Roku HD 48.00 + tax Walmart (In-Store)
 

Was at Walmart in Circleville, OH today and saw the Roku HD models were for sale for 48 dollars. I grabbed one for my dad.

Thought it was a decent deal for those with 720p/1080i tv's that don't need the full 1080p roku's.

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Roku-HD...r/20630068

PS. I also threw a 3 year squaretrade warranty on it with a 30% off squaretrade coupon for about six bucks.

amazon and Roku has LT version same as 49 and may without tax..
from what I seen. there is no difference.

-The Roku HD is the newest of all the Roku devices and the HD uses the newest BCMl7208 chipset instead of the BCM2835 that all of the other Roku 2's use including the LT.

-The HD also uses less power (2W vs 4.5W)

-The Roku LT is all purple, The HD one is mostly black with a little purple on bottom. Most people prefer black for electronics for matching with TV and other devices.

so is the new chipset better, or worse than the ones in Roku 2's ?

I'm not a major techie, but this forum might help that talks about the new processor.
http://forums.roku.com/viewtopic....a8e92096ab

with the sale prices looks like roku is gearing up to release a new product soon

Maybe. I have no idea.

Can someone explain to me what the real benefit of these units are? Are they basically a glorified QAM tuner that picks up some channels, or do they do alot more? I've been trying to get an idea of what they actually give you in terms of channels and selection. Do you get local channels with these? Are the channels free? I know some channels require a pay for subscription. Any and all comments are very much appreciated.

Yes it has a QAM tuner and will descramble all your cable channels. It will also decode DirectTV and DishNetwork. It till also become a dvr when you hook up a external harddrive.
It will also upscale all your 320x240 files to Blu-Ray quality 1080p in 3D.

I you haven't noticed. Foghorn is being sarcastic. :lol:

Thanks OP. Just purchased one. Now I can give the Wii back to my daughter.lol Hope it is better than using the Wii game system !

It is. Especially if you have a 720p or higher tv. Wii only does 480p

You have to have hdmi cable for 720 p though. Buy a cheapie through amazon if you don't have one.

do these have the dlna services that some of the other boxes have? i currently have apple tv but its kind of a pain streaming some stuff b/c you first have to convert it before you can play it over itunes through the apple tv. i'm assuming dlna just gives me full access to all files i choose on the computer? also, regarding cable someone said something about it improving the quality of cable channels possibly? i may have misunderstood, but that would be awesome considering we don't have HD cable. thank you.

If its jailbroken then try Plex

its the 3 unfortunately

Hey thanks! Hooking it up tomorrow!

It's sort of like a can opener. If you have to ask what it is, or how to use it, you probably don't need one.

Streaming options from your network are handled primarily through Plex (you have to add it as a channel but it is free). You set up Plex Media Server on the computer(s) that house your content and then install the Plex channel.

I've tried two different Rokus (XD/XS) and they work pretty well with Plex. I still get pixelation at points during movie streaming. My files are in MKV format so the server has to transcode the files on the fly so that the Roku can play them. I would say that it's an alright solution for this type of activity but certainly won't offer the same level of performance as a full blown HTPC (which will cost far more). Of course, you are paying a fraction of the cost so some performance limitations should be expected.

The comment about cable was a joke. This has nothing to do with cable. Many people use the Roku in-lieu of cable since they can view Netflix/Hulu+/Amazon through the Roku. However, it is not, strictly speaking, a cable replacement device. This gets confused sometimes because Roku uses "channels" in their terminology. These are not channels like a TV channel. Instead think of them as applications within the Roku ecosystem. You can add the Hulu+ channel which will make the app available to you (assuming you pay for a subscription). You can add NBC News as a channel but what you will get is an app that has some clips from the various NBC News programs.

As for this deal ... I just picked up the XD for $45 a few weeks back. It was refurbed but comes with the same warranty as a new one (90 days). Has worked fine so far. Personally, I would hold out for that (they go on sale at that price at least once a month). At some point you will upgrade your non-HD TV and wish that you had held out for a 1080p Roku. At least that is my opinion.

This box is confusing me. I dont know what Im getting. People are saying this is the latest model, right? But what are you getting? You get the box which streams online content but are most of the "channels" just streaming clips of content rather than full content? Whats the point if it is? I want to Stream Al-Jazeera or RT for example, would I be able to? If I understand correctly there is no subscription for Roku but are there costs involved in getting apps? I know you have to pay subs for Netflix/Amazon/Hulu, but is there anything other than that? Im not in the mood to grab this sort of tech only to be shown commercials all the time. If the "free stuff" is crap and you dont want to stream Netflix as much as the news - whats the point?

roku is moving into stick pc's to compete with android tv

What a trite and quite easily (in this case) incorrect thing to say. How very unhelpful of you. Shame on you.

There is no tuner in these types of units, so if you plan to keep cable/satellite/etc along with them, you'll still need your current setup (cable boxes, etc) to get those channels and services. Also, since they lack tuners, you cannot get local channels on them in the traditional sense (so, to get local channels you'll still need to use cable/satellite/etc or an antenna connected to some sort of tuner). For some local content, you may be able to find an appropriate streaming service that carries what you want, but I wouldn't count on it (extremely YMMV).

