Fire Stick vs Roku

[Plasmatopia]

Our local cable/internet/phone coop now uses Firestick for its cable. The coop has its own app and you access all your channels through the Firestick control after you open the app. It works fairly good though there are occasional glitches. We DVR a lot of shows and that aspect works well. But some channels have blocked DVR - such as HBO. I can just go to Max for that but it's still irritating that they are that paranoid about their content being recorded.

If you streamed through a computer it would be a piece of cake to record stuff. But I have no idea why I'd bother.

[Duncan Glenday]

Late last year, I researched Firestick vs Roku vs "Chromecast With Google TV". I read numerous comparisons, and viewed Youtube comparisons as well.

At that time the Chromecast was the favorite, with Roku a close second.

So I have 4 "Chromecast With Google TV" devices in the house, and am very happy with the way they perform.

In general conversations I've heard numerous complaints from people with Firesticks, but people with Rokus seem to be happy with their systems.

[Hal...]

Thanks Duncan. That's incredibly useful.

[progmatist]

If you streamed through a computer it would be a piece of cake to record stuff. But I have no idea why I'd bother.

That's why illegal downloading stopped being a thing. Why bother?

Late last year, I researched Firestick vs Roku vs "Chromecast With Google TV". I read numerous comparisons, and viewed Youtube comparisons as well.

At that time the Chromecast was the favorite, with Roku a close second.

So I have 4 "Chromecast With Google TV" devices in the house, and am very happy with the way they perform.

In general conversations I've heard numerous complaints from people with Firesticks, but people with Rokus seem to be happy with their systems.

The deal breaker for me is the Roku is incapable of playing Hi-Res audio. Ruling out apps like Tidal. That being said, I do use a Roku to play the Roku channel.

[Hal...]

I bought a Roku last night and already I'm much happier than when I was using the Fire Stick. Did not like the fact that Roku wants my CC on file. Fortunately, there's an option that requires a PIN if you want to make a purchase. But still.

There are a few advantages the FS has over the Roku when I'm using the Xfinity streaming app. One is when you press on the right side of the navigation circle on the FS remote, the video jumps ahead by 30 seconds, which makes it super convenient when you want to fast-forward thru commercials. Roku simply goes into ffw mode; an oversight, imo. Another is if you have to ffw (or rewind) thru a long program. The FS can do it much faster than the Roku, which comes in handy after falling asleep half-way thru a sporting event and you need to ffw up (or rw back) to where you fell asleep.

The big disadvantage the FS has when using the Xfinity app is that if you pause, the player controls remain on the paused image. Roku's disappear after a second or two. That's a huge plus for me because sometimes I pause a sporting event to read stats or the sports ticker at the bottom and FS's search bar will often be right over top, usually rendering the stats/ticker illegible. And then, of course, are the times I pause the video to look at a particularly attractive female athlete. Now I can see her clearly.

One of the biggest advantages of the Roku over the FS is adding shows and movies to my watchlist. The asterisk button on the Roku remote is the shortcut for that. With FS, you'd have to select the show/movie and then navigate to the "add to watchlist" link.

Ultimately, other than the Xfinity app issues, Roku is a huge improvement over Fire Stick.

Oh, and Best Buy has it on sale ($5 off) until the 11th, which was a nice surprise when I went to buy it last night.

[moecurlythanu]

^ Does Roku work as a standalone unit (as long as you have internet & wi-fi,) or does it also require having a cable or satellite television account?

[Hal...]

^ Does Roku work as a standalone unit (as long as you have internet & wi-fi,) or does it also require having a cable or satellite television account?

No cable or satellite accounts required. It's just a streaming device. You could, I suppose, buy one just for Roku's free stuff but I'm not sure why someone would bother. As I've discovered with free streaming services (Crackle, Freevee, etc), there's very little I want to see on them, not to mention they're not ad free. But if you only have internet and some streaming services, devices like Roku or Fire Stick are the way to go if you don't want to run a 15' or 30' HDMI cable from your PC to your TV, which is what I used to do since I have an older PC and older TV.

You could accomplish the same thing if you have a laptop (or PC) and a TV that can talk to each other via Bluetooth or WiFi, I'm not sure which. But having a little remote to use vs a laptop/PC is a big plus, imo.

Edit: Rokus and Fire Sticks use WiFi to connect to your router/modem but then use a small HDMI cable to connect to your TV. The thing I discovered about the Roku is you'll need a USB AC adapter since one isn't provided. You're supposed to be able to plug it into your TV's USB port and power it that way, but when I tried that I got a "low power" message and it wouldn't work.

Right now, Rokus are $25 at Best Buy (until the 11th) but that's only for the HD (1080p, 720p) version. If you have a 4K TV, you'll need to get the higher priced version. They have other models that do more but I didn't look into those so I don't know anything about them.

