Zatz Not Funny!

My streaming hardware preference has waxed and waned over the years. And, whereas I’d given the Fire TV a slight edge the last year, the balance has now slightly tipped to Roku. Of course, outside Apple TV and Nvidia Shield, a solid, high quality experience can be had under $100 — no doubt about it, both the Amazon and Roku platforms are great.

I’ve preferred the Fire TV voice remote for a variety of reasons, including the feel, layout, and infinitely more versatile Alexa voice control. And, amongst the new stick/dongle-esque streamers, Amazon provides a superior physical design … that doesn’t require a HDMI adapter for certain television mounting situations. Further Amazon has provided a generally richer interface and app experiences. However, where they started to lose me is an updated interface infested with advertising that not only distracts but also interferes with navigation.

On the flip side, Roku’s interface and a large number of apps are ridiculously simplistic. But what they lack in visual complexity, they more than makes up for in clear, efficient interaction… which is ultimately of more importance. Where they really hit it out the park in 2017 are models with new remotes that also control television power and volume. Instead of crippled, unpredictable HDMI-CEC interaction, Roku supposedly uses EDID over HDMI to identify your television and load up the relevant IR codes. And in my small-scale test, it performed remarkably.

As everyone’s priorities are different, it’s fortunate that we have so many great options to choose from in 2017. Those deep into Apple ecosystem would certainly appreciate and potentially gravitate to iCloud photos and AirPlay on Apple TV or those all-in with Amazon will absolutely hate Roku’s Amazon Music app and would prefer Fire TV. And beyond these relatively inexpensive streaming boxes, sticks, and dongles, most modern televisions come with a decent helping of streaming content to meet folks’ over-the-top needs. What’s your pick?