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"Useless here."
1.0 starson by Jo Lynne LockleyPros: What? Ten characters of positives? What positives? It's not even heavy enough for a paper weight.
Cons: Despite showing excellent connection, unit pauses repeatedly to buffer, if it connects at all. It buffers so often that it takes up to 15 minutes to play two minutes of content. Connects to Netflix sporadically. The fourway input button is awkward for nav
Summary: If it works, it's surely convenient. For the many people who can't get or maintain connection it's too light for a paper weight and the wrong size for batting practice.
Some of it was cut off: The 4 way entry button is awkward (right, left up and down to select letters of the alphabet). This does not stream "The Internet" but Roku's selection of content providers, most either paid or of fringe interest (Tamil Channel, Buddhist Channel, a church in Australia...) Content provided for streaming by Netflix, etc is mostly not prime material, that being reserved for the more expensive mailed subscriptions or, with Amazon, for the pay per view rentals. Subscribing to channels is a clumsy process which requires going back and forth between the computer and the connected tv. This is really a rotten little box, and Roku's aggressive spin hovers somewhere between disingenuous and fraud. Why don't they just make it work?
I have pretty much covered the ground under cons. My research on the problems I am having suggests that the unit is not compatible with many routers. It seems to me that is their job. There is no alert to this issue prior to purchase (at which time I also bought a router, so if that is the case, I could have spared myself a lot of wasted time.)
The web site provides precious little information about problems, and Roku aggressively solicits positive reviews from their users.
Some users in their "help" pleas on various forums seem to believe this is a result of an automatic firmware upgrade - which could be true, since mine worked initially, at least with fewer interruptions.
The unit does not have any storage capacity beyond limited memory. There is no fast forward or slider but a series of pictures, each point requiring renewed buffering.
Netflix streaming on Roku has very limited options for closed caption, language, etc.
I would never buy this product again.
Updated on Mar 20, 2011
Updated on Mar 20, 2011It is curious that the negative reviews have all been tagged as not helpful. A negative review I wrote elsewhere with much more clarity and explanation received two not helpful votes before I had time to correct the spelling errors. They are the only not helpful votes Curious.
- 1 reply to this review
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I am a huge fan of my Roku, so I thought I'd post a brief response to some of Ms. Lockley's comments. I suspect the single biggest source of the problems Ms. Lockley cited is that her internet connection is too slow for streaming high quality video. When I first received my Roku XD, my download speed was only "up to 6 Mbps." I too had constant pauses to load content almost anytime I turned the thing on. After checking my ISP's website, I found that it recommended a service with download speeds "up to 18 Mbps" in order to watch streaming content. I bit the bullet and ponied up the extra $15/month for the faster service and, since upgrading, I very, very rarely get any video pausing/buffering at all.
I know many people have a budget into which a faster internet connection won't fit and some live where decent speeds aren't even available. Roku isn't going to be a good option for such people. I recommend consider your ISP's available download speeds before purchasing this device.
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