<p>Thanks–that’s very helpful, kathiep and WayOutWestMom.</p>
<p>Kath - the LT only does 720p where as the others do 1080p. They will have a clearer picture for some things. If it’s not in HD in the first place it won’t make a difference but if they have a TV bigger then say 32 inches I’d go with the 1080p. If it’s smaller then that you probably wouldn’t notice the difference.</p>
<p>also, the nicer one has a USB port so I would think if they wanted to put music on a thumb drive they probably could play that through the device although I could be wrong on that. it also has motion control for games instead of the normal remote. The normal remote takes all the fun out of playing games on the roku. Not sure if you’ve ever tried to play on yours but I don’t even attempt it on mine. Plus most of the games I’ve downloaded stink. ALso, it says the nicer one has an ethernet port - this is great if they will be setting it up near their router. It will be much faster.</p>
<p>I’d probably go for the nicer one because I have bigger TV’s but that’s just me! </p>
<p>ALso to the other folks - I have a ROKU box on one TV and a Sony blu ray player that does internet on another TV. To me, the interface on ROKU is 100% better then the one on the Sony. I actually thought about putting one on the tv that has the Sony blu ray player because I like the interface that much better but I haven’t justified the cost vs the interface yet to convince myself to make the purchase.</p>
<p>The roku interface also gets a lot more upgrades and updates then the Sony interface/apps do from what I’ve seen. They flow a lot better.</p>
<p>
If you have a large HD flat screen TV, like a 50" or larger, you’ll want the 1080i vs the 720p for a somewhat clearer picture. The number equates to the number of lines on the screen where more is better and the letter refers to interlace scanned vs progressive scanned where ‘p’ is technically better but sometimes not really noticable. If you have a smaller TV, maybe 42" or smaller, you probably wouldn’t notice the difference. </p>
<p>The ethernet port is good if you have a nearby router to plug it into. Doing that might yield a faster connection and fewer lousy connections/dropped content (pixelation/freezing of the pic).</p>
<p>The USB port is really only needed if you’re going to plug a USB stick in it (maybe a laptop) to use the box to show photos on the screen for a slideshow. It might be able to show other content or play music through the TV as well.</p>
<p>But if you’re going to buy a new one, get the better one unless it’s too much money.</p>
<p>Not all Blu-Ray players stream online content so you’d need to check the particular model to see if it does or not.</p>
<p>It’s getting to where there are a lot of overlapping features anymore, for example with the streaming capability being built into both DVD players and TVs nowadays. I’m surprised more TVs don’t just include a blu-ray player in them although it’d probably be a source of the biggest failure component which might be why it’s not often done.</p>
<p>We’ve had the old Roku SD for years now.
Netflix streaming is great. We also use Pandora, and now amazon prime videos since we have a free one month trial.</p>
<p>Hey, if you don’t mind–a couple of ignorant questions:</p>
<p>if you have wireless in a house, but no television service (cable, fios, dish, etc), plus an older (big tube in back) kind of TV, can Roku still show stuff?</p>
<p>And, if you get Hulu or Netflix or one of those streaming services, can you use the same thing in two different houses?</p>
<p>Thanks-- from a luddite who hasn’t seen a movie in years… 
(only slight exaggeration.)</p>
<p>Garland - you can use your account in whatever house you want. It’s just a username and a password. You can stream from the computer, a smart phone, or a roku box (or similar device).</p>
<p>You can still use the roku box on an old tube tv as long as your tv has composite inputs - the red, white, and yellow kind. </p>
<p>You do have to pay for the streaming services like Hulu and Netflix. There are a few services on Roku that you do not have to pay for and can watch free movies on.</p>
<p>So, you actually go to the service (hulu or netflix or whatever) through the Roku box? And does the Roku connect to your wireless? (again, sorry for the cluelessnessness).</p>
<p>yes, you go to the service through your roku box. It’s like a little internet box for your TV. If you have an old tube TV you’d be fine with the cheapest ROKU since you wouldn’t be using the better HD of the other boxes - unless you were planning to upgrade your TV anytime soon.</p>
<p>Think of it like channels on TV or apps on a phone.</p>
<p>[Channel</a> Store | Roku Streaming Player](<a href=“Roku”>Roku)</p>
<p>You pick and choose which channels you want on your Roku. Some you pay for ( ex netflix, hulu), some you don’t - (ex. flixter, crackle). You can try a free trial of netflix and hulu and then decide if it’s something you’d want to subscribe to or not.)</p>
<p>Roku would connect to your wireless. You have to tell it what the name of your network is and enter your wireless network password. It can remember it so you don’t have to do this each time.</p>
<p>fendergirl:</p>
