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*Official* Roku 2 Media Streamer Thread

170K views 1K replies 185 participants last post by  krisbee 
#1 ·
There has been a bit of buzz in the blogosphere about the upcoming refresh of Roku's media streamer lineup:

Roku 2 Launching with Angry Birds (from Dave Zatz)

Roku 2 - Nearly Upon Us? (from Dave Zatz)


It appears as if the devices are slated to appear in stores on July 24. Let us use this thread to discuss the features of the Roku 2 and share tips and tricks.
 
#902 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by elphillips  /t/1348657/official-roku-2-media-streamer-thread/870#post_23031418


First post here. I'm using a ROKU plugged into a OPPO BD105. Tried to watch Life Of PI last night. The movie was interrupted several times saying it was "buffering". Then said it could not support HDX and move down to HD to continue the movie, which I did. Then more buffering notices. Then, 10 minutes from the conclusion of the movie it stopped and said "network error, try again later" and that was the end of the movie for me. As the Vudu FAQs instructed for buffering I pulled the RUKO drive for several minutes and reinserted it and that did no good. Very poor experience. I will continue to buy my movies on discs.

Did you try it just plugged straight into your TV, not looped through the Oppo? Do that first to rule out the Oppo as a possible problem.


But it's more likely an issue with the speed and throughput of your home network internet connection, not the Roku. What does using a website like speedtest.net have to say about your internet speeds? Not just what your ISP says you get, test it. If you don't have a fast enough link then just about any player is going to have problems, not just a Roku. Some might hide this better for you by defaulting to a lower resolution or silently dropping back.


That and did you have other big transfers going on at the same time? Like something else downloading or streaming? Those would also affect streaming performance.


So I doubt it's the Roku as the problem there...
 
#903 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by wkearney99  /t/1348657/official-roku-2-media-streamer-thread/900#post_23031537


Did you try it just plugged straight into your TV, not looped through the Oppo? Do that first to rule out the Oppo as a possible problem.


But it's more likely an issue with the speed and throughput of your home network internet connection, not the Roku. What does using a website like speedtest.net have to say about your internet speeds? Not just what your ISP says you get, test it. If you don't have a fast enough link then just about any player is going to have problems, not just a Roku. Some might hide this better for you by defaulting to a lower resolution or silently dropping back.


That and did you have other big transfers going on at the same time? Like something else downloading or streaming? Those would also affect streaming performance.


So I doubt it's the Roku as the problem there...

Thank you, I'll check the network speed out. This ROKU device is sold by OPPO specifically for their players. http://www.oppodigital.com/proddetail.asp?prod=RokuSSB
 
#904 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by elphillips  /t/1348657/official-roku-2-media-streamer-thread/900_100#post_23031566


Thank you, I'll check the network speed out. This ROKU device is sold by OPPO specifically for their players. http://www.oppodigital.com/proddetail.asp?prod=RokuSSB

That's a product called the " Roku Streaming Stick "; anyone can buy it and use it with any device with an MHL input.


You can test available network bandwidth in your VUDU player, under the My VUDU tab "Info & Settings" section. It'll tell you the best quality level you can currently handle. I think that have to sustain a minimum of 6 Mbps for HDX, and 9 Mbps for the highest quality.
 
#905 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by michaeltscott  /t/1348657/official-roku-2-media-streamer-thread/900#post_23031666


That's a product called the " Roku Streaming Stick "; anyone can buy it and use it with any device with an MHL input.


You can test available network bandwidth in your VUDU player, under the My VUDU tab "Info & Settings" section. It'll tell you the best quality level you can currently handle. I think that have to sustain a minimum of 6 Mbps for HDX, and 9 Mbps for the highest quality.

I moved the Roku stick from the front of the OPPO player to the rear, giving it a little better line-of-sight to the router. This got the Vudu signal up to 4.5 which Vudu says I can use HDX. That must be barely the minimum. I'll will contact my provider, Cox, and see if I can upgrade my download speed. Speedtest.net shows 34.01 currently. I appreciate your help very much. Learned a good deal about Roku this morning.


My provider is increasing my internet speed from 50 Mbps to 150Mbps. That should do it.
 
#906 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by elphillips  /t/1348657/official-roku-2-media-streamer-thread/900#post_23031810


I moved the Roku stick from the front of the OPPO player to the rear, giving it a little better line-of-sight to the router. This got the Vudu signal up to 4.5 which Vudu says I can use HDX. That must be barely the minimum. I'll will contact my provider, Cox, and see if I can upgrade my download speed. Speedtest.net shows 34.01 currently. I appreciate your help very much. Learned a good deal about Roku this morning.

If the 34.01 is Mbps that's more than sufficient for Vudu HDX. What device did you measure the 34.01 on and how was it connected to the router - Wired or Wireless?


It sounds like the issue is your Wireless connection speed to the Roku.


What kind of router and at what distance is the Roku from the router?
 
#907 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by elphillips  /t/1348657/official-roku-2-media-streamer-thread/900_100#post_23031810


My provider is increasing my internet speed from 50 Mbps to 150Mbps. That should do it.

I don't know that the speed increase is going to get you better wireless speed. Let us know if it does.


4.5 Mbps is the bare minimum for HDX, "1 bar"; 3 bar HDX is noticeably sharper.
 
#908 ·
It will be like the Phoenix Suns winning their next game by 40 points instead of 10.

30 points they didn't need.
 
#909 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by undecided  /t/1348657/official-roku-2-media-streamer-thread/900#post_23031869


If the 34.01 is Mbps that's more than sufficient for Vudu HDX. What device did you measure the 34.01 on and how was it connected to the router - Wired or Wireless?


It sounds like the issue is your Wireless connection speed to the Roku.


