Probably the best investment I've made on Woot was a Roku HD. I'm counting the days til my Dish Network contract is up so I can cancel. I hardly watch TV, but when I do, it's always Netflix on the Roku!

LeetHacker wrote:The version 2 model, also refurbished, is available at the Roku site for the same price. Oh yeah, they give you free shipping.
Shame on you, Woot!

tonkatsu wrote:This is either a Roku 2, or they have mislabeled it as 1080p. Roku XD is only 720p..... Can someone clarify?

It's not the same price, look again: $59.99 as mentioned above, for refubished, $79.99 for new vs. $49.99 here (or save $5 for the first one, $15 if you buy 2, etc.).

They have 4 models listed. The Roku 2 XD is correctly labeled as max 1080p, as far as I can see. It's the only one listed as XD. http://www.roku.com/roku-products#3

The specs come from this page:
http://www.roku.com/roku-products#4
with manual link:
http://www.roku.com/Libraries/Roku_Player_Documents/Roku2-XD-QSG.sflb.ashx

and to sum up the above. One person said that you can politely persist that the new Roku account not be set up wtih a credit card. One person said they don't recall exactly where, but there was a way during web registration that lets you opt out of the credit card. Even if you do register the card, one person said they used Paypal instead and one person said you could remove the credit card # from the online acsount.

Let me throw in my 2 cents worth. The item on sale is a Roku XD model number 2050X. For a comparison of all models, see this page - http://support.roku.com/entries/20345913-product-comparison-all-roku-player-models
As you can see, this Roku is indeed 1080P. It has composite video connectors on the back, so a lot of older TVs can connect that way. It also has an Ethernet jack if you don't want to use Wi-Fi. It doesn't support Netflix subtitles, only the newer Roku 2 models have that feature.

I have a Roku on order from a few days ago when it was on Woot Plus. My TV and Blu-Ray player both have streaming abilities but the software on the devices just isn't that great. I've watched a friend's Roku, and it works much better.

Said friend also installed RoksBox which lets you stream movies, etc. from your PC through your Roku.

I wonder which has been on woot more often: roku or dyson.

Personally I'd much rather have a roku.

bbigham wrote:I've only had my Roku a short time but from what I can tell, no --- you can't just let it run. ... That's probably not what you're looking for.

Thanks. Yeah, that's what I want -- actual TV shows (usually documentaries or nature shows -- or Ancient Aliens {eye roll}) that pass by one after the other... I may still drop the expensive cable and just do the one-after-the-other programming.

miken927 wrote:I wonder which has been on woot more often: roku or dyson.

Personally I'd much rather have a roku.

I'd bet that Roomba is still in the lead, even though it's been a while.

jwvess00 wrote:I have a Roku on order from a few days ago when it was on Woot Plus. My TV and Blu-Ray player both have streaming abilities but the software on the devices just isn't that great. I've watched a friend's Roku, and it works much better.

Said friend also installed RoksBox which lets you stream movies, etc. from your PC through your Roku.

Beware of roksbox.com. Strings attached,no free lunch.

jhmz wrote:are these things just for netflix and such? 'cause if can stream media from my computer (.avis, h264 mkv, all that good stuff) and play it on my tv i want one.

Get the PLEX app for it and you can stream all your avi, mkv, mp4, flv, wmv, whatever you got to it! You need Plex media server (its free and runs on Windows, Mac, or Linux) check out www.plexapp.com

First bought a new Roku 2 in Feb for my parents (in Texas) as they wanted "something". I thought it was cool - though I could do Netflix via the Wii.

I bought a Woot Roku about a month+ ago - my main reason was so I could use my Harmony remote to do Netflix *AND* get my Amazon Prime (currently use only Wii for SD Netflix).

After a couple weeks, we moved it upstairs so we could "pass off" the 4&8 YO kids to the master bedroom and enjoy our TV downstairs.

This came up again today. I wanted to buy one. Again. With shipping, $55. Researched the difference between Roku HD & Roku 2 - honestly, this is **NOT** a good deal.

