Roku - Streaming Stick (2016 Model) - Black

My wife and I wanted to be able to stream Netflix and home media in our bedroom. After researching reviews, I decided to get the Roku Stick. I was pleased to find out that there was a newer faster version available, and the low price was a big plus. Best Buy was great, free shipping had it to my door in 2 days. However, once I got it unboxed and plugged in, that’s where the trouble began. It fit into the back of my LG TV without any issues, and powered right up via the USB port on the TV. Wifi setup was painless. I was presented with an activation code and instructions to set up a Roku account online……no problem…….I thought. Roku requires a credit card to set up an account, which I wasn’t too comfortable with and found unnecessary being that we already had a Netflix account that we had planned on using the stick for. Apparently from what I found online, you used to be able to skip this step, however now the only option is to call. Finally my wife and I decided to proceed with the credit card and set up the account. Once the Roku stick restarted and began downloading the apps things got really frustrating. Almost an hour of lockups and forced restarts. The remote stopped working 3 times and required resyncing during this period. Finally we were able to open the Netflix App and were only able to stream at the lowest quality – 244. We tried multiple shows and movies over the course of the next half hour and nothing would stream at a viewable quality. We also tried the PBS app and it would start and stop every 20 seconds. Also, the Roku menu kept indicating that the Wifi connection was disconnecting randomly even though other devices in the same room (Android Phone and Ipad) all showed full wifi signal. Now, we do have an older NetGear N router, and our DSL internet caps out at 4mbps being that we live in a rural area, however, any other device we stream with in the house gets at least 720P quality with Netflix…….even the Playstation3 in the basement! I even tried using the supplied power adapter rather than the USB port on the TV thinking it might be a power issue. So, the final test was to stream off of an Xbox 360 over wifi in the same room, right next to the Roku stick……..the 360 worked perfectly. So in summary there is a possibility that the Roku stick we received was defective, and there is also a possibility that it is incompatible with our router for some reason, but being that the closest BestBuy store is an hour away we decided to return it and continue our search for a streaming solution. For now, the Xbox 360 is fitting that need.

This updated Roku Stick model is leaps and bounds better than the original Roku Stick I picked up last year! While the previous version generally struggled with typical use including starting and jumping between apps, the 2016 model shows absolutely no hints of slowdown. Even when I quickly jumped between apps using the remote's four app presets, the Stick was completely responsive. I'm also happy to report that the Roku Stick can be powered by your TV's USB ports. And if your TV, like mine, shuts off USB power when the screen is turned off, you'll be happy to know that while you have to turn the TV on with its own remote, the Roku Stick boots up cold and is ready to go in less than 15 seconds. Sadly this is faster than my TV can start up its own Netflix app and it's only about a year old... Some other things worth noting: - There's a good chance the Roku turn your TV on when you press the Home button. Go into Settings > Control Other Devices and activate 1-Touch Play. When my Sony Bravia is in standby (the screen is off but the TV is powered on) pressing the Home button on the Roku remote turns on the TV and switches to the Roku Stick's input. YMMV though but I think if your TV has CEC there's a good chance this'll work for you too. - If you have at least a 1080p screen you'll need to manually kick up the Roku's resolution. You can do so in Settings > Display Type - If you're not a fan of the Fandango Movie and TV channels you can disable them in Settings > Home Screen Anyway even if you've been put off of the idea of a Roku Stick due to the previous model's performance issues, I'd highly suggest giving this one a try. You won't regret it!

Great device if this is what you need. I had to buy this because the app on my 2015, 70 inch Sharp TV for Youtube no longer work. This is due to Youtube changing their processes and has nothing to do nor is it the fault of sharp. I looked around for the best solution at the most reasonable cost and decide upon this model and brand. Of course as everyone else has found this is a very effective device and it works as indicated. There are a number of apps some of which are for free channels and some of which are for paid. As an HBO subscriber this is actually easier to use than the HBO menu especially when wanting to find old HBO series such as curb your enthusiasm, band of Brothers, Sopranos, etc. My only complaint is that I wish the remote had a few more ways to manipulate it's controls and also that it contained a few more identifying marks for those controls. Unfortunately, like most modern devices there is very little provided in the way of operational instructions and unless you want to go on online or read individual reviews from different websites. However, the bottom line is this device works and does everything it says it will. Also, they offer a small HDMI cable if the Roku is shaped where it will not fit into an HDMI port on your television. This may be a problem to many TV owners as the Roku Dongle is not tiny and some of the HDMI ports on TVs are located in tight quarters. Although I was able to get my dongle into the space provided it was a very tight fit so I did request the free cable that Roku offers. I was surprised to receive the cable within four days of when I requested it so that is very good customer service . Another thing that is not pointed out or very clear in any instruction or even on the site is that the Roku dongle needs an exterior power source. The power available at the HDMI port is not sufficient to control it so you will have wires coming off of the dongle.

