Roku XDS Streaming Player 1080p Review. Roku is a little box that allows you to instantly stream tons of entertainment on your TV. Watch over 100,000 movies and TV shows from Netflix, Amazon Video On Demand, and more. Listen to music on Pandora, or listen to your own iTunes playlists. Even watch major sports, news, or original Internet programming. It's all available whenever you want it. The all-new, top-of-the-line Roku XDS sets a new standard with 1080p streaming video, the latest wireless technology, and Instant Replay. All for under $100. No wonder Roku is the best selling streaming player ever....
"Every once in a while, a truly impressive device comes along." 2010-10-16
By Dr. Jim Bordwine (Vancouver, WA)
Like a lot of people who use Amazon, I own all kinds of electronic gear. Every once in a while, you get your hands on a device that really stands out in terms of ease of use and performance. When I first hooked up my Slingbox, for example, I realized that it was unique and was going to add something truly useful and impressive to my audio-video set-up. When I read a description of the Roku box, I had a similar expectation. Could it be as easy to use as advertised? Would it perform on a level that would really satisfy? Would it be one of those "stand out" devices? Now I can say in all honesty that the Roku player is everything I hoped and more. When the description says you will be up and running in just a few minutes, you can believe it. I opened the box, plugged in the power cord, attached a cable to my high speed router, and ran audio to my amp. I turned everything on and immediately saw the set-up screen for the Roku player. To run a quick test, I tried streaming a video from Netflix--it worked perfectly. This initial set-up and test took no more than 10 minutes. After several days of using the Roku, I have yet to have even the slightest problem. I have added a couple dozen channels and all work as expected. My only moment of hesitation came when I saw how small the Roku player is. It is tiny sitting there with all the other components, but when I saw what it could do, the size became inconsequential. The Roku player truly is an impressive device. While not necessarily a replacement, the Roku XDS Streaming Player is another serious alternative to cable TV. By the way, for those traveling outside the USA, where Netflix does not allow the streaming of movies on your PC, there is a way to connect the Roku player to your Slingbox. You then have access to Netflix through the Roku wherever you have an internet connection.
"Cable Killer? For my family YES!!" 2010-10-15
By C. Franklin (Goodyear, Az)
I have been looking for an alternative to cable/satellite for awhile. The ROKU XDS is the closest thing to it. With the support of Netflix streaming(some episodes even in HD), and with Hulu plus coming in the fall, the ROKU XDS is all my family needs. Also, if you look at the ROKU forums, developers are creating other private and premium channels. This is something that Apple.tv cannot do. They also mention on their website that with an update in November you will be able to play video off USB. Setup took only minutes and the picture in awesome on my 1080P LCD. The only draw back would be if you watch a lot of sports, currently they only have MLB.tv. As soon as Hulu Plus is added I will be dropping my $90/month satellite bill and pay $20 a month for Hulu and Netflix.
"Great little box" 2010-10-15
By Kristin (Nashville, TN)
This roku player is alot smaller than I expected which is a plus. It has an attractive sleek design. Super simple to set up. Sure you have to link up netflix and amazon video but alot of the "apps" are free items. This does not take long at all and once you have it done you don't have to do it again. So far it has streamed perfectly for several hours. I got this because the blu ray players I bought wouldn't stream correctly so I'm giving this a try since my extended family loves it. Really I'll probably just use it for amazon on demand and netflix. Who has time for all the other add ins? There is also a news channel where you can watch that mornings news or the previous night. Pretty neat.
"Absolutely amazed" 2010-10-18
By SamTheTechy (Chandler, AZ, USA)
I ordered this from Amazon (pre-order) and received it only 2 days ago. Prior to this, I was streaming netflix via a WII disc. I got this little box, set it up (setup was a breeze on my wireless network) and started viewing netflix. Only after viewing thru Roku, I came to know how bad WII streaming is.
Netflix quality is amazing even on my SD TV. We watched content for more than 12 hours and I haven't seen any inturruption. I have Wireless N router. I connected Roku to TV thru RED-WHITE-YELLOW cable. I'm planning for a HDTV with HDMI and looking forward to seeing 1080p netflix movies.
Youtube rocks as well. You can search for songs, movies and start playing them instantly. If youtube clip is HD, it's beautifully rendered by Roku box.
Overall, I'm completely satisfied with this little box. Hope it works well for next couple of years.
-Sam.
"Initial Problems Overcome" 2010-10-20
By JSapp (McKinney, TX USA)
This is a great product. Not only can you get streaming Netflix - but so much more. Now that there are so many of makers of 'streaming boxes', just doing that singular act is not so miraculous anymore. Its how many other 'apps' that are available on the box that gives you that 'extra'. And ROKU is great about adding new apps all the time. And I like that there are so many options on how to connect the device to my tv. That allows me to move the ROKU box around in the house and attach it to other tvs - even my older tvs that only have red,white,yellow RCA connectors on the back of them. I can even take it on trips with me and attach it to 'whatever' tv, as long as wireless is available to me.
When I got my new ROKU XDS I, like others that reported here, had some problems getting it to connect to my wireless network. So, I reported the problem to ROKU support and they provided me with the 'fix' (see below). Glad I waited for their response before sending it back.