[progmatist]

^ Does Roku work as a standalone unit (as long as you have internet & wi-fi,) or does it also require having a cable or satellite television account?

It's not like the days just before the battle of the streaming services. In which in order to watch a show from the TNT website, it required divulging the details of your cable or satellite provider. Now that much of streaming services' content isn't even available on cable or satellite, that service becomes irrelevant.

[Duncan Glenday]

I bought a Roku last night and already I'm much happier than when I was using the Fire Stick. Did not like the fact that Roku wants my CC on file. Fortunately, there's an option that requires a PIN if you want to make a purchase. But still.

There are a few advantages the FS has over the Roku when I'm using the Xfinity streaming app. One is when you press on the right side of the navigation circle on the FS remote, the video jumps ahead by 30 seconds, which makes it super convenient when you want to fast-forward thru commercials. Roku simply goes into ffw mode; an oversight, imo. Another is if you have to ffw (or rewind) thru a long program. The FS can do it much faster than the Roku, which comes in handy after falling asleep half-way thru a sporting event and you need to ffw up (or rw back) to where you fell asleep.

The big disadvantage the FS has when using the Xfinity app is that if you pause, the player controls remain on the paused image. Roku's disappear after a second or two. That's a huge plus for me because sometimes I pause a sporting event to read stats or the sports ticker at the bottom and FS's search bar will often be right over top, usually rendering the stats/ticker illegible. And then, of course, are the times I pause the video to look at a particularly attractive female athlete. Now I can see her clearly.

One of the biggest advantages of the Roku over the FS is adding shows and movies to my watchlist. The asterisk button on the Roku remote is the shortcut for that. With FS, you'd have to select the show/movie and then navigate to the "add to watchlist" link.

Ultimately, other than the Xfinity app issues, Roku is a huge improvement over Fire Stick.

Oh, and Best Buy has it on sale ($5 off) until the 11th, which was a nice surprise when I went to buy it last night.

From what you've written, the "Google Chromecast With Google TV" does pretty much everything the Roku does - but without the drawbacks.

The 15-second forward or backward jump is usually dictated by the streaming service. E.g. Peacock reacts to the back-button differently than ESPN+, which reacts differently than YouTube TV ... etc. But if you're aware of how they each work, there's no missing functionality with the Chromecast.

[Hal...]

From what you've written, the "Google Chromecast With Google TV" does pretty much everything the Roku does - but without the drawbacks.

The 15-second forward or backward jump is usually dictated by the streaming service. E.g. Peacock reacts to the back-button differently than ESPN+, which reacts differently than YouTube TV ... etc. But if you're aware of how they each work, there's no missing functionality with the Chromecast.

The only real drawbacks to the Roku is the credit card thing and how it interacts with the Xfinity app, otherwise it's excellent. It even asked if I had any premium channels through my cable service and then logged in to them without me having to do it with each app.

You know, now that I think about it, the Xfinity app for the FS functions like the old DVRs whereas the version for the Roku is like the previous generation of DVRs, which do not have the jump forward capability, only the jump back. In fact, the latest generation of DVRs don't even have a jump back button on their remotes. Why Xfinity chose to eliminate that is a complete mystery.

[MudShark22]

So I am a FS user - have two fire TVs and two sticks (six TV household). I am also a prime member. Amazon OS for these sticks are essentially android devices.

Don't have cable - use Fubo on FS to get local channels plus local sports (Mets/isles) and other goodies. I use FS (and the FS remote) to access Netflix, Max and Prime Video. I also on occasion stream Pandora thru the FS to my home theater system.

I also have a smart TV with no FS stick or access - it has its own apps for all of the above (webOS) and they ALL suck; to the point that I will likely grab a 4k FS, use one of the HDMI ports (not the eARC port which I use to the home theater) and ditch the smart TV apps.

[Scott Bails]

The one complaint I have with all of them is that your watch list isn't right next to the home page. Why do I have to scroll to get to the stuff I have already looked at and put on my watch list???

The same reason why the grocery store usually keeps the milk and bread at the back of the store. You have to work to get to the things you want. Have to move past the things they want you to see before you get to what you want to see.

[Duncan Glenday]

The only real drawbacks to the Roku is the credit card thing and how it interacts with the Xfinity app, otherwise it's excellent. It even asked if I had any premium channels through my cable service and then logged in to them without me having to do it with each app.

That's cool.

Not sure if the Google system does that, because I dumped Xfinity. I get basically the same functionality as Xfinity from YouTube TV, for 25% of the price.

Xfinity now provides me with nothing but an Internet connection.

You know, now that I think about it, the Xfinity app for the FS functions like the old DVRs whereas the version for the Roku is like the previous generation of DVRs, which do not have the jump forward capability, only the jump back. In fact, the latest generation of DVRs don't even have a jump back button on their remotes. Why Xfinity chose to eliminate that is a complete mystery.