<p>Have you used a Roku to watch Crackle? I’ve only tried it on my wirelessly connected laptop to watch ‘Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee’ (by Seinfeld) but noticed it freezes a lot, apparently due to the Crackle network since I don’t have the problem with anything else.</p>
<p>This is something to keep in mind - some of these streaming services work better than others and streaming in HD is pushing the edge to transfer all that data down the pipe. This is where the ethernet port vs relying on a wireless connection can help and probably why they put an ethernet port in the 1080i HD capable Roku box. The limitations can be in the device, the wireless network, the internet provider (cable/uverse, etc.), and even the content provider (Crackle, Huluplus, etc.).</p>
<p>gladdad- I have used it a few times. I think I had a problem with it once but other then that it’s been okay. I usually watch movies on the others because the selection is a bit better. My roku does freeze up from time to time in Hulu but I have one of the older Roku’s - it’s at least 3 years old. If it freezes on me I just restart it but that doesn’t happen very often.</p>
<p>My blu ray player is wired by ethernet instead of wireless since it’s right next to my router. It may stream slightly quicker but i just really do not like the navigation of the ‘apps’ on it. I hate fast forwarding on it in netflix - and I also dislike the way it does commercials on hulu.</p>
<p>Thanks, Fendergirl! i"m such a dodo-head when it comes to this stuff.</p>
<p>garland, I think if you were to get one and subscribe to something like hulu or netflix that would work out great. They have a lot of current TV shows on both. I usually catch the episodes that I miss of certain shows on there a day or two later. If only they did live sports games - then I’d ditch my cable completely!</p>
<p>WOWMom and GladGladDad, thank you! I think I’ll keep the Sony DVD blue-ray and wrap it up and put it under the tree. Thanks for clarifying this.</p>
<p>Thanks for the last few posts fendergirl and GladGradDad, very helpful and informative.</p>
<p>I bit the bullet and got a refurbished Roku 2 XS from 1 saleaday this morning. Price was $55 including shipping. Also got a square trade warranty in case it dies within 3 years. Just hope it ships in time… I found it through woot.com, where I often find great deals.</p>
<p>Okay - now I’m intrigued! We have a big tv in our finished basement that would be GREAT for hooking up to a Roku, to leverage our Netflix and Amazon Prime accounts. I’m assuming it sort of takes the place of what an internet-ready tv, or internet ready Blu-ray player would do (we have one of those upstairs, it’s a smaller, newer tv).</p>
<p>Mechanical questions I’m wondering about. Is making the connection to your home wi-fi as simple as, say, when your computer looks for a wifi signal (you just pick the right network and enter the WEP Key #)? How do you physically sign in to your video accounts? Does the Roku ask for your login info - and does it ask for it just once?</p>
<p>
Yes, it’s that simple - really! 
When you click on Netflix, for example, the Roku has prompts on the tv screen that walks you right through it. You only have to do it one time, not every time you watch. It may be hard to explain how it works here, but I will say that in practice it is probably the easiest technology setup I’ve ever done. Super easy and user-friendly. Definitely get one! We have one on our big flat screen plasma tv and another in the guest room on an old tube tv. We put it in the guest room because although we have FIOS in the other main rooms, the builder for some reason decided that amongst the bedrooms, only the MBR needed a cable hook up (???) So Roku enables the other bedrooms to watch stuff without any cable or FIOS. Amazing invention! :)</p>
<p>Just a mom , you’re correct. You select a network then put in your password then you would link your netflix and Amazon account to your device. It walks you how to do this. It will remember everything for you.</p>
<p>Sent from my DROID BIONIC using CC</p>
<p>Well, color me sad. </p>
<p>We have an older, big, HD projection TV in our basement. It’s nice, and big, and doesn’t need replacing…BUT, it is old enough that it doesn’t have an HDMI connection input. With the Roku, you can either have (I think I’m saying this right) an HDMI connection or a “Composite” connection. Not the “Component” connection that would allow us to view Roku programming in HD on that tv. So, no Roku for us, until we get a new TV to replace that one. Now I remember why we haven’t put a blu-ray player down there yet either. Disappointing…</p>
<p>If any kind soul could explain sports TV options, I’d be grateful. My current assumption is that cable TV has locked up quite a few broadcasts for their own transmission. You can’t see those games any other way. Am I wrong?</p>
<p>I really love having my Over-the-Air antenna for network sports broadcasts. The HD quality is amazing!</p>
<p>We bought a Roku for my dad, who only relies on an antenna. They have netflix, but find that they prefer to get the DVDs via snail mail - those movies are more current. But I notice that Roku allows you access to many of the cable TV shows they’ve never seen, for free.</p>
<p>We’ve had Roku and Netflix for years.
Enjoy the snail mail newer movies, especially in blueray.</p>
<p>But we also seem to find new series to watch streaming.
Just starting watching Downton Abbey which I find wonderful.</p>