ROKU instead of cable

[Merrymeeting]

Originally Posted by Slickcraft

Just introduced, $50, designed to compete with the google chromecast.

http://www.roku.com/products/streaming-stick
http://www.google.com/intl/en-US/chr...es/chromecast/

We have a ROKU 3, $100, which we really like. The stick is missing two features that we use on the 3. The stick is wifi only with no Ethernet jack and stick remote does not have the ear phone jack. The stick remote also does not have motion sensors for game playing.

For both the 3 and the stick the only output is HDMI, no separate optical digital audio. Anyway Netflix surround sound is Dolby Plus which is not supported by optical cable. So you will need either an A/V receiver or a TV that will decode Dolby Plus. Otherwise you will only get stereo.

The big advantage here is that competition is good for the consumer. ROKU needed to up their game to compete with Chromecast features/pricing. Amazing how quickly this stuff is changing now.