Got Netflix? I HAD to have this new add-on!

brecklundin · 05-20-2008, 05:17 PM

It's called The Netflix Box and made by a company called Roku. It connects directly to your TV and wirelessly (or wired if ya live in the Stone Age) to your router. It then connects to your "instant viewing" queue over at Netflix so you can stream anything they have on their "Instant Viewing" side.

So, for $99 I HAD to order one. Plus it has a 30-day money back deal so if I don't like it I can return it. But I doubt I will. Right now I use a 1996-era Dell Inspiron 5000 as my "media server" in the living room. It's connected to my stereo and TV and I control it via my Nokia N800 using VNC. Works really well, except for higher quality streams. Anything over a 400k or so stream typically causes frame drops. So this new box is a nice cheap way to let us watch Netflix in the livingroom.

I actually use my 17" HP NX9420 as the bedroom "TV".

I know the current instant viewing catalog on Netflix is not that great, but there is enough content that we use it pretty regular. As in almost daily.

BTW, I dropped cable/satellite over 4-years ago and have not missed it since. Many shows are to be had at places like Hulu (new), direct on the station's web site as well as just renting DVD's via Netflix and having our own marthons over the week. Plus there is content on the Winamp/Shoutcast master play list free. Saves me over $100/mo.

oh, here is a link to the box:

http://www.roku.com/netflixplayer/

Almost forgot that part. BTW, you get unlimited streaming from Netflix with any account over $8.99/mo. We use the $16.99/mo account and get anywhere from 15-20 DVD's/mo w/o making a trip anywhere to rent them. For us I am not sure the next level account is worth the $7/mo additional to have up to 4-DVD's at a time. If there was more then two of us maybe...but we do fine with the 3-at-a-time plan.

Anyhow I just thought I would pass this along to my fellow gadget addicts!!

I'll pass along how well it works when the thing gets here.

Nate the great · 05-20-2008, 05:28 PM

Netflix is nice, isn't it? I've had it since September, and the lack of commercials is such an improvement that I've decided I'll never watch television again. Anything I want to see will eventually come out on DVD.

This box is cool, but I'm going to wait for the selection to get bigger.

pilotbob · 05-20-2008, 05:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by brecklundin

<snip> and wirelessly (or wired if ya live in the Stone Age) to your router.

Or if you like reliable high speed hack proof connections to your LAN. I use a wired connection to my TiVO, Xbox and all desktop PC's. I would have the Wii wired too, but they want extra money for the connector.

Wireless is nice, but I limit it to devices that don't stay in the same location for too long. Or if you just can't get a wire pulled to a certain place.

BOb

brecklundin · 05-20-2008, 06:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pilotbob

Or if you like reliable high speed hack proof connections to your LAN. I use a wired connection to my TiVO, Xbox and all desktop PC's. I would have the Wii wired too, but they want extra money for the connector.

Wireless is nice, but I limit it to devices that don't stay in the same location for too long. Or if you just can't get a wire pulled to a certain place.

BOb

good lawd chicken little, errr....bob...get over that stuff...nobody is sitting outside your door on your lawn looking to hack your wifi. You take a higher risk of death driving to the grocery store or going for a walk. Simple things like limiting the number of connections on your wireless router address anything but someone sitting on your lawn with a sniffer. Crips if it's that scary get off line...and quick.

FYI, unless a person is using super highly double or even higher shielded cabling, with the correct equipment someone can hack your wired network WIRELESSLY then spoof a connection. As in all of your cabling gives of an RF signal of some sort.

I say this with tongue firmly in cheek...but at the same time such things are just silly to worry about. To each their own though which is the nice part of life...

pilotbob · 05-20-2008, 06:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by brecklundin

I say this with tongue firmly in cheek...but at the same time such things are just silly to worry about. To each their own though which is the nice part of life...

Ah, yep. Can't wait to hear how to Roku works for ya.

BOb

brecklundin · 05-20-2008, 06:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nate the great

Netflix is nice, isn't it? I've had it since September, and the lack of commercials is such an improvement that I've decided I'll never watch television again. Anything I want to see will eventually come out on DVD.

This box is cool, but I'm going to wait for the selection to get bigger.

We love Netflix too...super easy and a solid value for the price.

