The Roku 3 is at its cheapest at Amazon again. I replaced my WDTV live with one of these and haven't looked back.
CamelCamelCamel.
They have been doing it for a while now.
Free shipping only to US addresses I think. My shipping enquiries show around &12-$14 dollars unless I'm missing something.
No one said anything about free shipping. Shipping for me was $10.97.
OP says USD $90.96 delivered. Price for Roku was $79.99, it has now gone up.
Thanks, the price going up is what threw me off. When I checked the price was around the OP price undelivered. Too late again.
Go here and subscribe to a price alert if you want to buy one:
http://www.camelcamelcamel.com/product/B00BGGDVOO
It will almost certainly come down in price again.
Bought my one direct from Amazon in 2012 … so a while.
I bought my roku back in 2011 from Amazon,shipped to my Oz address.
Hey daveaus, do you know if there's anything it won't play? Does it handle H.265 and 4K content?
No idea sorry. It has played all of my stuff but I don't have h.265 or 4k.
No worries, those questions have probably been asked and answered on Amazon, just a matter of filtering through it all … ugh!
No cannot handle either format as not enough grunt in the chips to do so.
'The Roku 3: the best Roku on the market can only handle H.264 Video: MP4 (H.264), MKV (H.264) in almost any frame rate' quote from: why should you care about H.265?
Yerp, found same stuff via google. Looks like they are integrating it into TV's as well so maybe down the track a Roku4 will come along that can handle both of these. Damn…
What's it's best used for mate…… Can you watch live sports on it…. How about latest movies..?.. I'm a novice with these things…. When you say you haven't looked back what do you mean?
Google Netflix in Australia … get it?
Look at the Getflix deal here on Ozbargains
You use it for watching netflix / hulu / other services. You can also use it to watch movies you downloaded on your PC.
to be clear - if you run a Plex server and install the Plex app on the Roku.
i think chromecast for around A$45 is better buy. install plex and watch any format.
remember netflix/hulu are paid subscriptions A$6/m and to access them we need to change our connection DNS again paid service around 5 to 15/m. movies on hulu and netflix are not really new ones and there libraries are not really huge.
Depends on your needs. I bought a chromecast and sold it to a mate as it has no DTS pass through. It's also fiddlely as then need to have plex installed on something else
as does Roku for playback of locally stored media. It's still the best option due to the slick interface and other features.
Exactly no DTS = no deal on Chromecast
Just a word of warning, Roku is now locked to google DNS so you have to do some fiddly router tricks that are not supported on all routers to setup unblock US etc if you want to get this to work.
Set a roku up for a MIL, didn't know this and had to buy a new router
I agree it should be a consideration, but the extent of that consideration will differ by user. I'd suggest a read of this section of Unblock-Us support site to gauge the complexity of this issue to the individual:
http://support.unblock-us.com/customer/portal/articles/15239…
Wouldn't call them fiddly router tricks.
I'd call them piece of piss tricks.
I would strongly recommend one of these. Mine arrived from Amazon about 2-3 weeks ago. I'd also suggest buying a power adapter from DSE, as the bundled power supply is rated for 110V and with US output (don't just use a US->AU adapter).
After that, look into getting Getflix in order to purchase a Netflix Subscription and watch it directly on your device (I didn't have any issues setting up the DNS through my router). You can also get Hulu and other services. I would also recommend Plex to watch your local media.
Initial setup costs are slightly more than just the device itself, but it's well worth it.
Can someone please tell me, what's the advantage of this if compared with HP microserver + Usenet?
With Usenet I can store the film, with Netflix everything streaming only, right?
HP Microserver does not come with HDMI port. Adding in a graphics card with HDMI isn't that easy. It is also bigger and takes more electricity. You cannot move it around as easy as roku 3. No wifi support out of the box.
It is more powerful given that it is a PC after all. But then I can also go: what is the advantage of HP microserver compared to an ITX setup with 6 sata ports, USB3 ports, eSATA, in built wireless ac + bluetooth and HDMI port?
You can use the Roku to stream the files from your microserver to the TV. I use a Synology NAS, and currently watch all stored on it via WD TV. I will use the Roku with Plex installed on both devices.
Netflix is streaming only, but pretty good, I use that too on the PS4 and PS3s.
Thanks for the replies, how about the quality though? Is wd tv and roku give ability to do full hd streaming?
I found streaming hd movie from computer located in different room (using ps3 media server) to TV lounge area (using ps3) through wireless (wireless type N) and Ethernet over power are not reliable… Are you experiencing the same thing?