What kind of router and at what distance is the Roku from the router?

The 34.1 is from speedtest.net, wired from the modem to the router if that is what you are asking. The router is a Netgear and is about 20 feet from the Roku stick. I have ordered a Male to Female HDMI cord which will allow the Roku to be about 15 feet from the router and full line-of-sight.
 
#910 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by elphillips  /t/1348657/official-roku-2-media-streamer-thread/900#post_23032032


The 34.1 is from speedtest.net, wired from the modem to the router if that is what you are asking. The router is a Netgear and is about 20 feet from the Roku stick. I have ordered a Male to Female HDMI cord which will allow the Roku to be about 15 feet from the router and full line-of-sight.

My DL speed is 11mg and using wireless, I am trouble free on NF 99% of the time. There may be more to your situation than DL speed.
 
#911 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by elphillips  /t/1348657/official-roku-2-media-streamer-thread/900#post_23032032


The 34.1 is from speedtest.net, wired from the modem to the router if that is what you are asking. The router is a Netgear and is about 20 feet from the Roku stick. I have ordered a Male to Female HDMI cord which will allow the Roku to be about 15 feet from the router and full line-of-sight.

Yes you have plenty of download speed - so it is likely to be the connection between the router and Roku.


Do you know the model number of the Netgear router? How old is it? What wireless standards does it support?


At 20 ft you really shouldn't have problems router unless there is a lot of interference or some other major obstruction between the router and Roku.


You may want to look at this as well.

http://support.roku.com/entries/420570-how-do-i-improve-my-roku-player-connection-to-content-servers
 
#912 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by undecided  /t/1348657/official-roku-2-media-streamer-thread/900#post_23032238


Yes you have plenty of download speed - so it is likely to be the connection between the router and Roku.
This is correct. It does not that much to deliver a single stream, provided the link isn't also swamped by other traffic at the same time.


I'd wonder how well your wireless network is functioning. Whether you've got interference or other factors that might be slowing it down. One test would be to use a PC connected wirelessly and do the speedtest again. Doing it with a wired connection only tells you the wired speed, not the wireless. That and what netgear router are you using, and how is it's wifi speed configured. Could be it's not a very fast router or it's not configured to use a faster speed.


So figure that stuff out first before dumping on the Roku gear...
 
#915 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by elphillips  /t/1348657/official-roku-2-media-streamer-thread/900#post_23032406


Sorry I dumped on the Roku gear. Trying different things, I rebooted the router and now have 9+ on the vudu scale. Mr Kearney is correct. the problem was with the router.

My son had a 3 year old Linksys router and was having all kinds of streaming problems. Being an Apple fanboy he bought an Apple Airport Extreme router and all his problems disappeared. I personally think there is nothing like a hard wired connection, of course that is not an option with the Roku Stick. My 2XS is connected via Cat6 to a gigabit network to a gigabit router connected to a 50/5 Internet connection, needless to say I don't have streaming problems.
 
#916 ·
Yes, we know.
 
#917 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by Gary J  /t/1348657/official-roku-2-media-streamer-thread/870#post_23031465


Don't know what a OPPO BD105 is but buffering means a weak network signal not a Roku defect.
He has a very high end blu-ray/streamer (Oppo 105) Assume he's using a Roku stick to USB. I'm disappointed to hear this as I was considering the same setup.
 
#918 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by elphillips  /t/1348657/official-roku-2-media-streamer-thread/900#post_23032406


Sorry I dumped on the Roku gear. Trying different things, I rebooted the router and now have 9+ on the vudu scale. Mr Kearney is correct. the problem was with the router.

Glad to help. Given all the layers of stuff that's involved it's important to make sure they're all configured right and running properly. Hard to do sometimes, especially when it's only something new that 'seems' to have problems. Lots of times there's been something else going wrong for 'a while' and the new stuff just happens to make it obvious.


There's a lot of crappy routers out there. That and wifi for bulk traffic is just really never a great idea. Combine the two and, well, you've seen what it's like. Me, I favor using a wired connection whenever possible and to keep the wireless network as lightly loaded as possible.
 
#919 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by wkearney99  /t/1348657/official-roku-2-media-streamer-thread/900#post_23034169


Glad to help. Given all the layers of stuff that's involved it's important to make sure they're all configured right and running properly. Hard to do sometimes, especially when it's only something new that 'seems' to have problems. Lots of times there's been something else going wrong for 'a while' and the new stuff just happens to make it obvious.


There's a lot of crappy routers out there. That and wifi for bulk traffic is just really never a great idea. Combine the two and, well, you've seen what it's like. Me, I favor using a wired connection whenever possible and to keep the wireless network as lightly loaded as possible.

+1
 
#921 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by RichardCarver  /t/1348657/official-roku-2-media-streamer-thread/900#post_23034731


Anyone have a link for info on the new Roku?

Go to roku dot com / streamingstick
 
#922 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by scirica  /t/1348657/official-roku-2-media-streamer-thread/900#post_23034897


Go to roku dot com / streamingstick

Oh, I thought there was a new box or something. Not too many sets 'stick ready' at this point. I'm pleased its the stick, I just bought a new 2.
 
#923 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by RichardCarver  /t/1348657/official-roku-2-media-streamer-thread/900#post_23034966

Quote:
Originally Posted by scirica  /t/1348657/official-roku-2-media-streamer-thread/900#post_23034897


Go to roku dot com / streamingstick

Oh, I thought there was a new box or something. Not too many sets 'stick ready' at this point. I'm pleased its the stick, I just bought a new 2.

I have to 2 xs myself. Works great.
 
#925 ·
Dammit, good thing these are relatively inexpensive, I seem to be buying one a year. Of course, my relatives love the hand me downs.
 
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