I was gonna wait to order the box as I almost never do the early adopter thing. But this is sooooo easy and it's small at just 5"x5". They do mention there will be, I think, three more devices this year. One from LG with a Blu-Ray DVD player combo. No mention of the other two. But, I just thought this was too easy to pass up. And I should easily be able to sell it on eBay for a good $60+ if something better comes along this year.

Now I can't wait to see it sometime next week I am figuring.

brecklundin · 05-20-2008, 06:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pilotbob

Ah, yep. Can't wait to hear how to Roku works for ya.

BOb

me too...for all I know it might explode on first use...hehehehe...kinda like some xbox's did...

That is really the concern I have with these sorta things...flaky heat management. A couple of my old DirecTV boxes would get almost too hot to touch. Never had one melt down but I swear one could fry eggs on them in a pinch.

BTW, thanks for getting that I was just teasing ya back over the wireless thing. I reread it and it sure could have sounded snotty...d'oh!!

Madam Broshkina · 05-20-2008, 06:57 PM

Some reviews here:

http://gizmodo.com/392040/6-takes-on-the-netflix-player

brecklundin · 05-20-2008, 07:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Madam Broshkina

Some reviews here:

http://gizmodo.com/392040/6-takes-on-the-netflix-player

why tanks Madam...

From reading the reviews maybe with this Netflix might spur some good old fashion competition between streaming/download content providers. Especially in the area of dedicated devices for the the services. Like I wrote, for $99 I could simply not resisit...darn this Borg implant anyway!!

Nate the great · 05-20-2008, 07:41 PM

I wonder when Amazon will announce their device. I bet they'll call it The UnBox Box.

pilotbob · 05-20-2008, 11:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nate the great

I wonder when Amazon will announce their device. I bet they'll call it The UnBox Box.

Yea, its called TiVO. You can send Unbox to the TiVo. I think it may be an exclusive agreement. But, I could be wrong.

BOb

Nate the great · 05-21-2008, 09:52 PM

That was a joke, Bob.

brecklundin · 05-21-2008, 10:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nate the great

That was a joke, Bob.

snickersnickersnicker....

Quote:

I wonder when Amazon will announce their device. I bet they'll call it The UnBox Box.

I always that that was a different game...at least the first time ya do it...

pilotbob · 05-21-2008, 10:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nate the great

That was a joke, Bob.

No, really?

brecklundin · 06-05-2009, 04:09 AM

hahahaha...IU was just re-reading this old thread as it come up with another new thread...what a bunch of sarcastic old putzes we are....gotta LOVE IT!!

BTW, Now that we have a 7Kb DSL connection (best we can do in this ditchwater cesspool we call a town) I can stream NF at 2.5mb all the time. There are a couple secret screens. One is for forcing a download speed. Press Home 5-times, rewind 3-times, fast forward 2-times and the will bring up the connection screen. I fine tuned it for my system and even gave that connection QoS priority. Works great.

There is also a "secret screen" which is Home x 5, rewind x 2, FF x 3 (I might have that misremembered, even though I just accessed it yesterday) and if that sequence does not work, it's 5xHome, 3xFF then 2xRW...one of the two will get ya there to the "Secret Screen" and that is really what it is called.

BTW,, NF is saying they are planning on bring around 10 new channels to the box over the next year. Long as they are not all fee based I am happy. Where we live one is almost forced into cable of some sort. It's an RF sink hole thanks to VAFB. So Roku and Hulu are our TV options, along with the DVD;s from NF of course.

Oh, in case you don't know, you can activate as many STB's on your NF account as the number of DVD's in your plan. For example we have a 3-at-a-time plan so we can, and do, have 3-boxes. And if course we can be using them all at the same time. But with only a 7mb connection, we need to throttle them all back to 1.5mbps (still HD 4-bar speed).

Anyway, this was a fun thread way back when...hahaha...

