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Review of the Roku HD1000 Media Player 216

Posted by michael from the too-bad dept.
Animaether writes "Digital Producer magazine are running a review of the Roku HD1000 HD media player hardware. Between 'The unit crashed so much while I was testing it, I practically beat a path through the carpet to the unit's location on the shelf...' and 'Roku HD1000 misses by such a wide margin, it isn't worth buying', the review paints a pretty grim picture of this unit, and appears to put part of the blame on its Linux-based OS and software. The Roku HD1000 was previously covered here in December 2003."
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Review of the Roku HD1000 Media Player More

Review of the Roku HD1000 Media Player

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  • More about design problems than system ones (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Space cowboy ( 13680 ) * on Thursday May 27, 2004 @10:50AM (#9267308) Journal
    The story-text is misleading - the author is complaining about the poor design choices in the GUI, not the OS itself, witness:

    That leads us to the OS and its foibles. As we've seen with TiVo, it's possible to create a snappy user interface using Linux, a modest processor and a remote-controlled series of screens. But I have to tell you, even though this Roku interface (see graphic above) reminds you of TiVo in the vaguest of ways, it's doesn't even distantly resemble the near-perfect user experience of TiVo.
    ... at which point he compares it unfavourably with the TiVO experience. All seems fair enough to me.

    Simon.

    • Re:More about design problems than system ones (Score:5, Informative)

      by lukewarmfusion ( 726141 ) on Thursday May 27, 2004 @10:54AM (#9267376) Homepage Journal
      He does complain about the OS itself:

      "Yes, it can do these things, but because of its awkward Linux-based operating system and sluggish response, the thing acts like it doesn't want to."

      One problem with his review, though, is that he looks for "features" from other products like an OSX transition - "why not have that with the Roku?" has asks.

      • Comment removed (Score:5, Insightful)

        by account_deleted ( 4530225 ) on Thursday May 27, 2004 @10:57AM (#9267415)
        Comment removed based on user account deletion

        • Re:More about design problems than system ones (Score:4, Insightful)

          by lukewarmfusion ( 726141 ) on Thursday May 27, 2004 @11:01AM (#9267478) Homepage Journal
          Good call. He worded it in a way that sounds like a Linux criticism, but his complaint is really against the implementation of it.

          I'll retract my first statement... wait, I can't find the edit/delete button!

        • Re:More about design problems than system ones (Score:4, Insightful)

          by lenhap ( 717304 ) on Thursday May 27, 2004 @11:08AM (#9267564)
          He was complaining about the OS...thats why continuously throughout the article he mentions how the thing froze and locked up...if that isn't OS related, what is? Sure he has many misconceptions of what is and isn't the OS, but he is right about the locking up.

          The sluggish response can also be do to the OS. Anyone ever run windows and have everything completely slow down for a few minutes while the OS goes and takes a dump out back somewhere? It no doubt is probably due to a poor implementation of Linux, but none the less half the issues he mentions are do to the OS, not necessarily to it being Linux. He mentions how he knows Linux can be exceedingly good, but this particular implementation is crap.

          • ...he mentions how the thing froze and locked up...if that isn't OS related, what is?

            Lock-ups aren't necessarily OS/kernel related. I know I've had lots of times when the X server has locked up playing around with new hardware. I can still go to another machine, SSH in, and do a proper shutdown+reboot. In this case, maybe it's the X server (unless they use SVGAlib or DirectFB) or the interface software that's crashing or hanging. I know it makes no difference from a user perspective, but it's still un

          • No, it sounded like he was, but he wasn't. He states that the Tivo UI/Application works wonderfully and that app runs on the Linux OS. The fact that it locked up, probably means that the programmer of the Roku application was doing something wrong. Regardless the problem is not a Linux problem, for example it is unlikely that the app would run any better if the OS had been Windows CE (Or whatever it is called now). Why? We all know that Linux is capable of running this software. It is very similar to

      • Re:More about design problems than system ones (Score:4, Insightful)

        by Space cowboy ( 13680 ) * on Thursday May 27, 2004 @10:59AM (#9267459) Journal
        My point is that Linux isn't "awkward" in this sense, it's the badly-designed remote-control interface that he's complaining about. The 'Linux-based' isn't part of the complaint, at least that's how I read it.

        My take on his interpretation of 'operating system' is more in the vein of an amplifier 'operating system' or similar - it's the GUI he means.

