Monday, November 01, 2010

Dead Roku


I am forlorn. My Roku player is dead. It lasted two and a half years. I think a power surge killed it. The little light doesn't come on. What should I do? Should I buy another Netflix-ready device? Or should I replace my Roku?

My AT&T DSL connection is only 768Kbps at $19.95/month, and the Roku made it possible for me to get streaming content at 2-dot quality, which was tolerable with most of the stuff that I watch.

Because of my slow Internet connection, streaming on my Mac Mini is not an option. I have tried watching Netflix Instant in my Firefox browser, but it took forever to buffer, and there is no remote control. I can't watch instantly on my laptop, because it's not compatible with Ubuntu.

I don't want a game console, or a Blu-ray player, or a new TV, or a DVR, or a new home theater system.

I would consider an Apple TV.

7 comments:

  1. You should check this thread out... It could just be a dead power supply.
    http://forums.rokulabs.com/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=32633&sid=b2f46ca635aa1b46574dbce5605f82ba

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  2. I agree that it might be the power supply... my Roku Netflix box and Soundbridges died within days of each other. I took the Netflix box to a friends house (thinking it just might be the power supply) and it worked fine there. $30 later for 2 power supplies and both my Roku devices are back up and running.

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  3. my roku "died" but it was just the power supply. you could always just ask them for one like i did. it got me back up and running.

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  4. If it does turn out that your Roku is truly dead and not just a power supply, I think a new Roku is probably your least expensive option. Since your DSL connection doesn't let you stream well enough to get HD quality, a new Roku for under $100 makes sense.

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  5. The best option would be the PS3. You don't want a game system, but the best all-around-do-anything-you-want device for the best price is the PS3.

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  6. Neither my blu-ray player nor Tivo streams as well as my old Roku did. If Roku is working fine with your connection, I wouldn't "switch streams".

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  7. Thanks for the advice! I'm going to take my Roku to a friend's house and test it on her power supply.

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