Interestingly, I learned from an Xfinity rep that they never removed that feature - it was just not available on the newer remotes.

So I kept a few dozen of the old "XR11" remote controls, and was always able to use that feature. It might still be that way...

xfinity_xr11_3.jpg
(Click to enlarge)

[Hal...]

Not sure if the Google system does that, because I dumped Xfinity. I get basically the same functionality as Xfinity from YouTube TV, for 25% of the price.

Wow. I'll have to look into that. We considered switching to Hulu Plus live TV but it's somewhere in the neighborhood of $70 or $80 and when you add in the cost of internet and the premium channels, it adds up to about the same price as having cable and internet bundled.

So I kept a few dozen of the old "XR11" remote controls, and was always able to use that feature. It might still be that way...

Yep, that's the same remote for our old DVR. It works so much better than the newer ones.

[Duncan Glenday]

Wow. I'll have to look into that. We considered switching to Hulu Plus live TV but it's somewhere in the neighborhood of $70 or $80 and when you add in the cost of internet and the premium channels, it adds up to about the same price as having cable and internet bundled.

I'm paying $70 for YouTube TV ("YTTV"), plus $100 to Comcast for high-speed Internet.

I was paying Comcast $360 all-in. I now have the same functionality (albeit with new user interfaces that are quickly learned) for less than half the cost.

This isn't a Google Chromecast thing - Roku and Firestick will do the same thing. After subscribing to YTTV, I just loaded the app- and that became the main interface to drive TV viewing. Then - I switched Comcast from full service to Internet-only to save $$.

[hippypants]

Yeah, I was reading somewhere a guy said he got the Sling Blue (or if you prefer sports, Orange). He bundled that with an add-on, the Hollywood Extra for $6. and you get a bunch of movie channels and TCM. That's $46. or so. I don't know if there's taxes. Read about it here.

[Hal...]

Question for Duncan... or anyone else who can answer this question: what controls how an app works on a particular device? Is it the app itself or the device or a combination? If that's not clear, here's an example of what I mean:

The TCM app on the Fire Stick doesn't have any kind of jump backward or forward function. And if you want to fast forward or rewind, you press the navigation circle and hold it (which is a real pain). If you want to turn on closed captions, you have to exit out of the movie, navigate to settings, and find where to turn on CCs (which I find totally unacceptable). With the Roku, it has the jump backward/forward capability. Also, turning on the CCs can be done while watching a movie, since it has a button on the remote kinda dedicated to that.

I'm asking because, of the two, Roku is the clear winner for all apps – except when it comes to the Xfinity app, particularly when it comes to viewing available channels, either "all", "favorites", or "TVGo" channels; Roku is missing a bunch and doesn't show any of the TVGo channels. I've resorted to leaving my Fire Stick plugged in to the second HDMI port on my TV for when I want to watch something on Xfinity, which is a lot of stuff, actually.

So the reason for my question is, if I want to contact someone about the issues of using the Xfinity app on Roku, would I contact Xfinity or Roku? (I suspect Roku, but I'd like confirmation of that)

--------------------

For anyone considering one of the streaming devices, or getting a different one, note that I also bought the Google Chromecast device last week, just to check it out. IMO, Roku is the clear winner. It works better than the Fire Stick and the remote buttons aren't nearly as stiff (Chromecast's are like the Roku's). It lacks two features, however, which the others have: voice command ability and Bluetooth remote. Yes, you have to make sure you point the Roku remote at the device. In this day and age, that seems like an oversight. However, a Voice Remote is available for the low, low cost of an extra $20. Seriously?

After using the Roku for a while, the Fire Stick feels like Amazon said, "here's a streaming device. It has flaws. Get over it." The Chromecast, otoh, looked at Apple products, which Windows users do not find user friendly nor intuitive, and said, "hold my beer." Indeed, in order for me to watch anything on Xfinity, I had to pull up the app on my phone and cast it to the Chromecast. Uhhhh, no thanks. Not to mention it had to update, which took 15 minutes.

Another plus in favor of Roku is that the remote has four buttons, each dedicated to a particular streaming app (which change at the whim of Roku, apparently; it would be nice if they were programmable). A simple press of a button opens an app. Mine looks just like the picture below (I guess I got lucky since I subscribe to three of them). Chromecast has two, one of which is YouTube. Not unexpected, I guess. Fire Stick has none. I suppose they're not really necessary since you can press a button and tell Google or Alexa to open a particular app.

And if you're wondering if you have to exit out of one app before pressing one of those buttons, the answer is no. You can jump from one app to another.

[Duncan Glenday]

..what controls how an app works on a particular device?