        Simon

        • I agree. As the article is written, it sounds like Linux is a poor OS that is hampering the functionality of the hardware. After having read it, I can see that his complaint is with the UI designed for the Roku. However to the masses it likely sounds like there are issues with systems based on Linux.

    • Re:More about design problems than system ones (Score:5, Insightful)

      by BigBir3d ( 454486 ) on Thursday May 27, 2004 @10:57AM (#9267423) Journal
      not just bad GUI choices. everything is slow (1 minute to boot!!!) from start-up to navigating thru a big directory.

      just because it uses linux (cost saving measure it sounds like) does not mean it will be a good, or usefull, product.
    • Not to mention...

      With everything connected, I hit the On button and the unit began booting up, just like a computer, and after about a minute, it was ready to go -- not exactly instant-on.

      These people need to understand, Linux is NOT a feature! In a device like this, the OS (whatever it is) should be as transparent to the user as possible. The only person the OS should make a difference to is the manufacturer. Using Linux or BSD should allow them to pull "off the shelf" software in the same way they build it with "off the shelf" hardware. Instead, it sounds like they took Fedora or something and crammed it into a consumer device.

      • Re:More about design problems than system ones (Score:4, Informative)

        by geomon ( 78680 ) on Thursday May 27, 2004 @11:15AM (#9267656) Homepage Journal
        Instead, it sounds like they took Fedora or something and crammed it into a consumer device.

        Which, by itself, wouldn't have been a *bad* thing provided you didn't install EVERY freaking library and application that came on the install media.

        As for Linux boot times - I've seen the Zaurus boot before and it was nearly "instant on". It was certainly faster than my Nokia cell phone.

        • As for Linux boot times - I've seen the Zaurus boot before and it was nearly "instant on". It was certainly faster than my Nokia cell phone.

          To be fair, the cell phone probably boots up nearly instantaneously also-- it's likely the network connection that you're waiting for.

        • As for Linux boot times - I've seen the Zaurus boot before and it was nearly "instant on". It was certainly faster than my Nokia cell phone.

          I _have_ a Zaurus and it takes a minute or two to boot what you probably saw was a resume from suspend (in when you go to the menu to try to reboot the Zaurus it says that rebooting usually isn't needed) I do agree though that boot for the Nokias take along time, but I don't really consider it an issue, how often do people power cycle their phones?
        • Which, by itself, wouldn't have been a *bad* thing provided you didn't install EVERY freaking library and application that came on the install media.

          No, it's not. An OS like Linux can be made to boot super-fast by properly tuning the system, and preloading everything into ROM memory space. Since no disk access is necessary when the device is turned on (remember, it's already in memory), only a quick initialization procedure should occur.

          • An OS like Linux can be made to boot super-fast by properly tuning the system...

            No argument there. But that wasn't the point I was trying to make.

            I think there is a product-developer attitude that you just download any distro you have some experience with and start installing. Custom systems can indeed be built and preinstalled into ROM and that would be the ideal method. Unfortunately, the people who make the mistake of "one-size-fits-all" think that loading every binary and libarary onto the device jus
      • "These people need to understand, Linux is NOT a feature! In a device like this, the OS (whatever it is) should be as transparent to the user as possible."

        I'd have to disagree on this point as a TiVo owner. TiVo implements upgrades to their OS every once in awhile, and that includes when patches and new driver updates for Linux are made available. Thus indirectly to the user, Linux is a feature of the TiVo platform.



      • When I cycle the power on my TiVO, which is very infrequently, it probably takes a minute or so to start up. Regardless of what type of Linux used, there's something to be said for disk checking at boot. These devices are doing a constant read and write to the hard drive(s).
    • A more fair review as I actually have an HD1000 and have been evaluating it for a real deployment.

      The operating system is totally invisible. I can't complain about it, I only know that it's linux from the hype. Most commercial STBs in this market seem to run linux, to argue the box is faulty for that reason exposes some latent bias.

      The software application that is the "front end" and user visible portion of the system leaves much to be desired however. For example, by default, it only uses DHCP. There is

  • Amazing (Score:5, Interesting)

    by erick99 ( 743982 ) * <homerun@gmail.com> on Thursday May 27, 2004 @10:52AM (#9267330)
    When you read this article you wonder how all of these problems can be possible with this product. It seemed to me that the reviewer was competent and very patient. It makes me wonder if there was any user testing and quality control in this process or was it someone's "good idea" and rushed to market? There are just too many electronic gadgets on the market that are poorly designed and frustrating to use.