Woot sells the "previous generation" model for $49 + $5 shipping (yes, I bought this and don't regret it). However, for $59, I can get a refurbished Roku2 XD direct from Roku (free shipping). This does 1080p (debatable if the Gen 1 does) and has more channels. So, sorry Woot - I bought the refurb Roku 2 XD today instead of the last-gen Roku HD.

I don't know for sure as I've not sampled sufficient media, but apparently the old Roku HD was only 720p, as is the new Roku 2 HD. Only the Roku 2 XD and XS are "1080p" devices. Again, no regrets; upstairs is an SD TV. Downstairs, the Roku2 XD will be hooked to our 67" 1080 DLP (yeah, not "wall flat", but 4 years old, and a darn good deal and very slim (19") for a huge screen -- it is between bookshelves, so the thickness is irrelevant!).

dliidlii wrote:Beware of roksbox.com. Strings attached,no free lunch.

I didn't see any strings attached to Roksbox, but Plex is a whole lot easier to set up.

dmitrixx wrote:This more of a review of Woot then this product. ... So buyer beware.

'Ey, now. Don't you worry too hard. Try talking to them some more. The staff here have been very reasonable in every occasion I know of. I wouldn't toss out a once-in-a-lifetime business like Woot! so hastily.

I've made 13 purchases from them thus far, and haven't had a single issue with them that I've had elsewhere.

Now, then, onto the product. Are the majority of the channels available for Roku subscription models such as Netflix? Or are there a substantial number of Crackle-like channels, as well?

If I wasn't a big-'ol-cheapskate I wouldn't be coming to Woot!, after all.

After debating in my head (it's scarey in there sometimes) I decided to just pay the $5 extra and buy the 2-XD directly from Roku, that and I hate waitng on woot to ship. There have been times it's taken over 2 weeks to receive something ordered here

Some feedback from a Roku2 owner/user.

There are a LOT of channels, but to be honest, if you want movies or tv, it comes down to:
NetFlix
Hulu Plus
Amazon

After that:
Crackle
PopcornFlix
AsianCrush
Epix

Several "Public Domain" streaming sites.

Music:
Pandora
Live365
TuneIn
Mog

I've had my Roku2 for a couple of years and love it. Watch it every night. The key thing I love about this versus every other device listed is that it's small enough that I can take it on trips and if I want to, I can easily hook it up to a tiny mobile monitor for the kids.

No station on Roku runs continuously. You pick a station (channel), find a program you want to watch, and then hit play. At the end of the show, it stops and you have to find a new program to watch. (it's like a DVD player, without the DVD).

I dropped cable years ago. I watch all my TV via the Roku with my Netflix and Amazon Prime subscription. I never have trouble finding stuff to watch.

snowtao wrote:Let me add a truly stupid question (cause it's a skill, and I have it!). If I have Roku (and I do) can I just turn on a channel and let it run -- like I do now with the hugely expensive cable? Or do I have to stop every hour and tell it what to play next? The TV is mainly on as background while I work and play on the computer -- but I DO like the "company" and occasionally I'll even turn my attention to the TV, more than just flicking a glance at the mirror I set up so I can see the screen without turning my head.

I WOULD like to drop cable TV, cause there's nothing on: really, how many times can you 'watch'(listen to) "Ancient Aliens" without your head exploding?!? But not if I have to babysit the TV to keep it making noise!

Harpo wrote:tomorrow will be another vacuum cleaner.

No, not here on the mothership. Vacuum cleaners have their own channel at Home!woot!

And I won't be missing them either.

bluemoves wrote:I dropped cable years ago. I watch all my TV via the Roku with my Netflix and Amazon Prime subscription.

How do you keep up with new stuff like Game of Thrones so you can be in the discussion as it runs?

I've had one of these for about two years. I pay for cable internet but not cable TV. I get the local TV channels and use the roku to access netflix and hulu plus. (a total of $16.00 a month) That gives me access to hundreds of movies and just about every tv show on any of the networks. (just one day after they broadcast it) i don't see myself going back to the high monthly fees for cable tv.

gnuman wrote:No, not here on the mothership. Vacuum cleaners have their own channel at Home!woot!

