.

 

[savory]

I was hoping Roku by itself was going to allow me to pick up some cable shows, even a day late. While there are some (60 minutes, shows from Comedy Central), I find I do not watch it much. I see that most of the responses so far are most impressed by the for-pay channels that can be received by using Roku - Netflix, Amazon. We have not subscribed to those services but if you do purchase Roku, I think you should do it with the intention of adding one of the premium stations. I do miss the main ESPN channel even though I get ESPN3 on my Roku. With all this said, I am not a big or demanding TV viewer.

 

[Badger]

Antenna + Netflix via Roku is all we use. It has provided us with plenty of interesting programs and movies for the past couple of years with enough future selections to keep us going for many more. At $20 a month for 2 DVDs + streaming for thousands of TV shows and movies we have all the programing (no commercials) we can handle.

Cheers!

 

[Corporateburnout]

I've had a couple of Roku devices for a while now. We watch lots of shows and movies on Netflix and Amazon and we also enjoy listening to Pandora music for free.

 

[RunningBum]

If you've recently bought a TV or Blu-Ray player, you probably have the Roku functionality built in, so don't pay extra for the Roku box.

 

[Ally]

If any of you like British TV, look at Acorn TV. There are so many wonderful series you can see for $25 a year. You can try it free for 30 days.

 

[Greg V]

I have not used a Roku, but get streaming content from both Netflix and Amazon via a pair of Sony Blu-Ray players. I like that the devices can serve multiple functions. Amazon's addition of a "Watchlist" feature to their Prime Instant Video has put its usability on a par with Netflix.

 

[Texas Proud]

Do you have to buy extra boxes for extra TVs?

We have 3 TVs and I would hate to have to buy 3 sets and pay for programming for all 3...

 

[Greg V]

Not sure if this answers your question, Texas, but, with our single account, we can simultaneously stream two different shows on Netflix using the two Blu-Ray players when DW and I want to watch different stuff. So...my experience is that you need hardware to stream on each TV, but don't have to pay extra for content.

 

[Lsbcal]

My son sent one to our house about six months ago. We've been able to watch many good shows by signing up for Netflix instant streaming and Acorn Tv, which is $25 annually. Acorn has tons of British shows. I was able to greatly reduce our cable bill by canceling some of the extra channels.

We've enjoyed British shows on PBS and also Netflix. Does Acorn TV add more to this mix? Thanks in advance.

P.S. Maybe I answered my own question. Went to Acorn TV and looked at the schedule. Some nice content we might well enjoy. Sounds worthwhile for such a modest fee.

 

[Lsbcal]

If you've recently bought a TV or Blu-Ray player, you probably have the Roku functionality built in, so don't pay extra for the Roku box.

I'm thinking about buying a Blu-Ray player when I get back from vacation. Not really for the extra definition but for the streaming capability which I understand is somewhat like what the Roku offers.

Here is the DVD I've been watching prices on: Amazon.com: Sony BDP-S390 Blu-ray Disc Player with Wi-Fi (Black): Electronics
Hopefully the DVD interface is as easy to deal with as I understand the Roku is.

Comments?

 

[RunningBum]

Do you have to buy extra boxes for extra TVs?

We have 3 TVs and I would hate to have to buy 3 sets and pay for programming for all 3...

Greg V is right about just needing one subscription, and I'll also add that the Roku player is very small, and therefore portable if you have easy access to an outlet. You can leave an extra set of cables in each TV if you can't reach them easily.

Also pay attention to the bandwidth needs. If you are streaming HD, I think you need at least 4MB. And be aware that some internet providers only advertise "up to" a bandwidth amount. Cable in particular can slow down quite a bit if your neighbors are streaming as well. Mine drops off noticeably in the evening, though I have a backwoods local cable company. If you don't have enough it'll drop back to SD and even lower quality SD if needed, and it may stop and buffer up once in awhile.

 

[Texas Proud]

Greg V is right about just needing one subscription, and I'll also add that the Roku player is very small, and therefore portable if you have easy access to an outlet. You can leave an extra set of cables in each TV if you can't reach them easily.

Also pay attention to the bandwidth needs. If you are streaming HD, I think you need at least 4MB. And be aware that some internet providers only advertise "up to" a bandwidth amount. Cable in particular can slow down quite a bit if your neighbors are streaming as well. Mine drops off noticeably in the evening, though I have a backwoods local cable company. If you don't have enough it'll drop back to SD and even lower quality SD if needed, and it may stop and buffer up once in awhile.

Thanks (and also Greg V)....

I would not want to be moving the box around... just tuck it away...

The bandwidth is my big problem... I have AT&T DSL and the fastest I can get is their 3 MB... which usually means 2.4 ish... my wife watches some SD stuff running through her PC and shown on a small TV... I know that we can not watch two things at the same time (heck, when she is watching, I usually can not do web searching that much)...

I might go to cable soon as they have a lot higher speed.... just have not done so...

 

[audreyh1]

Do you have to buy extra boxes for extra TVs?

We have 3 TVs and I would hate to have to buy 3 sets and pay for programming for all 3...

I moved the older AppleTV to the bedroom TV. The box is cheap IMO ($89), so I didn't mind having one for each. I am able to watch shows on one or the other with one subscription, but I suspect if you were trying to watch two different things the same time you would need an additional subscription. At least that's what I have read about using Netflix.

 

[Ally]

Replying to earlier post: Acorn rotates their available series periodically. It is really worth the cost to me.

 

[Greg V]

Audrey, we have the basic Netflix streaming service and had also heard that officially we could get only one stream at a time. However, DW and I tried two different Netflix programs on our two Blu-Ray players simultaneously and it worked well. So...may work out OK for you as well without upgrading to a more expensive Netflix option.

 

[tulak]

Netflix allows two streams. If you go beyond that, then they display a message indicating there are too many active connections.

 

[audreyh1]

Netflix allows two streams. If you go beyond that, then they display a message indicating there are too many active connections.

Good to know. Thanks for that info.

 

[modhatter]

Replying to earlier post: Acorn rotates their available series periodically. It is really worth the cost to me.

Agree. It is a good deal. I prefer British show to US shows much of the time. Signed up last night, and watched 2 episodes of one of my favorite shows, Doc Martin. Love that show.

 

[Ally]

Agree. It is a good deal. I prefer British show to US shows much of the time. Signed up last night, and watched 2 episodes of one of my favorite shows, Doc Martin. Love that show.

We love Doc Martin and have seen all the seasons. We are waiting on the 6th season to show someday.

 

[Alan]

Audrey, we have the basic Netflix streaming service and had also heard that officially we could get only one stream at a time. However, DW and I tried two different Netflix programs on our two Blu-Ray players simultaneously and it worked well. So...may work out OK for you as well without upgrading to a more expensive Netflix option.

+1

We have 2 Roku boxes and use them at the same time.