    Take care!

    Erick

    • Quality Assurance (Score:5, Interesting)

      by millahtime ( 710421 ) on Thursday May 27, 2004 @10:56AM (#9267401) Homepage Journal
      There are just too many electronic gadgets on the market that are poorly designed and frustrating to use.

      Engineers have a lot of great ideas and can even make them happen but there are a lot of angles they don't see or even think of. Many of the engineers aren't even the target users and don't really understand how something gets used.

      This is one place I will give props to the military. They require Quality Assurance and testing by the user before they will sign off on something.
      • Engineers have a lot of great ideas and can even make them happen but there are a lot of angles they don't see or even think of. Many of the engineers aren't even the target users and don't really understand how something gets used.

        I would say this is a small part of the problem, a lot of the time. Budgets and deadlines, PHB and marketing, now there are the real culprits. Engineers are smart people, and in this case, professionals. You tell them what you want, they will deliver it. But not when you've
        • It is also the responsibility of teh engineer to have a little bit of foresight into what they're designing. How it will be used, where it will be used, and who will be using it. You can never, ever underestimate the end user. This is why they include instruction sheets for toasters and remote controls.

          Not to understate the other influences you mentioned, which certaintly are problems, but the guys building this aren't exactly blame free either. They seem to have dropped teh ball just as much as everyone e
          • Not to understate the other influences you mentioned, which certaintly are problems, but the guys building this aren't exactly blame free either. They seem to have dropped teh ball just as much as everyone else.

            True, but this smacks, to me at least, as a product pushed out the door before it was done, and that can ALWAYS be traced back to management.
        • This is one place I will give props to the military. They require Quality Assurance and testing by the user before they will sign off on something.

          ...and big companies don't do this...okaayy..

          Not to the extent that the military does. The problem the military has with functionality is that it tends to be explicitly described in the contract, limiting the designers' options. Straight QA, though, is unparalleled. If something comes out unusable, it was usually spec'd badly.

      • "This is one place I will give props to the military. They require Quality Assurance and testing by the user before they will sign off on something."

        Hold on there a sec. Quality Assurance gave our soldiers in 'Nam the jamming problems of the M-16. Granted, that was because they used an inferior powder through a corrupt contract, but still! And in recent times, the military spent a fortune on developing the Sargeant York tank that didn't work, the V-22, the B-1's stealth scheme that doesn't foil (early)

    • Re:Amazing (Score:3, Informative)

      by Lumpy ( 12016 )
      and you are correct. I have one of these units and I find it perfectly useable. Yes if you have your stuff nested in 10 levles of folders deep in a windows box it will be a PITA to get to no matter WHAT use are using.

      I find mine stable and easy to deal with when I organize my media sanely instead of the willy-nilly that the reviewer likes to use.

      The problems are minimal and really only annoy those that feel that everything must be on their desktop instead of performing proper media management.

      as for s
    • I bought one of these because the ads and the prior Slashdot article sold me on the idea of having Bill Gates' art walls in my house, and while I will give credit to Roku for putting together a good concept, the review is spot-on with regards to slow response to the remote, slow moving between media files and crash crash crash. I spent several hours on the phone with one of the software developers at one point because I just couldn't get it to play music out of my network share (100baseT wired to Win2K3 ser
  • appears to put part of the blame on its Linux-based OS and software.

    I doubt it is Linux itself but the person(s) who set it up on that box. Probubally didn't really know what they were doing.

    • Re:not linux.... (Score:5, Insightful)

      by lukewarmfusion ( 726141 ) on Thursday May 27, 2004 @10:59AM (#9267449) Homepage Journal
      Does it strike you as odd that a consumer product should require that one "know what they were doing" when they purchased it? Shouldn't the product be easy to install and use?

      I'm not sure you RTFA, but your response sounds like a knee-jerk to me. If I buy a Tivo, I don't want to have to spend hours and hours getting it to work. I also shouldn't need any programming or configuration expertise.

      If you're producing a device like this for the general public, you'd better not make it hard to use or install. So that would be a problem with the product.

