Roku and Amazon
After watching 30 TV episodes and one HD movie, I have no problems recommending the Roku [Amazon Link]. I also give Amazon’s video steaming service a solid thumbs up. I was considering getting an Apple TV, but several days with the Roku has put those plans on hold.
Until Apple comes out with something more compelling, the Roku is going to be a close second to my PS3 in terms of taking on the role of media centerpiece in my home theater. Setup is dead simple and while the menus could use a bit more polish, they do get the job done.
On a crappy 1.5 megabit DSL connection, Amazon’s video quality is surprisingly good. Video is generally clean and in everyday usage, it’s not hard to confuse it with traditional non-streaming media. It’s definitely approaching the quality of an upscaled DVD.
Gran Torino HD looked decent. Crappy bandwidth is what kept me from enjoying the full HD resolution. A few extra megabits would have smoothed things out. But in the end, that didn’t keep me from enjoying this film. There were only two scenes where I saw some excessive pixelation.
The overall variety of titles is a noticeable step up when compared to Netflix’s streaming service. From a casual glance, I’d say that the iTunes store offers a much better selection of titles but I’m not fond having to manage a collection of large video files locally. If Apple wants the Apple TV to succeed commercially, streaming media will be the feature set that Apple needs to embrace going forward.
The Roku/Netflix combo was and still is a great deal. Adding the Amazon Video On Demand store to the Roku is another great way of tapping into your favorite TV shows and films.
Is there room for improvement? Sure, first off I wish they would put out a firmware update so I can add Netflix films to my queue without ever having to use a PC. Cleaning up some the menu kludge and adding 1080p support (maybe requires a hardware refresh?) would get this device into the land of near perfection.
As it stands right now, the Roku is a great home theater addition and the convenience of video streaming far outweighs its minor imperfections.
[Pic from Wired]
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