I purchased this item to replace a "failed" Roku 2 (faster processor edition). I heard good things about the Roku Stick, I liked the idea of it being plugged into the back of my TV and hidden with no external box like the Roku 2. At the same time as my Best Buy order for the Stick, I went on Amazon and purchased a 6" USB to Roku Stick power cable. This gets power drawn from your TV's USB port without the need of the included wall wart transformer. When I received the unit (fast shipping, BTW), setup was really simple and hassle-free. I already had a Roku account with the Roku 2, so it didn't need me to re-enter my credit card info (yes, the Roku units need your CC number to purchase some programming, but I never had to utilize it). The remote is RF (no line of sight needed), and paired instantly with the Stick. Well, once the unit is all set up with your WIFI password, you're in business. My subscriptions include (for modest fees) SiriusXM, Sling, Hulu, and Netflix. The Stick has a very fast processor and the graphics are amazing for such a little device. I swear it's faster than my newer edition of the Roku 2. About that "failing" Roku... I gave it to my niece to get it replaced via the warranty. Low and behold, she plugged it in, and the thing worked! So she's now the proud owner of a Roku 2. I can't explain why it quit working on my TV, where I received a notice of "invalid format" on my screen and nothing else. Pros: Inexpensive, easy to set up, awesome graphics (in full 1080p), and super fast. Cons: Runs a little hot, but it's about the same as the old Roku box. In retrospect, I would choose only Roku as my streaming device, the Roku Stick is a winner in my book. I'm happy to have bought it from Best Buy.

I've been looking at Roku devices since they came on the market years ago. But what really pushed me into purchasing the 2016 edition Roku Stick was a bad experience with a Vizio Smart TV purchase. Although the Vizio does great when it comes to overall viewing performance -- its smart TV functionality is terrible. Since I had a unused BB gift card and the Roku was on sale -- I took the plunge. Upon setting up the Roku, I found that it was vastly superior to the Vizio in every way -- overall performance, amount of apps -- you name it -- the Roku did it. In the few weeks that I've had the device I've had very few hiccups which required a reboot -- mostly due to the Youtube app which had a tendency to lock up. Streaming performance tends to be solid with an occasional dropped stream. Which, I attribute this to heavy Internet traffic. For instance, I used the Roku to monitor SkyNEWS as well as RT during the recent BREXIT vote and I did notice some sluggishness or stream dropping -- but again I think this was due to high traffic. The down sides of this Roku are mainly due to it being the lowest cost device in the Roku lineup. Because of this the remote does not have a volume control or headset capabilities like the higher end units. There is an Android app (and I assume iOS) which allows Roku remote and headset functionality via a tablet or a smartphone. However, the app (Android version) is somewhat glitchy and does need improvement. The stick itself is limited to WiFi connections only due to its size and lack of an Ethernet port. Given the aforementioned, you should make sure that you have a good WiFi signal when using the Roku Stick. Also, when setting up a Roku, it may seem that a credit/debit card is required but in actuality it is not. It's just that Roku does not make this a easy option to find when setting up their devices -- so one star left off. Other than this, I consider the Roku Stick to be a great purchase which would please anyone who is looking to cut cable costs while maintaining robust content consumption options.