      • Re:not linux.... (Score:3, Insightful)

        by dejamatt ( 704418 )
        I agree with you, but I think (hope) he meant the people at Roku who set up the box didn't do a very good job of customizing it for what they were using the system for before they shipped it.
      • if you're producing a device like this for the general public, you'd better not make it hard to use or install.

        It should be simple to use and the OS should be transparent to the user. It should be about as easy as using a DVD player. So simple my mom could use it. And if there is ever a problem a simple turning it off and then on again should fix.
        • Ok, then we agree. I thought you were criticizing the reviewer for not setting up Linux correctly on the machine (that's why it sounded to me like you didn't read the article). A consumer device like this should be exactly as you describe - as easy as a DVD player.

          Fun story time: My mom rented a DVD and, despite her usual competence with such things, called me to ask how to get it out of the machine. Apparently, she couldn't figure out how to rewind the DVD and then gave up and hit eject. When it didn't ej
      • Since the consumer isn't the one setting up Linux on the box I'm pretty sure he was refering to the manufacturer. It's not a Linux problem, it's a poor implementation by the manufacturer.

        Same way with the author's comments. He's not dissin' Linux. He acknowledges it's Linux based and that Tivo is also Linux based and then he contrasts the two in that Tivo is a dream to work with compared to the nightmare that this product provides. Again, it's an implementation problem, not a Linux problem. Maybe it could

  • Ouchhhh... bye bye Roku (Score:5, Funny)

    by KevetS ( 600647 ) <(moc.liamg) (ta) (stevek)> on Thursday May 27, 2004 @10:54AM (#9267370) Homepage Journal
    A negative review and front-page linkage on /.? Good luck recovering from this one, Roku!
    • I'm not really sure what you're getting at... even if the 2,000,000 or so /.ers (700,000+ users, maybe twice that many anonymous readers)... 1/4th of which won't see this story because they're asleep... there's still 284,000,000 people (worldwide that can afford this thing) that will be blissfully unaware of the pitfalls of this product. Thankfully, the public has generally become accustomed to looking at reviews first.

      Unfortunately, some of those are poorly written and often not fully independent.

      • But the problem is that the 1.5 million slashdotters are the part of the population that everyone goes to for recommendations when they are buying electronics and computers. I know that I personally have about 15-20 people who usually talk to me before they buy anything more expensive than a cheap DVD player. If each of those 1.5 million has 10 million people that ask them for recommendations then that is 11.5 million who won't buy. Each of those 10 million probably have 3 or 4 friends who tend to try to

  • Is it really Linux' fault that it sucks? (Score:3, Interesting)

    by YankeeInExile ( 577704 ) * on Thursday May 27, 2004 @10:56AM (#9267407) Homepage Journal

    It seems clear from the review that the application stack in the Roku is not ready for prime time, but that is not really the fault of Linux.

    Other embedded-Linux applications have successfully made boot-time a non-issue.

    Unfortunately, in an embedded application, the presentation is monolithic -- it either works or it doesn't. So, this is going to seriously adversely affect the image of Linux in Set-top-box applications.

  • Why diss Linux? (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Quixote ( 154172 ) on Thursday May 27, 2004 @10:58AM (#9267444) Homepage Journal
    No, not a Linux zealot here, but I do take issue with the following from the article (yeah, I RTFA, shame on me):
    Yes, it can do these things, but because of its awkward Linux-based operating system and sluggish response, the thing acts like it doesn't want to.

    My guess is that the reviewer is talking about the "operating system" of the Roku in a broad sense, and not in the sense that computer geeks do. He probably means "interface", and should not have included "Linux" in that sentence; after all, he does go on to praise the Tivo, which is also Linux based (as he himself says). Just bad writing, if you ask me.

    • Re:Why diss Linux? (Score:3, Insightful)

      by Timesprout ( 579035 )
      Why not, its in the public domain so you have to take the critisim along with the plaudits.

      After reading the posts so far its interesting to see the 'spin' being put on the article. The writing is criticised, the author is stupid, who ever configured the machine is a cretin etc.etc. If the article had said

      awkward Microsoft-based operating system and sluggish response, the thing acts like it doesn't want to

      it would be taken as gospel truth that MS systems are slow and bloated and should never be l
      • I think the original reviewer was actually complaining about the Linux-based plugin system...something the TiVo doesn't have. There's an inherent difference between writing a brand new application and creating a pretty front end to a bunch of open source components. The former may take more time, but you have MUCH tighter control over how you use and present data...how to handle failovers...and even how to better direct the QA process.

