When I initially set out to drop cable and rely on the Internet for television, I wanted to try it without buying any additional hardware. That didn’t last long – in June, I broke down and bought an Apple TV, but not after a period of debate over whether to use that streaming box or a Roku 3.
I picked Apple TV mainly because our household is heavily invested in Apple’s ecosystem – my wife and I both have Macs, iPhones and iPads. We’ve been pretty happy with the choice, but still, I remained intrigued by the Roku 3.
A few months ago, I decided to give one a try. After using it side-by-side with the Apple TV, I have to say that I’m glad I didn’t try it back in June, because it would have made the decision that much more difficult. In many ways, the Roku 3 is superior to the Apple TV. If I’d bought it originally, I wouldn’t have regretted the decision.
Like the Apple TV, the Roku 3 has a list price of $99, but you can find it discounted by about $10 at some online sites. Like the Apple TV, it only works with televisions with an HDMI connection. Owners of older TVs will want to use either the Roku LT, Roku 1 or Roku 2.
The Roku 3 device itself looks a little like the Apple TV – both are small, black pucks, but the Roku 3 has rounded edges for a softer look. It comes with a power adapter, a remote and a pair of purple earbuds. You’ll need to supply your own HDMI cable.
The back of the device has connections for power, Ethernet and HDMI. There’s also a slot for a microSD memory card, which you can use for additional storage space for games and Roku channels. On one side is a USB port, into which you can insert a thumb drive containing music, video or photos.
Setup is easy. Plug in the power adapter, connect the Roku 3 to your HDTV and walk through the process onscreen of activating the device. You’ll need to sign on to the Roku website, so have a computer, smartphone or tablet at the ready. (And if you’ve got the latter two, you’ll want to download the Roku app for iOS or Android, too).
If your router isn’t close enough to your HDTV to connect the Roku 3 via Ethernet, you can use Wi-Fi. It supports 802.11n (and a/b/g, too) on both the 2.4- and 5-GHz bands. If you can, use the latter – it’s more robust and less prone to interference from wireless phones, microwaves, garage door openers and many other things that use the 2.4-GHz band.
My previous Roku experience was with the very first model, and I remember its carousel-style interface as being slow and clunky. But with the Roku 3, the software has been overhauled and it’s much easier to use. The home screen has 3 columns – a selections menu on the left, a center well with installed channel icons, and a right column that provides information about your selection. It’s not quite as elegant as that found on the Apple TV, but it’s simple and gets the job done.
One of the software’s best features is a universal search. Enter the name of a movie or TV show into the search box and you’ll get a list of the apps you’ve installed that can show it, including how much it will cost to watch. For example, if you search for “Cutie and the Boxer,” an endearing documentary about Japanese artists living in New York, you’ll see that it’s $3.99 on Amazon and Blockbuster On Demand, but free on Netflix.
(A tip: Using the remote to enter search terms is a serious pain. Instead, install the iOS or Android app and use the keyboard on your smartphone or tablet. While you can’t pair a Bluetooth keyboard with the Roku 3 as you can with an Apple TV, using a mobile device is a good alternative.)
Navigating the Roku 3 is also very fast. There’s almost no waiting as you move between selections and channels. As a result, it’s a pleasure to use.
In terms of sheer number of channels, the Roku 3 kicks the Apple TV to the curb, but quantity doesn’t necessarily equate to quality. Roku now says there are more than 1,000 channels, but the selection is a great example of Sturgeon’s Law, which says that “90 percent of everything is crap.” Of the supposed 1,000+ channels, I’ve only managed to find 30 that I want to keep in the My Channels list. And even then, I probably only watch a handful.
Many of the channels are amazingly niche. How niche? Consider TV FHC, which has this description:
Learn how burning wood can be a clean and renewable, not to mention inexpensive, way to heat your home. Also, we get to play with chainsaws.
The Roku does have most of the mainstream channels you’ll want, including Netflix, Amazon Instant Video, HBO Go, Hulu Plus, Vudu, Redbox Instant, PBS,Pandora and more. YouTube, which had been MIA for a while, is now available as well. There’s also a channel for Aereo, which lets you watch local broadcast TV over the Internet. You won’t find it in the Roku Channel Store, though – Aereo subscribers can see how to add it here.
As is the case with many channels with popular broadcast or cable TV offerings, you’ll find you need to have a cable subscription to use them, which makes them less valuable to cord cutters. But some of these subscription-required channels, can be more convenient than the on-demand offerings from cable companies. For example, the TWC Channel gives you access to a slew of other channels’ content. And HBO Go has a better selection than the network’s own on-demand service.
While the main interface for Roku is much improved, many of the channels still rely on the old carousel-style layout – Amazon Instant Video, for example. Others, such as Netflix and Hulu Plus, have a more modern design.
The Roku 3 also lets you install and play games, some of which take advantage of a motion sensor built into the device’s remote control. I tried out Angry Birds, which comes preinstalled, and found it to be imprecise. It was more frustrating than fun.
But this remote has a lot to like. It talks to the Roku 3 via Wi-Fi, which means you don’t have to actually point the remote at the device when pressing its buttons. It also means you can put the Roku 3 box out of sight if you like, but don’t put it inside something that might block a Wi-Fi signal.
The remote is more functional than the Spartan Apple TV remote. It has 9 buttons and a four-way directional rocker switch for switching onscreen objects. It also has a headphone jack – plug in the included earbuds and it will mute the TV. The quality of the earbuds isn’t great; use your own for better sound.
Until recently, one of the benefits of the Apple TV over Roku was AirPlay, a feature that lets you stream from an iOS device or a newer Mac computer to an Apple TV. But Roku recently updated its iOS and Android apps to mimic AirPlay with a feature called Play on Roku. You can now stream photos, videos and music stored on your portable device to the Roku 3. While it doesn’t yet allow device mirroring – in which the smartphone or tablet’s entire screen is shown on the TV – it’s a big step in the right direction.
While the Roku 3 doesn’t include the ability to stream content from your local home network, you can add a free channel called Plex. This is part of a cross-platform media serving program that’s available for Macs, PCs and mobile devices. Install the free Plex software on a computer and stream music, pictures and video stored there or on other drives on your network.
One very important way in which the Apple TV beats the Roku 3 is in video quality. Consistently, streamed movies and TV shows look better on the former than the latter. For example, iTunes movies are cleaner and crisper than those streamed on the Roku 3’s Amazon Instant Video. That’s also true of HBO Go and Netflix, channels available on both platforms – Apple TV almost always trumps the Roku device in video quality. When I have a choice of watching a channel available on both devices, I always choose Apple TV.
Still, if I was in the process of choosing one of these two devices now, and if I wasn’t so locked in to Apple’s ecosystem, I’d likely pick the Roku. As a cord cutter, the channel variety and the ability to search across all your installed channels for the content you want are powerful lures. Add the more useful remote, and for non-Apple users who aren’t paying for cable, the Roku 3 becomes the more compelling choice.
Related: Roku unveils Roku TV.