{Holiday Gift Guide} Roku XD Review

ABOUT:

Roku is a little box that allows you to instantly stream tons of entertainment on your TV. Watch movies and TV shows from Netflix, Hulu Plus or Amazon VOD, listen to music on Pandora, catch the latest ballgame, and more — it’s all available whenever you want it.

Features:

• Be up and running in 5 minutes and is so tiny you can fit it anywhere.
• No PC needed, connects through high-speed Internet connection wirelessly.
• No extra monthly bills – use your existing subscriptions like Netflix or Major League Baseball or enjoy free and on-demand content like Pandora, Flickr, and Amazon VOD.
• Roku is constantly expanding its library of streaming entertainment, so there will always be something new to watch.

There are three versions of Roku available:  Roku HD, Roku XD, and Roku XD/S, ranging from $59.99 to $99.99.  The main differences are extended-range wireless technology, enhanced remote, Full HD 1080p video, component outputs and USB ports.

MY THOUGHTS:

The idea of the Roku intrigued me – a little box that I could stream movies, music photos, and TV episodes to sounded very neat.  With the Roku, I can now listen to free music from Pandora in my basement (without blaring it from my little iPhone), put my Facebook photos on TV for a slideshow, and even watch Netflix movies.  Now there is so much more you can do with it, but so far that is all I have taken advantage or.  Now I subscribed to Netflix years ago and the problem was I would finish a movie and then have to wait for the mail to return and deliver my next movie – well now with Roku for just $7.99 a month I can get unlimited TV episodes and movies rentals.  So now I can put my Roku wherever I want in my house and watch a Netflix movie.

While there are many high-quality entertainment options on the Roku for free, I found that it is really worth it if you want to watch pay-per-view or other subscription services.  For example, we have friends who do not own a TV but strictly watch everything on the computer (to save on cable bills), but her husband is a big baseball fan so he subscribes to Major League Baseball so he doesn’t miss a game.  Now I am sure he doesn’t mind watching it on the computer, but if he had the option to watch it on his TV I am sure he would jump on it.  I also have a cousin who doesn’t have pay-per-view but likes the UFC fights so he pays to have those streamed to his computer, with Roku he again can watch it on his TV.  For most people I think the Netflix, Facebook photos, Pandora, Flickr photos, and Amazon Video-On-Demand is what would get used the most.  Also, while you can stream Neflix on most video game systems and Blu-ray players, at least in my house we have two TVs that don’t have either of those which Roku now works great in.

Setting up the Roku XD was super simple and quick, the only tedious part was setting up all your accounts.  For each account you set up you have to log-in to them on your computer and type a code that is shown on the screen of your Roku.  So I have to set up my Netflix, Amazon VOD, and Kidlet so far.  Kidlet is a free kids channel basically with the most widely known shown being Sonic the Hedgehog!  The accounts each took me a few minutes and Roku automatically synced.  I was watching a Netflix movie in about ten minutes after opening the box.  I also checked out Amazon Video-on-Demand and found a few free kids shows, most of the adult tv shows and movies were just previews or behind the scenes clips.  There are also games like a word game and poker game you can add for free! Overall, I am very excited to keep exploring my Roku and love that they say they will keep adding more content!

BUY IT: You can compare the three versions of Roku on the Roku website and purchase directly from the website.

Mama’s Money Savers Disclosure: I was sent a Roku to review and give my honest opinion. Please see my Disclosure Policy.