        My guess is that Roku is undermanned and they're trying to cash in on
      • Sigh. You must really not understand how to make arguments.

        How can it be Linux's fault, if (as the author himself states), Linux on the Tivo (with an inferior processor, as the author himself says) works fine?

        The following statement:
        My new Dell box with P4 2.8GHz w/512MB running Windows XP is slow, whereas my old P-III 800MHz w/256MB box running Windows XP is snappy! Therefore, it must be Windows XP at fault here!!

        Do you see the problem?

    • To the end user, the GUI is the same as the operating system.
    • Linux-based os is actually pretty accurate. We are usually quick to point out that Linux is a kernal and the whole distro is the OS. He seems to be aware of this judgeing from his wording.

      He could have dropped linux out of the statement entirely, though. The kernal didn't really matter in this case except for the comparisons to Tivo.

    • Re:Why diss Linux? (Score:3, Insightful)

      by 87C751 ( 205250 )
      My guess is that the reviewer is talking about the "operating system" of the Roku in a broad sense, and not in the sense that computer geeks do.
      That is exactly so. Recall McLuhan's "The medium is the message" in reference to TV. The computer corollary is "the interface is the operating system".
      • Recall McLuhan's "The medium is the message" in reference to TV. The computer corollary is "the interface is the operating system".

        I don't understand what you're trying to say. Maybe you're misinterpreting McLuhan's famous aphorism. It happens a lot. McLuhan was a technological determinist [aber.ac.uk]. He believed that media technology itself affects society in fundamental ways, much more so than media content. Hence, "the medium is the message."
    • The problem definitely is in the wording.

      Awkward does not describe an operating system, it describes a user-interface. If he said: "but because of its awkward Linux-based user interface and sluggish response" I would feel better - but only slightly so. An improperly designed UI would make the best operating system appear to be a pig.

      Whether it was Linux, Windows CE, or some QNX based system is irrelevant because the user interface is at issue.

      The other issues he has with lockups *IS* an OS, hardware, o

  • Not Just a Linux problem (Score:4, Informative)

    by Dark Paladin ( 116525 ) * <jhummel&johnhummel,net> on Thursday May 27, 2004 @10:59AM (#9267460) Homepage
    What I like about this article is not that is blasts Linux, but Roku's implementation of it. I had considered getting one of these instead of modifying an Xbox to play media files (and yes, I've heard of the "Windows Media Center" machines, and I'm too damned cheap for that - I've decided to modify an Xbox myself and save the $).

    Anyway, the reviewer takes pains to note that the Tivo, which is also Linux based, is fast, responsive, and doesn't crash all of the time. Maybe this was a beta unit the reviewer recieved, but it seems as though the company hasn't tightened down the Roku's implementation and gone through a good QA session.

    Too bad, really. I wouldn't mind finding a box that I could plug into the TV and stream my (personally, using Handbrake for OS X) XviD videos to my TV (to save wear and tear on my DVD's and keep my kids from getting thier fingerprints all over them) over my 802.11 connection.

    Looks like I might as well get ready to order that Xbox and mod chip to "do it myself", since nobody in the industry seems to have a solution that does what I want yet. (Note: I know the Tivo can evidently tie into iTunes and iPhoto, but I haven't of it being able to read through a AFP or SMB share of movies and just play them. I'm willing to bet I'll see 10 responses regarding Myth or some such, so advise away - I'm holding off on the soldiering kit as long as I can ;) ).
    • I'm holding off on the soldiering kit as long as I can ;) ).

      But why? The combat boots and rucksack offer a really impressive multimedia experience.
    • I'd recommend the PrismIQ for you. While it doesn't read SMB/NFS shares (yet), there are "media server" programs for linux, windows, and os x. Set up your folders, share them with the prismiq software, and watch them on your tv set with the prismiq.

      It'll read raw vobs (though it has problems with iDVD created DVDs), plays mp3s, etc. The only real downside to me (besides the iDVD problem) is that it only does stereo/surround sound, not actual AC3.

      www.prismiq.com for the official site, www.prismiq.org for
  • I hope this apparent lack of quality won't also be apparent in Roku's Soundbridge [rokulabs.com] product, I've been pretty excited about that one. It looks like a good [non ugly] alternative to the Slim Devices stuff. The pricing is a little jacked though, the only difference between the 2 models is a bigger display and they want $250 for that.

