Gadgetory

what's up prize five fans i'm brian tong and we have a rematch one year later between two CNET editors choice $99 streaming media boxes it's a prize five punch out between the boku three and the Apple TV 3rd generation our judges for this fight are executive editor John ice-cream Falcone senior associate editor Matthew the Big Show Muscovy AK and myself really a big Tom we'll take each round score and average them out to the nearest tenth of a point the final prize fight score will be an average of all rounds using the same system let's get this party started round 1 is design the Roku 3 brings a black glossy finish and thicker curves their classic fabric tag and a weight that feels solid the third generation Apple TV is still a clean matte black box with a glossy rounded edge that holds up better against dust or fingerprints with a solid weight as well now the Apple TV brings a super minimalist remote that doesn't do much while the Roku remote can be swung around all over the place or even used as a whip all right back to earth and the reality is that these are 2 $99 black boxes and that's it no one stands out and we're calling this a tie at 4.3 points next round is user interface and navigation the Roku 3 stands out with this snappy interface allowing you to see more channels and content and you'll have plenty of customization to personalize the entire layout of your channels now one slight drawback is the inside of a roku channel still retains the old horizontal look and feel that can be freshened up a bit but let's not forget it's killer Universal search that pulls from Roku's multiple content sources Apple has nothing like this now the Apple TVs interface is filled elegant experience but it needs a facelift animations are smooth and its interface feels polished you can move channels around to organize them your way but hiding channels you don't want requires you go through parental controls plus the lack of any cross-platform search is a big miss here the Roku 3 gets a perfect 5 and the TV get to-four software averaging two rounds roku leads round three is features the Roku three brings HDMI 1080p video support with 802 11 n dual band Wi-Fi and an Ethernet connection you'll also have a micro SD card slot for additional storage and a USB port to connect external drives and it even supports mkv files now it's killer feature is its enhanced remote with an audio jack for private listening that lets you listen to what's planed through your headphones so you won't disturb anyone else and those earbuds purple the remote also acts as a motion controller for games like Angry Birds and yes the Roku has games and the Roku app for Android and iOS lets you stream your photos or music to the box and Slingbox users can even use a Roku to watch their Slingbox on a TV now the Apple TV brings HDMI with 1080p support 802 11 and Wi-Fi and Ethernet with an optical audio out option the USB port is primarily used for service so you can't connect just any type of drive to it now its feature set is impressive but only if you live in the Apple ecosystem airplay lets you play music 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 now Roku has no mirroring at all and that's pretty sweet again if you're an Apple user now if you pay $24.99 a year for the iTunes Match service you can access your entire music collection and if you use iCloud you'll also be able to view your photo stream again that's if you're in the Apple ecosystem the Apple TV is feature pack if you like the shiny Cupertino fruit but the Roku 3 is just beast with useful features that work for everyone on any platform the Roku 3 gets a perfect 5 and Apple TV get up for the final round that decides it all is content both sides have improved their content offering since they last faced off against each other Apple has added tons of new content like HBO Go and WatchESPN and more recent stuff like Red Bull TV watch ABC disney content for the kiddies and the free movie service crackle now Apple is making moves and there's no doubt about that but it still can't compete with over 1,000 plus channels of content on roku including this channel you should really check out called CNET and the roku team squashed its biggest content omission with a native YouTube app you can technically play more content through airplay mirroring from your computer if you have the right Apple hardware but that's a workaround now the age-old same content is king holds true here and the Roku hits hard again with a perfect 5 and the Apple TV gets a 4 so let's average out all four rounds and this battle started out even but then Roku went on a tear with three perfect rounds taking this battle four point eight to four point one and is your prize bite winner you can't go wrong with two CNET editors choice streaming boxes depending on what you want and this battle is far from over with the Apple TV prime for a refresh in 2014 i'm brian tong thanks for watching we'll catch you guys next time for another prizefight