In an increasingly Internet-based world, traditional cable boxes are becoming obsolete.
In its 2011 second-quarter earnings results, Time Warner announced it had lost 130,000 customers, or 1 percent of total subscribers.
Users may have turned to streaming boxes like the Apple TV or Roku 2 XS. For $99, users can get a wealth of content streamed directly to their TV.
The only question is: Which is better, Apple TV or Roku 2 XS?
Size
Measuring 3.3-by-3.3-by-0.9 inches to the Apple TV’s 3.9-by-3.9-by-0.91 inches, the Roku 2 is technically the smaller box.
But when both can fit in the palm of your hand, tenths of an inch don’t make much of a difference.
Result: Tie.
Usability
The Apple TV’s operating system is based on a version of iOS, the software on iPhones, iPads and iPod touch devices.
But the similarities end there.
The Apple TV menu runs horizontally across the screen and has selections for music, movies, TV shows, podcasts, photos, Internet (services like Netflix) and settings. It’s not exactly iOS-like. But the menu is easy to understand and animations are smooth and crisp. No complaints there.
The Roku 2’s menu is similar to the Apple TV’s in that it runs horizontally, but instead of menu options, there are “channels” to watch. Many channels.
The Roku 2’s menu operations run smoothly, but there is occasional lag.
Result: Apple TV’s interface wins this one.
Output/Input
Both the Apple TV and Roku 2 have Wi-Fi capabilities and Ethernet ports to stream movies and music.
For video output, they both use HDMI ports (720p max for Apple TV, 1080p max for Roku), but the Roku has an analog option for standard definition video.
Audio-wise, most will just use the HDMI cable, but there is an option for optical audio out on the Roku 2 if surround sound setup is desired.
For some reason, there’s a tiny microSD card slot on the back of the Roku 2 and a USB port on the back of the Apple TV — odd additions for streaming-centric devices.
Result: Roku 2. Full 1080p HD video is a must-have these days.
CONTENT
Apple TV has access to the iTunes store, Flickr, Netflix, YouTube, NHL GameCenter, MLB.TV, NBA.com and The Wall Street Journal. In addition, it can use Apple’s AirPlay feature to stream movies or music straight from an iOS device to the Apple TV.
AirPlay Mirroring also allows the screen of an iPad 2 or iPhone 4S to be displayed on an Apple TV.
Some features of iCloud also made it to the streaming device. Photo Stream loads all the pictures you take to the cloud and streams them down to the Apple TV.
Overall, it’s got a pretty solid feature set, and AirPlay somewhat makes up for the lack of channels.
But the Roku 2 XS destroys the Apple TV when it comes to content.
With more than 300 channels, including Pandora and Hulu Plus, the Roku 2’s library of free and subscription content is jaw-dropping.
Plus, the XS version of Roku 2 has an included game remote like the Nintendo Wii. Only Angry Birds and a few other games are available as of now, but this is a big feature that the Roku 2 has and Apple TV does not.
Result: Roku 2, without a doubt. Though it doesn’t have access to iTunes, the addition of Pandora support and multitude of content makes this an easy victory for the Roku.
Overall Value
The Apple TV and Roku 2 XS are both $99 — well worth the price of admission, as both boxes offer access to streaming content both free and priced.
However, the Roku 2’s massive amount of channels and games overshadow the Apple TV’s wimpy eight.
In a battle between Internet streaming boxes, the winner is the device with the biggest variety of, well, things to stream. Whether it’s listening to Pandora radio stations or playing Angry Birds, the Roku 2 XS does what the Apple TV can’t.
Could this change? Of course. A simple firmware upgrade to the Apple TV could give it the same amount of content as the Roku 2. But as of now, the winner has to be the Roku 2 XS.