Yes, they can both do full HD streaming. A PS3 only has wireless G, not N. That is fine for Netflix 1080P compression.
Wireless G peak performance is 54mbps, Wireless N is 300mbps. EoP, depends on the unit. In this house i use EoP with Netcomms NP504s which have a theoretical max of 500Mbps. I stream from my NAS to my WD TV via this with no issues. I stream 16GB MKVs no issue.
PS3 media server is very hit and miss. It is transcoding, so a lot of that depends on the unit that is doing the work of transcoding and what settings you have chosen. With WD TV you wont need to transcode, it plays all file types natively. Roku 3 handles MKV and MP4 natively, and would need something like Plex to transcode other files.
I got a WD TV because I was sick and tired of the hit and miss nature of using PS3 media server, and wanted something that was designed to do the job. I also used Medialink as it was more stable for some files
Universal Media Server http://www.universalmediaserver.com/ has taken over from PS3 media server, give it a go.
Ultimately, either a WD TV or Roku will do a better job. If you;re using EoP, have a look at the Netcomm they have two newer products than my 504s.
There are a few mixed reports re power adapter, according to this thread (I read first and last pages only) http://forums.roku.com/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=54982, the adapter is 240 compatible, but it seems Roku have had some labelled as 110 only. The specs of the actual part show it is really 100-240V, 50/60Hz, 0.5A.
http://s23.postimg.org/p2nrf7irv/FA_1201000_SUC.jpg
http://s21.postimg.org/6x4dhwy47/FA_1201000_SUC_test_report….
I bought one off amazon about a month ago and have been using it without a step down transformer thingy no probs.
I've also had it for 1 month or so. No problems, no overheating. I think they've just mislead by labelling it as 110v only when it's multi-voltage
not so… its actually a 110-240v power adapter.
Will it not work correctly out of the box with the supplied adapter?
Mine arrived with a adopter that works on 110-240V range, so I bought a cheap $2.00 adopter from local chinese shop to use with those US round pins to Oz flat pins.
Mine arrived with a adopter that works on 110-240V range, so I bought a cheap $2.00 adopter from local chinese shop to use with those US round pins to Oz flat pins.
You must have received a European power supply.
USA has two flat 'pins' that are parallel. If it has an 'earth', it is a third round 'pin'
USA with earth
I..I
.o
Australian with earth
/..\
..I
Yes.. many are labelled with the 110v US.. but actually its a 110-240v power adapter.
Apple tv 2 with seas0npass FTW
Lol Apple TV 2.
Sooo out dated if someone gave me one I'd bin it and buy a better box.
What's the best way to watch mkv, avi and mp4 over a Windows network on my TV? Roku doesn't quite seem designed for it and had horrible experiences with WDTV. Currently using a PS3 Media Server but sometimes the transcoding can be a bit funky (audio sync issues).
Looking to spend about $100-$150, not ready to commit to a full media centre PC. It seems to be much, much harder than I thought it would be.
The Roku will handle all H.264, so MKV and MP4 are taken car off. AVI isn't, but frankly what the hell is done in AVI these days? You can use Plex to transcode the AVIs for the Roku.
I have been using a WD TV for a few years no issue, I just ordered the Roku last week as I want something snappier.
I've collected plenty of legacy stuff over the years which is AVI so it'd be a pain if it didn't play it. Still it wouldn't be a huge deal I guess, but would prefer something that would play everything out of the box.
I use a UG802 Android stick to play all my downloaded movies, tv shows etc whether they be DivX, MKV, X264 etc. It works great with MX Player. My missus also uses it to play her android games on the tv Candycrush is the latest fav.
It has a media server but i just use a portable hard drive and connect it to a powered usb2 hub that also houses the wireless receiver for my mouse.
I'm waiting for my new RK3188quad core Android stick to arrive. It has a remote control, XBMC installed ( which i probably won't use, Bluetooth etc. The UG802 will then get moved to the 40" in the bedroom.
http://dealsprime.com/ugoos-um2-tv-stick-mini-pc-android-4-2…
Not sure why you got down voted for that. Interesting looking device.
"Not sure why you got down voted for that."
This joint attracts all sorts of strange people. : /
Mediabrowser looks good on the Roku http://mediabrowser.tv/community/index.php?/blog/1/entry-21-…
Now they just need xbmc
I can't find any reference to it transcoding? Useless if not, due to Roku codec limitations, but thanks for the suggestion. Will stick to Plex if it doesn't transcode.
Since when did amazon ship roku's to australia? Last time i checked they were shipping to US only.