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Roku Netflix player is a great bargain

I received my Roku Netflix player the other day via FedEx. I was really excited when the FedEx truck showed up as I had been anxiously awaiting it’s arrival ever since I first read about the player. The Roku Netflix player allows you to instantly stream movies and TV shows from Netflix to your HDTV. All you need is an unlimited plan from Netflix to watch as many movies or TV shows as you want. I have a one movie at a time unlimited plan that only costs $8.99 a month. For only $99.99 I received the player and a remote control. If you need cables Roku offers a great deal on a 6’ HDMI cable, 6’ component cable, and a 6’ optical audio cable for only $19.99. The player has all the connections you need to easily hook it up to your home theatre system. Included outputs are RCA jacks, S-video, component video, HDMI, and optical audio.

The player itself is a small, well constructed black box with no front panel displays other than a blue led. The back of the player has all the necessary connectors. The included remote control has the necessary controls to navigate the on-screen Roku menu as well as fast-forward, rewind, and pause/play buttons. The remote control comes with two AAA batteries. The Roku player has it’s own power cord. Installation was amazingly easy. I had the player connected and running in about 15 minutes. I connected the player to the power cord, attached the HDMI cable to the player and my HDTV’s HDMI input and then accessed the Roku setup program. After inputting my wireless networks SID and WEP values I was then given an activation code. You enter the activation code on Netflix’s web site and after a couple of minutes your Roku player is ready to begin streaming movies to your HDTV.

If you have added movies or TV shows to your instant queue on Netflix’s web site the selections will show up in a simple menu on the player. You can select the movie or TV show you want to watch, read a brief description of your selection and then begin to watch. It only takes a few seconds before your selection begins to play. Quality of the movie depends on what you have selected but generally the quality is as good as watching the movie from a DVD. What I really like is that you can watch as many movies or TV shows as you want without having to wait for them to be delivered via mail to your door. While the selections available for instant viewing are not as numerous as are available for delivery via mail, there are still thousands of movies and TV show to choose from.

My overall rating of the Roku Netflix player is very favorable. I have no real complaints and for only $99.99 it is a great value and really adds to your Netflix experience. If you have a Netflix subscription and love to watch movies and TV shows I strongly suggest that you ask Santa Clause for one under your Christmas tree. If Christmas is not a holiday you celebrate then I leave it to you to find another way to get your hands on one. Excuse me now, I have to go watch another movie on my Roku. Now if only I had some popcorn ready.

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