Gadgetory

what's up prize five fans i'm brian tong and we have another blood match grudge match in a battle between two seenot editors choice streaming media boxes is a prize five put out between the Roku HD and the Apple TV 3rd generation our judges for this fight are executive editor John Game of Thrones falcone senior associate editor Matthew the Big Show Muscovy AK and myself Hong Kong Tom I will take each round score and avens them out to the nearest tenth of a point the final prize fights for the mean average of all rounds is in the same system let's get this party started round one is designed the Roku HD is a little shiny black box rounded corners a purple accent edge and it has a fabric tag that still belongs on a t-shirt now the third generation Apple TV is a little matte black box with rounded corners near these guys will get in the way and we're giving them both vibes next round as interface and navigation Roku HD keeps it simple utilitarian interface with its single row navigation setup is more of a pain requiring a credit card it won't wow you visually but it gets the job done and it's easy to customize by adding channels for your favorite content with a straight Ford remote but the best part of its remote is its quick access buttons dedicated to Netflix Pandora and crackle to jump directly into their apps now the Apple TV's revamped interface is still the clean and elegant experience that you expect animations are smooth and its interface feels really polish there's no real customization here but its sleek silver remote is easy to use as well the Apple TV gets a 5 and the road HD gets a 4 so after averaging 2 rounds the big a lose by half a point round three is features Roku has always tripped down their products to the bare bare essentials it connects to any TV with HDMI for up to 720p output there's composite video for analog TVs as well there's 802 11 and Wi-Fi but no airplay and if you're looking for more you'll find it in its bigger Roku brothers but just not here now the Apple TV 3rd gen brings HDMI with up to 1080p support and 802 11 and Wi-Fi but you'll also have options for optical audio out and an Ethernet port then you jump to the software we're having an Apple device pays off airplay support allows you to play and display content directly from your iOS devices and airplay mirroring allows your Apple laptop or computer screen to be mirrored onto your TV with just one click if it's supported and that's just huge now if you pay $24.99 a year for iTunes Match you can access your entire music collection and if you use the iCloud you'll also be able to view your photo stream plus Windows machines and Mac's can share their music collection through home sharing and iTunes the Apple TV is feature packed even if you have only a few pieces of the ecosystem and Apple takes this round with a 5 and the Roku HD gets a 4 next round is content you've heard the same content is king and it holds true here bow streaming boxes have access to Netflix and Hulu Plus but Roku shines with over 100 channels of content like Amazon video on-demand and HBO Go which cover your movies and TV shows there's Pandora for music discovery and social services like Facebook and Flickr have apps there's also on-demand sports for the NHL and NBA and specific content like our own CNN channel or the stuff for the kiddies with the Disney Channel really the Roku's media options are endless and customizable now apples box has access to content from itunes to purchase TV shows and movies and they have support for on-demand sports but we are talking Apple TVs additional online services like YouTube and Vimeo it's pretty skimpy now the new loophole is that you can actually play more content through airplay mirroring if you have the right Apple hardware but it's limited to specific machines from mid 2011 and higher and that's just not a big group the roku punches back with a perfect 5 and the Apple TV gets a 4 after averaging 4 rounds Apple still holds its lead by three tenths of a point the final round that decides it all is value the Roku HD is an amazing deal at $59 that offers tons of value 59 bucks guys that's all I have to say now the Apple TV sticks with this $99 price point and it might be more than what you're looking for but it's finally worth the price of admission especially if all you do is eat apples in the final round we're calling it even at 5 so let's average out all five rounds in a battle that really went back and forth the Roku HD just came up a little short and the Apple TV finally the Thrones the champ in this face-off four point eight to four point six and is your prize fight winner now you guys can't go wrong with two seen at editors choice streaming boxes and the Apple TV reign supreme today but if you don't know any Apple products the rogue who may still be the winner for you I'm Brian Tong thanks for watching and thanks our sponsor eBay and we'll catch you guys next time for another prize fight