Netflix box?

[bicker]

One other option, though I do not recommend it: The TiVo HD offers both Blockbuster Online and Netflix Watch Instantly. However, the TiVo implementation for Netflix (and probably for Blockbuster as well) is not very robust when the servers are overloaded. The servers fail and send out errors, which the TiVo doesn't seem to handle very well.

The TiVo HD also supports Amazon Video On Demand. That implementation is perfect (except that it is missing support for closed captioning for the hearing impaired).

 

[Lanshark]

We use the XBOX 360 and love it.

 

[Michelina]

We have the Roku player and really like it. I watch more tv shows on it than I do movies. It's true that the movies aren't first run. I use Redbox mostly for those. If you have little ones, there are a lot of kid shows that you can download. The video quality is very good. We don't download from Netflix onto our computers, I hate watching videos on the computer.

 

[cruisnfamily]

We have the Roku player and really like it. I watch more tv shows on it than I do movies. It's true that the movies aren't first run. I use Redbox mostly for those. If you have little ones, there are a lot of kid shows that you can download. The video quality is very good. We don't download from Netflix onto our computers, I hate watching videos on the computer.

I hate watching stuff on the computer too, I would never do it. DH would do it. But he'd rather the TV I think. We're probably going to get the Roku, I was thinking of getting it as a Christmas present for DH as he'd probably use it the most. WE don't need the movies to be first run, but we're hoping for a good selection of movies. Don't need any little kid shows...but if there are teen shows that would work.

Anyway, keep the feedback coming, love to hear all about it!

 

[iggbees]

We use the XBOX 360 and love it.

this is what we do too! i love the upgrade that now allows us to put movies into our instant queue directly from the xbox.

 

[N.Bailey]

I just wanted to add that since we subscribed to Netflix, I've just stopped buying any DVDs really. There may be the occasional movie I want to own (like Transformers 2), but for the most part, I have no need to own them now. There are so many movies on instant watch that if I wanted to see a movie again, I can on any whim. If it's not yet on instant, I can bump it to the top of my queue and get the hard copy.

For the measly subscription fee at Netflix (3 at a time plan and right now I have 4 DVDs because I had one in my queue that had to be mailed from a shipping center not close to my home), is nothing compared to what I used to pay for DVD purchases. Then add in the fact that when I did rent a movie before, I'd be stuck with $5 and up in late fees. The bottom line for us is, Netflix is an absolute bargain.

 

[pisco]

Looks like the PS3 is going to be joining the party next month too.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20091026/wr_nm/us_sony_netflix_3

This will give you blu-ray, wireless Netflix streaming and gaming (if you are into that sort of thing). Seems like the best of all worlds to me.

 

[cruisnfamily]

So, I've decided to do it. I'm buying the Roku box for DH for Christmas.

Any advice on where to buy it? Or any deals I should be looking for? Or any other words of wisdom?

Thanks!

 

[tedhowe]

As an FYI for anyone in the market for a Netflix player, Insignia (one of Best Buy's in-house brands) has a low-end Blu Ray player that also has Netflix streaming.

It is on sale for $99.00 this week at Best Buy.

This is wired only - no wireless internet, so you need to be able to run a cable to it from your router, but for the same price as a Roku box, you get Netflix streaming, plus a Blu Ray player that generally gets pretty good reviews - especially considering the price.

 

[FireDancer]

So, I've decided to do it. I'm buying the Roku box for DH for Christmas.

Any advice on where to buy it? Or any deals I should be looking for? Or any other words of wisdom?

Thanks!

The price is pretty standard. You may want to wait and see if the price is discounted for the holidays. Right now they are offering the player for $99.99 with free shipping on the Roku website. If it were me I would check Cnet and search for Roku to see if they announce any deals. Cnet loves the Roku player and pretty much as soon as any news comes out it gets put on either the main site, news site, or on the review of the player.

 

[cruisnfamily]

As an FYI for anyone in the market for a Netflix player, Insignia (one of Best Buy's in-house brands) has a low-end Blu Ray player that also has Netflix streaming.

It is on sale for $99.00 this week at Best Buy.

This is wired only - no wireless internet, so you need to be able to run a cable to it from your router, but for the same price as a Roku box, you get Netflix streaming, plus a Blu Ray player that generally gets pretty good reviews - especially considering the price.

That's a fabulous deal and I would jump on that immediately if it had wireless too. But I don't want to have to run that wire, so I guess I'm still gonna go with the roku box.

The price is pretty standard. You may want to wait and see if the price is discounted for the holidays. Right now they are offering the player for $99.99 with free shipping on the Roku website. If it were me I would check Cnet and search for Roku to see if they announce any deals. Cnet loves the Roku player and pretty much as soon as any news comes out it gets put on either the main site, news site, or on the review of the player.