05-20-2008, 05:17 PM	#1
brecklundin Banned Posts: 1,906 Karma: 15348 Join Date: Jun 2007 Device: mine	Got Netflix? I HAD to have this new add-on! It's called The Netflix Box and made by a company called Roku. It connects directly to your TV and wirelessly (or wired if ya live in the Stone Age) to your router. It then connects to your "instant viewing" queue over at Netflix so you can stream anything they have on their "Instant Viewing" side. So, for $99 I HAD to order one. Plus it has a 30-day money back deal so if I don't like it I can return it. But I doubt I will. Right now I use a 1996-era Dell Inspiron 5000 as my "media server" in the living room. It's connected to my stereo and TV and I control it via my Nokia N800 using VNC. Works really well, except for higher quality streams. Anything over a 400k or so stream typically causes frame drops. So this new box is a nice cheap way to let us watch Netflix in the livingroom. I actually use my 17" HP NX9420 as the bedroom "TV". I know the current instant viewing catalog on Netflix is not that great, but there is enough content that we use it pretty regular. As in almost daily. BTW, I dropped cable/satellite over 4-years ago and have not missed it since. Many shows are to be had at places like Hulu (new), direct on the station's web site as well as just renting DVD's via Netflix and having our own marthons over the week. Plus there is content on the Winamp/Shoutcast master play list free. Saves me over $100/mo. oh, here is a link to the box: http://www.roku.com/netflixplayer/ Almost forgot that part. BTW, you get unlimited streaming from Netflix with any account over $8.99/mo. We use the $16.99/mo account and get anywhere from 15-20 DVD's/mo w/o making a trip anywhere to rent them. For us I am not sure the next level account is worth the $7/mo additional to have up to 4-DVD's at a time. If there was more then two of us maybe...but we do fine with the 3-at-a-time plan. Anyhow I just thought I would pass this along to my fellow gadget addicts!! I'll pass along how well it works when the thing gets here.

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05-20-2008, 05:28 PM	#2
Nate the great Sir Penguin of Edinburgh Posts: 12,375 Karma: 23555235 Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: DC Metro area Device: Shake a stick plus 1	Netflix is nice, isn't it? I've had it since September, and the lack of commercials is such an improvement that I've decided I'll never watch television again. Anything I want to see will eventually come out on DVD. This box is cool, but I'm going to wait for the selection to get bigger.

05-20-2008, 06:57 PM	#8
Madam Broshkina Manic Do Fuse Posts: 2,312 Karma: 3325462 Join Date: Oct 2006 Device: Sony 500, 505, 350, Kindle 3, DXG, nook, Irex DR800SG, iPad	Some reviews here: http://gizmodo.com/392040/6-takes-on-the-netflix-player

05-20-2008, 07:41 PM	#10
Nate the great Sir Penguin of Edinburgh Posts: 12,375 Karma: 23555235 Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: DC Metro area Device: Shake a stick plus 1	I wonder when Amazon will announce their device. I bet they'll call it The UnBox Box.

05-21-2008, 09:52 PM	#12
Nate the great Sir Penguin of Edinburgh Posts: 12,375 Karma: 23555235 Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: DC Metro area Device: Shake a stick plus 1	That was a joke, Bob.

06-05-2009, 04:09 AM	#15
brecklundin Banned Posts: 1,906 Karma: 15348 Join Date: Jun 2007 Device: mine	hahahaha...IU was just re-reading this old thread as it come up with another new thread...what a bunch of sarcastic old putzes we are....gotta LOVE IT!! BTW, Now that we have a 7Kb DSL connection (best we can do in this ditchwater cesspool we call a town) I can stream NF at 2.5mb all the time. There are a couple secret screens. One is for forcing a download speed. Press Home 5-times, rewind 3-times, fast forward 2-times and the will bring up the connection screen. I fine tuned it for my system and even gave that connection QoS priority. Works great. There is also a "secret screen" which is Home x 5, rewind x 2, FF x 3 (I might have that misremembered, even though I just accessed it yesterday) and if that sequence does not work, it's 5xHome, 3xFF then 2xRW...one of the two will get ya there to the "Secret Screen" and that is really what it is called. BTW,, NF is saying they are planning on bring around 10 new channels to the box over the next year. Long as they are not all fee based I am happy. Where we live one is almost forced into cable of some sort. It's an RF sink hole thanks to VAFB. So Roku and Hulu are our TV options, along with the DVD;s from NF of course. Oh, in case you don't know, you can activate as many STB's on your NF account as the number of DVD's in your plan. For example we have a 3-at-a-time plan so we can, and do, have 3-boxes. And if course we can be using them all at the same time. But with only a 7mb connection, we need to throttle them all back to 1.5mbps (still HD 4-bar speed). Anyway, this was a fun thread way back when...hahaha...