Now, on to what the Roku HD units can do:

Stream/play up to 720p content (using a wireless high-speed internet connection; you're responsible for having this set up, it isn't provided for you) from any of a number of services [roku.com], some are free, but most of the more useful ones are fee services or tied to some other premium service (e.g. Amazon Instant Video, Netflix, Hulu Plus, Crackle, VUDU, HBO GO, EPIX, etc). Using a program called Plex [plexapp.com], you can even stream/play local content (files hosted on a computer on your network; i.e. one of your computers that is connected to the same network that the Roku device connects to); Twonky or PlayOn may also be able to do that, not sure (I imagine yes, but I haven't looked at them, really). Using Plex or a program called Twonky Beam (on an android or iOS device; see the iTunes or GooglePlay store for details) or PlayOn [playon.tv], you can even stream Youtube videos (use your favorite search engine to find tutorials on how to set that up).

See the following for a more complete list of streaming channels available on Roku (personally, I hate that they call them channels, since it's rather confusing for a lot of people, but maybe that's just me); you should be able to get a better/easier feel for what is free or not from this list than from the official Roku page, but I cannot speak to how current this list is:
http://www.roku-channels.com/

The main differences between this Roku HD model and other, more expensive Roku models are things like 1080p streaming, gaming (things like Angry Birds; don't expect console-like games on these small, low-power devices), USB ports, and wired Ethernet (far more reliable and faster than using wireless, but not feasible for everyone, obviously).

P.S. - I meant to be brief, but hopefully this (rather wordy reply) answers enough of your questions/satisfies your curiosity.

I have crappy att dsl internet. Does anyone know if these rokus upscales/downscales based on internet speed variations?

Well, it's really up to the service to figure out how fast you connection is and give you an appropriate stream. Netflix can do anything between a very low quality 240p stream (300Kbps) to a pretty nice looking 1080p stream (7Mbps). That's true of many of the services, though some don't go as high. It will happen transparently on the Roku. Although if you have a very slow Internet connection, I wouldn't necessarily recommend any streaming player. But if your DSL is at least a reliable 5Mbps you should be OK.

Well, I have 70k bytes down/13k up. Netflix on computer works ok, this is what i mainly use with some buffering on some shows. With Tivo Netflix, it sometimes buffering too much. though its sometimes tolerable, and Sony bluray player Netflix app, it's crappy. I notice some people on other forums complain on roku in the same way. But was not sure if roku built some software into its netflix app to scale up and down.

Thanks for the response.

Already have a Roku 2 XS in the livingroom, got it on sale at Fry's a few weeks ago and really dig it and saw this, so I got one for the bedroom.

Also, not mentioned but may be important for some people. The Roku 2 XS remote uses Bluetooth, so you can stash the little box completely out of sight, although it can also be used with RF remotes, like a Harmony.

This model, the HD, only uses RF and needs line of sight. Also, Spotify is not supported on the LT or HD versions as of yet, but is suppose to be supported "Soon." So, if that is something you are wanting it for, you'll have to go up to the Roku 2 models.

To Recap: Roku HD does not have 1080, Bluetooth, Spotify, USB, MicroSD Slot, Ethernet port, Motion Controls.

Love my Rokus. Picked up another one during the $50 off $100 BB fiasco. We use them to stream the usual, including Amazon. I've rented several movies (overpriced but convenient). We just cut the cord (cable), got a digital antenna, and are saving about $100/month. We have pretty fast Internet (the ONE thing TWC does right in our area) so no issues here with streaming anything.

Read this primer: http://gigaom.com/2012/12/25/roku...e-airplay/

very cool link.

My rokus XDS & XS are both wired in. I purchased the HD for my dad hoping I would not need to wire it since he has good speed internet. I told him to let me know if it starts buffering or have problems and I will exchange it for a XS and get it the attic. Just trying to make less work for me.

says out of stock online but available in store at my local walmart. I guess it's not available for online orders and I have to go pick it up athe B&M location? But then I called my walmart and though it states it's in stock at that location the guy i spoke to says they dont have it so now I'm confused.

Also tried searching for roku HD and only the other options pop up.

It is available online only. Put in your zip and it should tell you what Walmart's in your area have it in stock. BTW, usually talking to a Walmart employee over the phone is like talking to a wall. They are usually no help.

Yeah the guy definitely sounded like he barely knew what he was talking about.

I put in the zip code and it tells me my location has it in stock but it's not available to purchase online for store pick up apparently.

I'm gonna swing by during lunch and if I manage to get one I'll let you know!

make sure if it is not on the shelf that you have someone scan the barcode where it usually sits. It will tell them how many they have and They will have to get them from the back.

appreciate this info dude. Thanks!

let's tell Amazon about this lower price and hopefully they match.:)
http://www.amazon.com/Roku-2500R-...p_t_3_TS0S

btw, tyop & repped.

There are free and paid channels for the Roku and you should easily be able to find a list through a simple google search. Al-Jazeera English and RT (live streaming) are available for free. Also, not all of the free channels are created by Roku - these are created by the providers themselves or some third party developers .. most do not insert any extra ads (other than the ones that the streams already have) but some do

Oh snap! Thanks a lot man! Thats awesome. I guess Ill be trying to pick one up.

Pmd at target. Thanks op

$58 at local walmart in W. Mich, didn't have time to deal with asking them to fix the price.

Price went back up. The new LT versions at Amazon for the same price is identical to the HD's except for the color and the remote.