I don’t pay for cable TV, nor do I pay for satellite. How do I watch TV? If you’ve read “Free TV (almost)” then you know that I primarily get entertainment through Netflix- how inconvenient. It really isn’t, primarily because of a device called a Roku.
The Roku is a square box, not much bigger than two packs of playing cards stacked next to one another, which connects to the internet and streams content over my internet connection directly to my TV. It allows me to stream:
- Netflix
- Amazon Instant
- Crackle
- and about 500 other free and premium “channels”
Is the Roku Worth It?
Roku offers a couple of different models, including the most basic starting at about $50.00. Considering that I haven’t paid for cable television for the past 2+ years, I would absolutely say the Roku is worth the cost. Of course, you still have to pay for your subscriptions such as to Netflix.
Can You Get Sports on Roku?
Yes, but you must have a subscription to the service. For example, if you love the NHL, you can get NHL games streamed to your Roku, but you must have a subscription to NHL Game Center Live (about $10 – $15/month). MLB Appears to cost about $25/year through MLB.TV. MLS Looks to cost about $35/year through live.MLSSoccer.com. You can’t watch NFL on Roku as of this writing but an Antenna should be able to pick up most of the games.
Can You Watch News and Weather on Roku?
There are channels available, but don’t expect the same kind of programming that you get from your local cable provider. I still use my computer and tablet for news and weather. The nice thing about our setup is that I’ve realized how useless watching most news is. I’m not saying that being informed is bad, but we really do get too much, and most of it is for conversation more than anything.
What Are “Channels”?
Roku channels can basically be thought of like apps on a phone or tablet. You go to Roku’s channel marketplace, you find some channels that sound interesting and select them. You can then view the channel’s contents. If you like it, keep it, if you don’t, then remove it.
Installing The Roku
Installation is very simple. Roku brags about their “5 minute set up process” and they aren’t lying. I clocked mine in under 5 minutes. You connect the Roku to your television with a cable, you plug it into the power outlet, then you connect it to your WiFi using the remote and complete the setup process.
- Here is a Roku setup video if you’re curious
- And here is a Roku setup article if you don’t feel like watching the above video.
Roku Cons
The primary con that I’ve run into with the Roku is that you can’t turn it off. It is just always on. It took a while to get used to it. The other primary con comes from content, but it really isn’t Roku’s fault, the entertainment industry is kind of like the telecom industry. They have trouble keeping up with technology changes and the demands of their customers.
The most notable problem the Roku has is that it can’t stream YouTube videos, which may or may not be a big deal to you. As technology evolves though, I believe the content problem will become less of a problem. That’s my review of the Roku set-top box, I find it very simple to use, and extremely convenient.
About Wealth Artisan
I’ve been jonesing for one for awhile but I don’t subscribe to Hulu Plus, Netflix or Amazon to get the paid content, and I haven’t gotten much sense on how good the free stuff is, to whether it’s worth it or not.
Hi There Money Beagle,
Some of the free channels are lame, but there are also quite a few good ones. One of the main ones is “Crackle” which I believe is owned by Sony Entertainment. They have a full library of free movies, they just play short advertisements throughout the movie, kind of like a commercial.
The only annoying thing is that it will often be the same commercials, so it can start feeling a bit redundant. They have many other channels that have shows which can range anywhere from a couple minutes to a half hour, these include: Cooking Channels, Fitness Channels, etc.
While many are clearly professionally produced, the easiest way to picture it is kind of like following a YouTube channel that is professionally produced. You select a channel that you like, and you can see a whole list of videos they have produced and watch the ones you think sound interesting. It’s definitely a departure from ordinary television! I hope this helps answer your question
.
Thanks,
Timothy
Cool product! I love how easy some of these gadgets make watching/sorting media today. I also haven’t had cable for years but have been using other solutions, but this looks well worth digging into. I’m living in Canada so I have a feeling it might not be usable there yet but I’m definitely going to do a bit more research to find out.
Poor Canada really does need more of this sort of stuff. Stupid government regulations on programming and all that…
Hey There Garrett,
I’ve heard about some of the restrictions before. A couple of my Canadian friends were lamenting about how Canada has gotten the short end of the stick when it comes to title availability on Netflix. I’m not sure if that is because of Government Regulations, but I feel for you.
Hopefully the Roku will work out well. Let me know if it does!
Thanks for stopping by,
Timothy