Roku is an established player in the set top box market. They’ve been selling STBs for quite a hile, with full support for Netflix, Hulu, HBO Go, Amazon and more. With the release of the $35 Chromecast, the market was shaken up a bit. Despite the limited functionality of the Chromecast, it performs the basics at a very low price.
However, the Chromecast cannot stream local content. Developer Koush made multiple workarounds to get local streaming working, but each one was patched by Google in an attempt to keep the platform closed, at least for the time being. So to get the upper hand, Roku has updated their Android app to offer local content streaming on some Android devices! Here is a list of supported devices:
Supported Roku players
- Roku 3
- Roku 2
- Roku LT
- Roku HD (model 2500)
- Roku Streaming Stick
Supported Android devices
- Samsung Galaxy S3
- Samsung Galaxy S4
- Nexus 4
- HTC One
- Nexus 7 (2012 model)
If you own one of these devices, you’ll be able to stream your local content to your TV. This gives Roku a significant advantage over the Chromecast, despite being more expensive. And with generally more functions, it’s easy to see how the extra money can be justified. It’s just too bad that the supported list of devices is so small.
Don’t forget that tight controls on Chromecast could be temporary. Once the SDK is out and developers are approved to use it, there will be many more functions created by developers. But it’s currently not possible. Would you consider a Roku over a Chromecast just for local streaming?
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