Do you Roku?
A little over a year ago Netflix introduced a service that delivered streaming video direct to customers PCs. Now, they’re taking it a step further with a product set to compete with Apple TV. Working with a small California start up, Roku, Netflix has created a box that allows customers to view content directly to their televisions.
It all sounds easy enough. For $99 you purchase the box, roughly the size of a paperback book, and with a little set up you instantly have access to over 10,000 titles from the Netflix library. What sets this product apart from competitors like Apple TV and Tivo (who works with Amazon.com to offer an similar product) is that it does not have a hard drive. Instead, video streams directly from the Internet through Ethernet or your home wireless network.
The potential downside? Performance will depend greatly on the network to which it’s connected.
Keeping in mind that video is the “killer app,” we’re going to be in for a rude awakening when it comes to the future of Internet video.
