Roku, Boxee, Apple TV

erniejade

I am thinking of a Internet streaming device for my tv. I do have Net-flicks and I was thinking of picking up Hulu plus.

I am researching into what type of device to put on my main TV. I do have a older Roku on my tv upstairs and I do like it but, from what I am reading the Boxee looks like it might have more on it plus the qwerty keyboard on the back of the remote is a great feature. I have not tried apple tv but from what I am reading, it is limited. Has anyone looked into all of them? If so, what do you see is the difference between them? I do see a ton of reviews on the web but, i haven't seen a direct comparison of them. Is there any other streaming devices I should consider?

Another question I have is on the roku that I do have in my bedroom, sometimes it glitches when streaming. When it does, I have noticed I have to unplug my router, Belkin n1, cable modem, ( comcast, and then plug them all back in and i am good for a bit. Has anyone else had this issue? I am trying to figure out if something is up with my router or cable modem. The belkin is from 2006 or 2007. It is not the vision version but the regular one with 3 antennas.

Thanks for the advice and helping on my research!

EndersShadow

I would take the Apple TV off your list right away. Its just not that good for what you want.

The Roku 2 XS is pretty decent (and under 100) for streaming netflix and is super small. Boxee is also a good choice. Also look at the Western Digital TV.

Personally I just use my Xbox 360 for all that, but we only use Netflix right now.

Of those I would go with the Roku 2 XS, then the Boxee.

Here is some info on the Roku 2 XS: http://reviews.cnet.com/digital-media-receivers/roku-2-xs/4505-6739_7-34850104.html?tag=mncol;rvwBody

unc2701

Unless you've bought into the Apple universe, I'd avoid Apple TV. It's freaking awesome if you have an iphone/ipad/ipod touch, etc, and does a number of neat things seamlessly.... BUT, just as a streaming box, it's kinda "meh". Apple will also be reluctant to add services that take you outside of the iTunes store (Hulu Plus, i think is ready, but hasn't been added for precisely this reason)

Boxee is going to be a little better in terms of supporting more things that are not commercial. Given it's roots, it's going to have more emphasis on playing a wide variety of codecs and formats that might not work on other units and playing content that you've ripped. The downside is that commercial services have some distrust of the platform, so there's going to be a lag of new streaming services for it- They bypassed the security on Hulu for a while two years ago, and Hulu hasn't forgiven them.

Roku is great for commercial services. They're actively adding everything possible and have great interfaces for those services. I'm not sure where they stand on streaming content off your own harddrives, though. Used to be that was very ugly and hard to accomplish.

But the real kicker is that ALL THREE use HDMI. No component output- Not cool.

erniejade

My original XD does have component out as well as hdmi. The one turn off on the new roku unless I am reading it wrong, there is no ethernet. it is wireless only.

EndersShadow

erniejade wrote: »

My original XD does have component out as well as hdmi. The one turn off on the new roku unless I am reading it wrong, there is no ethernet. it is wireless only.

The highest model in that line (Roku 2 XS) has ethernet for wired connections.

http://www.pcmag.com/slideshow_viewer/0,3253,l%253D285998%2526a%253D286019%2526po%253D6,00.asp?p=n

unc2701

erniejade wrote: »

My original XD does have component out as well as hdmi. The one turn off on the new roku unless I am reading it wrong, there is no ethernet. it is wireless only.

The XS model has wired; not sure exactly when it happened, but the new models all dropped component (but do have composite... WTH?)

unc2701

Geeks has refurb Boxee's on sale, btw:

http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?InvtId=DSM-380-RE-PB-R&utm_source=geekmail&utm_medium=daily_html&utm_content=Product&utm_campaign=Winterclrtue_27dec11

erniejade

just went on the roku site. a 3.5mm jack for composite and it comes with an rca av to 3.5 mm adapter so they did include it!

I wish roku would make the remote a bit bigger like the boxee and have a qwerty keyboard ont he back. Maybe next version... I am debating on if I should just wait for v3 lol

EndersShadow

erniejade wrote: »

just went on the roku site. a 3.5mm jack for composite and it comes with an rca av to 3.5 mm adapter so they did include it!

I wish roku would make the remote a bit bigger like the boxee and have a qwerty keyboard ont he back. Maybe next version... I am debating on if I should just wait for v3 lol

Yeah if your going to be doing lots of searching, etc then its a pain, but for my wife and I (using mostly netflix) we use our laptop to add things to the instant queue. The only thing we do on the xbox is navigate what we have listed. For that the Roku would work great.

See if there is an app for your phone (provided you have a smartphone) that would help you with that.

Slinger182

There are a couple apps for both iPhone and Droid for controlling the roku. I used Dijit when I had a an iPhone and since I switched to droid I am using Roku wifi remote. Both work great especially when you need to do searches.

I don't have any experience with apple tv or boxee.

shawn474

My harmony controls the roku fine. It also has an athernet jack. The series 1 models all had ethernet as far as I can tell.

Syndil

I think you may find this article very relevant to your question:

http://www.gulbransen.net/2011/03/boxee-box-vs-roku/

erniejade

Syndil good read!! thank you!

Shizelbs

Anyone use Spotify on their Boxee? I am curious how smooth or not the interface operates for Spotify.

Brasiliaflyer

What about the Acer Aspire Revo running XBMC? Is it worth the additional $100 over the Boxee?