Pushkin Posted November 29, 2021 Report Share Posted November 29, 2021 Considering getting one of the following. Roku streaming stick 4K etc or, an Amazon Fire Stick 4k Max. Which does the massif think is the best to go for? Computer Active did a comparison and gave a score of 5 stars for both and their preference was for the ROKU but by a hairs breadth. Pushkin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mgsontour Posted November 29, 2021 Report Share Posted November 29, 2021 There is nowt in it mate; it's as simple as a personal choice because only you know where your streams are coming from. The Chromecast is also a worthy contender. Some food for thought tho. . . . 1. Consider how old your tv is ( if it's more than 5 years old it don't matter what stick you buy your limited by your tv ) 2. If you have less than full fibre ( the actual cable into your house ) again it don't matter 3. If you stream a football match/movie from other than Sky or BT etc again it isn't going to make any difference Good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discobob Posted November 29, 2021 Report Share Posted November 29, 2021 Firestick - you can sideload some interesting applications on it 😉 - I do have to say that I have never used a Chromecast though but it does me for all my 'cough cough' needs. I can get my Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney Plus subscription with the addition of all the 'terrestrial' catch up - plus some more - plus some more I believe the Roku can be limited in their version of the app store regarding bandwidth I would say anything more that 8Mb would be suitable - no problem - just because they say 4k doesn't mean they need the bandwidth - if you are looking at 4K streaming then I would say mgsontour is correct in a way - would recommend 20Mb+ Our telly in our bedroom is 13 years old - a Firestick has given it a complete new lease of life (and it is a 4K stick). They are also doing a lite version as well which will be cheaper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strimmer_13 Posted November 29, 2021 Report Share Posted November 29, 2021 I had a roku, and sold it-on here I believe. I just didn't use it. After using my mates fire stick, I will say it was impressive and ill give it a try, as any TV viewing atm is through the Ps4 and that's getting a bit slow now. Mind you I only watch movies and YouTube. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
400_racer Posted December 1, 2021 Report Share Posted December 1, 2021 I recently got a fire stick lite after initially looking at the 4K ones. I found out that to actually receive the 4K content your HDMI port needs to support HDCP 2.2, never heard of it before! Turns out my tv doesn’t, so no point in the 4K one. Worth checking yours and saving a few quid if not. Never tried others, but I am getting on alright with it, the only minor annoyance is the home screen is full of Amazon content as expected, which if your not a member of prime makes most of it of no interest. I guess you wouldn’t get that with others. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fabhui Posted December 4, 2021 Report Share Posted December 4, 2021 4K Firestick all the way. You can very easily side load third party apps and it performs brilliantly. I wouldn't get the 4K Firestick Max. Even though on paper the specs are better, it runs on Fire OS7 which causes a few issues. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pushkin Posted December 4, 2021 Author Report Share Posted December 4, 2021 Folks thank you all for the responses.. I have a Toshiba 43" 4K TV with all the bells and whistles And, until recently used an Ice Crypt box with it. The ice box must be at least 10 years old and has been having infrequent problems. That was why I was looking for help with the above choice. The responses were a bit mixed but perhaps leaning towards the Fire stick. Anyway I went and bought the Roku. I'm sure that along with my chrome cast I will be able to view many channels - more than I will ever watch. The other half may well watch zillions more but I know what I like. Am I right in thinking the Roku is totally dependant on my computer to actually show me programmes? I'm a prime member and the TV has an app on it but I cannot work out how to cast it from my computer to the tv - or does it need the support of a mobile phone? or tablet? Thanks again for your help and I hope you can continue to do so. Pushkin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Westward Posted December 5, 2021 Report Share Posted December 5, 2021 If you have a Prime app then it sounds like you already have a smart TV, in which case you don't need to cast from a computer as long as the TV is set up on the router wifi. Just enter your username and password into the Prime app and off you go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discobob Posted December 6, 2021 Report Share Posted December 6, 2021 The Prime app will only give you Prime stuff. On 04/12/2021 at 23:43, Pushkin said: Am I right in thinking the Roku is totally dependant on my computer to actually show me programmes? No, it should plug into a hdmi port on your telly and you access it with your remote by selecting the right input Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
udderlyoffroad Posted December 6, 2021 Report Share Posted December 6, 2021 21 hours ago, Westward said: If you have a Prime app then it sounds like you already have a smart TV, in which case you don't need to cast from a computer as long as the TV is set up on the router wifi. Just enter your username and password into the Prime app and off you go. This. What are you hoping to get out of a firestick that your relatively recent Smart TV doesn’t do? Just use the Amazon Prime/Netflix/Disney/youtube/whayever app on the TV. Means you only need one remote, apart from anything else. I will say though, that the smart TV interfaces are…variable. I have a 7 year old LG TV and it looks and feels like it was designed by a 5year old on sugar high. I have plugged a Firestick into it, which is much better behaved and the walled garden Amazon app store is decently, er, curated. By the way, all this discussion on ‘full fibre’ and download rates, the limiting factor is likely to be your Wifi. Do yourself a favour, if it’s your ‘forever’ home, run ethernet to your TV. If you use a Firestick, Amazon sell an ethernet adaptor for £13, well worth it, in my opinion. In the OP’s case though, he might find his TV already has an ethernet port. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strimmer_13 Posted December 7, 2021 Report Share Posted December 7, 2021 I just bought the firestick 4k max. So far very impressed, it's quite fast. Bought it as I checked my nectar points which I've been collecting from filling up the work vehicles and got a decent amount off. Picture is a lot better than the built in app on the telly or by using the Ps4. Still a waste of money from me tbh, I hardly watch telly but the misses will love it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pushkin Posted December 17, 2021 Author Report Share Posted December 17, 2021 Thanks to all for the replies Now have the Roku working well and still exploring what I can get through it. 4k tv is like sitting in the movies - brilliant. Thanks to everyone for the tips and input. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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