***************THE FIX*****************************
Kindly go through the following instructions.
1.Turn off the Modem, Router, and the Roku player.
2.Plug the Modem back in, give it some time to settle down.
3.Plug the router back in and when ready, turn on the Roku player.
If you have a cable modem, kindly unscrew the co-axial cable, wait for 30 seconds and then plug it back in.
By Dr. Jim Bordwine (Vancouver, WA)
Like a lot of people who use Amazon, I own all kinds of electronic gear. Every once in a while, you get your hands on a device that really stands out in terms of ease of use and performance. When I first hooked up my Slingbox, for example, I realized that it was unique and was going to add something truly useful and impressive to my audio-video set-up. When I read a description of the Roku box, I had a similar expectation. Could it be as easy to use as advertised? Would it perform on a level that would really satisfy? Would it be one of those "stand out" devices? Now I can say in all honesty that the Roku player is everything I hoped and more. When the description says you will be up and running in just a few minutes, you can believe it. I opened the box, plugged in the power cord, attached a cable to my high speed router, and ran audio to my amp. I turned everything on and immediately saw the set-up screen for the Roku player. To run a quick test, I tried streaming a video from Netflix--it worked perfectly. This initial set-up and test took no more than 10 minutes. After several days of using the Roku, I have yet to have even the slightest problem. I have added a couple dozen channels and all work as expected. My only moment of hesitation came when I saw how small the Roku player is. It is tiny sitting there with all the other components, but when I saw what it could do, the size became inconsequential. The Roku player truly is an impressive device. While not necessarily a replacement, the Roku XDS Streaming Player is another serious alternative to cable TV. By the way, for those traveling outside the USA, where Netflix does not allow the streaming of movies on your PC, there is a way to connect the Roku player to your Slingbox. You then have access to Netflix through the Roku wherever you have an internet connection.
By C. Franklin (Goodyear, Az)
I have been looking for an alternative to cable/satellite for awhile. The ROKU XDS is the closest thing to it. With the support of Netflix streaming(some episodes even in HD), and with Hulu plus coming in the fall, the ROKU XDS is all my family needs. Also, if you look at the ROKU forums, developers are creating other private and premium channels. This is something that Apple.tv cannot do. They also mention on their website that with an update in November you will be able to play video off USB. Setup took only minutes and the picture in awesome on my 1080P LCD. The only draw back would be if you watch a lot of sports, currently they only have MLB.tv. As soon as Hulu Plus is added I will be dropping my $90/month satellite bill and pay $20 a month for Hulu and Netflix.
By Kristin (Nashville, TN)
This roku player is alot smaller than I expected which is a plus. It has an attractive sleek design. Super simple to set up. Sure you have to link up netflix and amazon video but alot of the "apps" are free items. This does not take long at all and once you have it done you don't have to do it again. So far it has streamed perfectly for several hours. I got this because the blu ray players I bought wouldn't stream correctly so I'm giving this a try since my extended family loves it. Really I'll probably just use it for amazon on demand and netflix. Who has time for all the other add ins? There is also a news channel where you can watch that mornings news or the previous night. Pretty neat.
By SamTheTechy (Chandler, AZ, USA)
I ordered this from Amazon (pre-order) and received it only 2 days ago. Prior to this, I was streaming netflix via a WII disc. I got this little box, set it up (setup was a breeze on my wireless network) and started viewing netflix. Only after viewing thru Roku, I came to know how bad WII streaming is.
Netflix quality is amazing even on my SD TV. We watched content for more than 12 hours and I haven't seen any inturruption. I have Wireless N router. I connected Roku to TV thru RED-WHITE-YELLOW cable. I'm planning for a HDTV with HDMI and looking forward to seeing 1080p netflix movies.
Youtube rocks as well. You can search for songs, movies and start playing them instantly. If youtube clip is HD, it's beautifully rendered by Roku box.
Overall, I'm completely satisfied with this little box. Hope it works well for next couple of years.
-Sam.
By JSapp (McKinney, TX USA)
This is a great product. Not only can you get streaming Netflix - but so much more. Now that there are so many of makers of 'streaming boxes', just doing that singular act is not so miraculous anymore. Its how many other 'apps' that are available on the box that gives you that 'extra'. And ROKU is great about adding new apps all the time. And I like that there are so many options on how to connect the device to my tv. That allows me to move the ROKU box around in the house and attach it to other tvs - even my older tvs that only have red,white,yellow RCA connectors on the back of them. I can even take it on trips with me and attach it to 'whatever' tv, as long as wireless is available to me.
When I got my new ROKU XDS I, like others that reported here, had some problems getting it to connect to my wireless network. So, I reported the problem to ROKU support and they provided me with the 'fix' (see below). Glad I waited for their response before sending it back.
***************THE FIX*****************************
Kindly go through the following instructions.
1.Turn off the Modem, Router, and the Roku player.
2.Plug the Modem back in, give it some time to settle down.
3.Plug the router back in and when ready, turn on the Roku player.
If you have a cable modem, kindly unscrew the co-axial cable, wait for 30 seconds and then plug it back in.