Thanks for the tip!

 

[cruisnfamily]

So I was all set to do this and went on the website and now I'm confused. Can somebody who has more of a clue than I do look at this linkand tell me which one I should buy?

We do not have an HD TV and have no immediate plans to buy one but probably will eventually.

Help! Thanks!

 

[FireDancer]

So I was all set to do this and went on the website and now I'm confused. Can somebody who has more of a clue than I do look at this linkand tell me which one I should buy?

We do not have an HD TV and have no immediate plans to buy one but probably will eventually.

Help! Thanks!

The difference between SD and HD is, you guessed it, High Definition. The optical digital out is for high quality surround sound but if you don't care about the HD then the feature itself is probably not worth it. HDMI is a connection that means nothing really if you aren't sending HD through it.

The only thing you get by going up to the XD-XR is a slightly faster wireless card. I will go out on a limb and say that the limiting factor in your network speed will be the Internet connection, not the wirless LAN connection. To be honest I wouldn't use wireless and run a cable for the player but the SD will be fast enough if you use the built in wireless. It is 802.11N which is plenty fast for what you will be using it for and probably faster than your Internet connection anyway.

Go with the SD if you don't care about high definition and go with the HD if you plan on using the HD. It comes down to whether or not you think being able to use HD in the future is worth $20.00 today.

 

[cruisnfamily]

Go with the SD if you don't care about high definition and go with the HD if you plan on using the HD. It comes down to whether or not you think being able to use HD in the future is worth $20.00 today.

I guess that is my question in a nutshell. WE don't have HD now with no immediate plans but probably will someday. I guess the choice is $20 now or $99 a year from now. Probably makes sense to spend the $20 now....your thoughts?

 

[cdepauli]

We don't have an HD TV and quite honestly the I don't have the extra money to spend right now.
But blockbuster charges for their service whereas with netflix it is free

Is this true. I thought you still had to pay for your netflix subscription?

 

[cruisnfamily]

Is this true. I thought you still had to pay for your netflix subscription?

sorry that wasn't very clear. Both netflix and blockbuster charge a subscription fee monthly. But netflix includes unlimited movie downloads for free included in the monthly fee whereas blockbuster charges $2 or $3 per download even with the monthly fee.

 

[cdepauli]

sorry that wasn't very clear. Both netflix and blockbuster charge a subscription fee monthly. But netflix includes unlimited movie downloads for free included in the monthly fee whereas blockbuster charges $2 or $3 per download even with the monthly fee.

Ok, good! I was wondering why I was paying. Haha.

I know you asked about quality before, and I'm quite happy with the quality from my setup (lg bd390 [I will use the blu-ray, so that's why I opted for this] and lg 32LH40-UA). The blu-ray is wireless, which is awesome. The Netflix streaming is very reliable and looks good. Just make sure your wireless connection is good and fast enough.

Honestly, I'd take a really good look at the PS3, which will be able to stream Netflix in the very near future. The price just went down, and you'd be getting the blu-ray, wireless, Netflix, and a gaming system all in one. I do understand, though, the money constraint.

Good luck with whatever you choose!

Maybe I'll end up getting Roku with all the endorsements in this thread!

 

[FireDancer]

I guess that is my question in a nutshell. WE don't have HD now with no immediate plans but probably will someday. I guess the choice is $20 now or $99 a year from now. Probably makes sense to spend the $20 now....your thoughts?

I'd lean towards the $20. Even if you get an HD TV and don't get HD programming via cable or satellite you can take advantage of the higher resolution for streamed content and Blu-Ray if you get it.

Like you said, if you change your mind in the future it beats having to buy another box to take advantage of the HD down the road.

 

[bicker]

The difference between SD and HD is, you guessed it, High Definition. The optical digital out is for high quality surround sound but if you don't care about the HD then the feature itself is probably not worth it.

Today. As you pointed out, the question is whether or not you're buying this box to use today, or are you buying this box based on what you perhaps may be using it for, say, in two years. The $20 difference between SD and HD is a very good price IMHO for future-proofing.

The only thing you get by going up to the XD-XR is a slightly faster wireless card. I will go out on a limb and say that the limiting factor in your network speed will be the Internet connection, not the wirless LAN connection.

True. I suspect that feature is there because some 802.11n routers step down to 802.11g for all wireless traffic, if any one wireless client is 802.11g. In a case like that, the 802.11n wireless adapter helps safeguard the speed of all wireless devices in your home. (Are there many of those routers left? I think I have one.)