Sorry, I'm not equipped to answer that. From your description, it seems to be a bit of both - i.e. some apps will have certain capabilities, and others don't. Then some remotes have a button to trigger those actions, and others don't. It's obviously a bit of a crapshoot!

Chromecast ... lacks two features, however, which the others have: voice command ability...

?? The Chromecast has a voice capability. I don't use it, though, so I can't speak to its effectiveness.

Another plus in favor of Roku is that the remote has four buttons, each dedicated to a particular streaming app...

Chromecast has 2. YouTube (which you can program to go to YouTube TV, as I do) plus a button for Netflix.

Indeed, in order for me to watch anything on Xfinity, I had to pull up the app on my phone and cast it to the Chromecast

Funny - I never had that problem when I still had Xfinity. (I dropped it a while ago, though, so things may have changed.) I find the Chromecast to be very quick.

Either way - I hope that some form of de-facto standardization will eventually emerge for the features in streaming apps, for the way the devices work, and for the features available on the remotes. Unlikely to happen, but hey - we can hope...

[Duncan Glenday]

On a completely different but loosely-related topic:

What streaming systems / apps / whatever does everyone use?

I tried Peacock. They have nothing that interests me, and anything I care about is available on regular broadcast TV which YouTube TV records for me and I can skip the commercials when watching. So I dropped it.

Ditto with Paramount+. I can get the few things I care about on CBS, but the rest of their programming leaves me cold.

I have no interest in the sports subscriptions - I get anything I need on the standard broadcast TV which (again) I record and watch via YouTube TV. and bypass commercials.

I have Amazon Prime by default - simply because we subscribe to Prime for free deliveries from Amazon. And I have Netflix for free courtesy of my T-Mobile phone service. But we rarely use either of those systems.

I recently subscribed to Acorn TV and BritBox, and have been blown away by the volume of very high quality programming they deliver. Highly recommended.



What's everyone else's approach to streaming apps?

[Jerjo]

Come the new year I'll sign up for Hulu again for several shows on it. I have Amazon Prime, Netflix, and Max right now (Max is part of my cable package). I can always find something to watch on those three, to the point where I rarely watch anything but news and sports on cable. Paramount+ is something I get only for Star Trek: Strange New Worlds and it will be a while before that airs again.

[Duncan Glenday]

Come the new year I'll sign up for Hulu again for several shows on it. I have Amazon Prime, Netflix, and Max right now (Max is part of my cable package). I can always find something to watch on those three, to the point where I rarely watch anything but news and sports on cable. Paramount+ is something I get only for Star Trek: Strange New Worlds and it will be a while before that airs again.

Is it worth keeping your cable package?

I dumped Comcast and don't miss it at all. I get the same basic stuff from YouTube TV for FAR less cost. I believe Hulu is similar - if you subscribe to it, you might be able to cut the cable, and save $$- because they have the full spectrum of broadcast TV channels, along with a (virtual) DVR service that's better than a real DVR.

By doing this ^^^ I'm saving a bit over $150/month and I have not missed a single show I wanted to watch. The YTTV user interface is not as slick as the Comcast interface, but it took a small time to get used to it and other than a few convenient features, we don't miss Comcast at all.

But research it carefully before cutting the cable!

[Poisoned Youth]

Duncan, I have YouTube TV as well and the DVR is the best feature, and also makes some other apps redundant. I also think Peacock is the worst of the major network apps.

If you’re looking for more free apps, I definitely recommend Pluto TV. I also recommend FreeVee, which is essentially Prime with ads.

My sister and I split some of the streaming services up. I have Disney and Netflix, she has Paramount and Max. I think Max and Netflix have the most content worthy of a long term subscription. Disney has lots of good stuff, depending on what you’re into. Paramount has Trek and lots of shows I grew up watching.

[headcrash]

IMO HBO Max is king for original content. Many of their series are first rate and quite varied.
I like Apple+ but I suspect I'm in the minority. They don't have a large selection but original series like "Ted Lasso", "For All Mankind", "Hijack", and "Slow Horses" are some of the best I've seen recently.
We've tried a number of live TV options and found YouTube TV to be best for us. The prices are all pretty comparable but YTTV offers more of the stations we want and less of the stuff we never watch, including 4k options.
Netflix has little of interest to us for whatever reason. Ditto Disney since we're neither Star Wars nor superhero fans.
Altogether we're paying less than half what DirecTV was costing and not missing anything.

[mozo-pg]

I pay $425 a month for Bell TV, home and cell phone, and internet. Crazy.

[Jerjo]

Is it worth keeping your cable package?

Yeah, it's cheap and because runs thru Fire Stick it is set up to sync well with streaming, we're dependent on it. We get it from our local rural communications co-op, which was founded by my uncle as just a phone coop in the 1950s. It is bundled into phone and our ridiculously fast Internet. I'm keeping it. It is highly likely we will move in a couple years and then I'll see what we end up with.