I already own 3 of the old versions of the Roku sticks and have been happy. However, I've always noticed that navigation in some of the apps was a bit slow, and the system wasn't as responsive as I would have wanted when trying to switch between apps or start them up. Recently, having moved, I found that I needed an additional Roku stick to cover a new TV in another room. I am happy I decided to get the upgrade. The system boots so much faster and most apps load much more quickly. The biggest difference that I can see is in the Sling app: Before, switching between channels was somewhat slow. It took time to catch up with the show previews. Now, show previews load almost as fast as I can navigate between channels. It's difficult for me to go back to using the older Roku sticks when I have to, but luckily, I have the new model in the room I watch TV the most. There are two minor cons that I need to point out (note, these are minor enough that they didn't affect my 5 star rating). First, I wasn't able to power this edition with the USB port on my TV. This isn't a huge issue as I enjoy having the Roku available immediately when the TV switches on. Honestly, the only reason why I had consider using the USB port to power the stick is because of my second pet peeve with this edition. Sometimes, when I've been away from the TV for a while, like when I go to start watching TV at night, after work, I'll start Sling, select a channel, and find that it won't load. None of the channels load live TV. It just keeps spinning, like it'll eventually load. I found that if I encounter this, I just need to go to Settings>System>Restart, then open Sling again. Shows come up in a few seconds. I thought that having the Roku start up every time the TV started would help eliminate this issue, bus as previously noted, my TV's USB port isn't adequate enough for the task. This is likely just a specific case with my TV and Roku combo, so I would think 99% of those reading can probably disregard. Overall, I would recommend this Roku to anyone.

I preordered from BestBuy, it arrived a day early. Used to have the Roku 3, but gave it to my mom when I got the AppleTV 4. My primary reasons for getting the new Roku stick was for Amazon Prime Video and USTVNow.com, both of which have Roku apps but not AppleTV. For Amazon, AirPlay casting from my iPhone to AppletTV works quite well, but is at times inconvenient. The Stick fulfills the reasons I purchased it, but also gives me a new appreciation for my AppleTV 4: ** Scrubbing: On the Roku, there isn't any -- you can skip ahead/back in tiny increments, but if you have more than a minute's worth it quickly becomes frustratingly slow. With the Siri Remote, skipping 30 seconds or 10 minutes are both instantaneous with a voice command, or very quick by swiping the touchpad. Fast-forwarding is an option with Roku, but the slider moves so fast it's impractical trying to stop at the right spot. ** Wireless Audio: AppleTV's is pure bluetooth, so the pause/play button on my Jaybird X2's is a great feature -- I use it often. Roku Private Listening delivers audio to my iPhone over WiFi and to my headphones over bluetooth. Works fairly well, perfectly in sync with the video. Occasionally skips, very briefly -- so short it doesn't cut off an entire word of dialog but often enough to annoy. It also has a crackling static noise that distracts from viewing -- turning Private Listening off and back on clears it up for a bit, but you can count on it coming back. The static feedback doesn't block any audio, but it's there. Also, it's definitely not 'pure' bluetooth. Pressing pause/play on the headphones doesn't pause but instead turns off Roku Private Listening, stops media playback and restarts whatever I was last listening to on my iPhone whether it was Downcast, iTunes, Hulu, Netflix, or whatever. Annoying. Hopefully that'll be cleared up with a future update as I listen wirelessly more often than not. It's OK... Better as an option to supplement a primary streaming box, or for a spare TV in a guestroom -- I wouldn't recommend as a primary streaming solution.

The Roku Streaming Stick is an excellent alternative to the Amazong Fire Stick or the Google Chrome Stick, and more often than not, you receive an abundance of choices you couldn't get with the latter devices. I like Roku because it allows access to a variety of streaming services (both free and paid), and with my limited taste in movies and television, it is much cheaper than purchasing a cable subscription. However, I have noticed a few problems with the Roku Streaming Stick. The stick itself, first off, must also be attached to a USB cable in order to be accessed, completely defeating the purpose of the HDMI stick component in the first place. That is entirely my fault, I suppose, for not researching the device prior to purchase. There are two options for connecting the USB device - directly through the television's USB or through an outlet and its corresponding component. I opted for the television port, as there are few outlets near my television. It worked for a while, but then the stick needed to be charged. I charged the Stick via outlet for several hours before connecting it back to the televisions USB port, and within a half hour the remote (which connects to the Stick and won't work unless the Stick is charged) would not work. I rearranged items nearest the television to allow access to the outlet so it could charge while plugged in to the TV, and now the entire system fails to work if it's not plugged in to the outlet. An additional problem associated with outlet usage is that the stick will continue streaming even if the television is off (which it isn't supposed to do), so I have to fumble around until I can unplug the device. It's a greater hassle than it should be. Lastly, the remote does NOT retain battery life well, so make sure you stock up on AAAs!