And I won't be missing them either.

Right now, home.woot! is selling a wine aerator, though, instead of having that on wine.woot!, where it belongs, so that home.woot! could be selling us placements or something.

the subdos were never *terribly* well clear, but I have felt, since amazon takeover, that they are a lot more flexy than they were with their genres.

dmitrixx wrote:This more of a review of Woot then this product. But since the incident happened when I purchased the product I thought I share it here. Apparently attempting to cancel an order in less then 10 minutes is not fast enough for Woot. They claim that in less then ten minutes they were able to process my order. Package it. and ship it. (Mind you I order a camera yesterday that has yet to ship). This is only my second transaction on Woot and my last. So buyer beware.

Recently had the same problem with Woot. They used a picture of a sold out style to get people to buy up the style that they couldn't get rid of. They had sold the same items in previous woot-offs and the pictures included both styles but they only showed the sold out style this time. Read the specs a few minutes later and realized what was really being sold. It had only been 5 minutes from the time I ordered and they refused to cancel my order because of "steamlined" shipping. I am very disappointed in Woot's customer service.

crachunek wrote:i am thinking of buying one of these but not sure how it would help get rid of my cable if you have to have subrscriptions, any advice?

Ok, where to start. Basically, cable TV has gotten so ridiculous with their pricing and absolutely NOTHING on. I have dropped all cable service and have a ROKU in my rooms. Granted, Netflix limits (2) streams per account at a time, there are MANY options other than that. There are several channels in the "Channel Store" including FINALLY!!! SLACKER RADIO!!!! Cooking, Music, Free classic films channels. I also added "PLAYON" to my streaming. If you have a PC in your house, you can run the PlayOn server and you can stream NETFLIX, Hulu (Not the PLUS, but regular, YouTube, plus SEVERAL other standard channels. They also have "Scripts" you can install and **ahem** find channels like scriptv that people stream new movies... But I know nothing about that. And since you can't directly stream AVI, MKV natitvely, look in to GABBY which is a free APP which will stream movies, music and pictures from your PC to your ROKU. Hope this helps. Any other questions, send me a message.

Anyone else get theirs with a faulty wireless card?

whatsamattaU wrote:It's not the same price, look again: $59.99 as mentioned above, for refubished, $79.99 for new vs. $49.99 here (or save $5 for the first one, $15 if you buy 2, etc.).

They have 4 models listed. The Roku 2 XD is correctly labeled as max 1080p, as far as I can see. It's the only one listed as XD. http://www.roku.com/roku-products#3

The specs come from this page:
http://www.roku.com/roku-products#4
with manual link:
http://www.roku.com/Libraries/Roku_Player_Documents/Roku2-XD-QSG.sflb.ashx

and to sum up the above. One person said that you can politely persist that the new Roku account not be set up wtih a credit card. One person said they don't recall exactly where, but there was a way during web registration that lets you opt out of the credit card. Even if you do register the card, one person said they used Paypal instead and one person said you could remove the credit card # from the online acsount.

Ok... Just to point out. The XD on the Roku site is a newer generation which does NOT have an Eternet port. This one does, which is actually better for streaming if you are wired. Wireless works, but wired is better. Especially if you have multiple units, which I have 4.
The credit card serves one purpose, if you decide to get a channel that is not free, and there are not that many. You can also put a PIN on it. Roku will not charge you anything.

I just received mine with no AC adapter. What gives woot. Woot support emailed.

Bingo969 wrote:If you are watching just some regular channel on Roku like a news channel, it will just play and play and play.

If you are watching something like Netflix or some other channel that shows a specific "program" - say a movie or a tv episode - then when it gets to the end of that program yes you will need to select something else.

Huluplus runs tv shows continuously.

Lasted 1.5 months and then started to reboot about 2 minutes into any movie. Called Roku support and after going through the normal resets...etc...ended up having to mail in this unit for a replacement at my expense for the return unit. Once they get it, 3 business day shipping back. The one I bought direct from Roku never an issue. Refurbished is what it says.