    • Re:Soundbridge (Score:3, Insightful)

      by radish ( 98371 )
      You think the squeezebox is ugly? Really? I have one and I think it's pretty cute (as does the SO). It's very small and nicely rounded, with a sexy rubber coating. I agree that the Roku looks better (I considered getting one of those but it kept being delayed) but the SB is far from ugly. I wouldn't put it in my hifi stack (too small), but that's what the HTPC is for. I have it in the bedroom on a side table so we can have access to the entire music collection from there as well. It's hooked up into a discr

    • Re:Soundbridge (Score:2, Insightful)

      by Anonymous Coward
      I have been running a Sqeezebox for a month now, and I really like it. I went through and cleaned up my MP3 tags, now browsing artists/albums/genres is a breeze. Yeah, it does not stack with the other components, but it works so well, I don't care.

      Does anybody now if the Squeezebox is running an OS at all?

  • Guys, guys... (Score:5, Funny)

    by ticeton ( 783421 ) on Thursday May 27, 2004 @11:04AM (#9267509)
    The real question here is: How are we going to blame this on Microsoft?

  • But, But... (Score:2, Interesting)

    by christopher240240 ( 633932 )
    Linux doesn't crash! Seriously, if this company has that much of a problem with designing their interface to be stable, perhaps they shouldn't be in the consumer electronics game.
  • Hauppauge MediaMVP [hauppauge.com] stream the content from your existing PC to your TV for like 88beans street price... *shrug* it's not for everyone, but my buddy has it and I was surprised at how how well his quasi-pvr/home media center worked.

    I'd rather build my own mini-itx htpc [byopvr.com] of course though =)

    e.

    PS I also believe there's quite the mediamvp hacking community (it doesn't support linux out of the box, from what I understand)

  • Linux based OS (Score:2, Interesting)

    by monkeySauce ( 562927 )
    He does harp on the fact that it runs Linux pretty often, even when it's insignificant-- like the OS has something to do with a poor user interface.

  • Yes... (Score:5, Funny)

    by Anixamander ( 448308 ) on Thursday May 27, 2004 @11:12AM (#9267618) Journal
    'The unit crashed so much while I was testing it, I practically beat a path through the carpet to the unit's location on the shelf...' and 'Roku HD1000 misses by such a wide margin, it isn't worth buying', the review paints a pretty grim picture of this unit

    Yes, yes, but can it run linux?

    and appears to put part of the blame on its Linux-based OS and software

    Oh.

  • Instability Not Because of Linux Software (Score:4, Insightful)

    by william_lorenz ( 703263 ) on Thursday May 27, 2004 @11:24AM (#9267743) Homepage
    I don't believe that the instability of this unit is because of the Linux-based software it runs. There's many other stable Linux-based media devices out there, such as Sigma Designs EM8500 DVD players, the Dreambox DM7000S DVB Satellite Receiver, Hauppauge Media MVP, and more. Bravo [www.vinc.us] manufactures Linux-based standalone DVD players using the Sigma Designs chipset, as one LKML message [lkml.org] points out, for example. I myself put the instability onus squarely on the shoulders of Roku's product engineering, having seen myself some very successful applications [express.org] of embedded uClinux technologies.
    • I don't believe that the instability of this unit is because of the Linux-based software it runs.

      Or to put it another way, the phrase "Linux-based" is so broad as to give no indication of a particular device's reliability or usability.

      It's one of the unfortunate drawbacks of many Open Source models -- if you give your work out for anyone to modify as they like, there's little you can do to prevent someone from releasing a modification that reflects poorly on your original work.
  • OS the problem? Not in my experience. My home computer doubles as a jukebox (60 gigs worth of FLAC files, over 200 discs total) running XMMS on Linux. No problems whatsoever, let alone crashing. Attributing problems to "the OS" is just plain silly, considering the many other factors that are much more likely to be the source of problems.
    • Wow, 60 gigs or FLAC files.

      But you must really get tired of listening to the same song over and over ;P

      • Actually, I usually just put it on random and let it go. Everything from rock to techno to classical. It truly kicks ass having over 2000 songs on random play (and this is on my home stereo, not my cheapo computer speakers). Anyone want to buy a 5-disc changer? ;)
    • I doesn't matter if your computer doubles as a jukebox or a chicken coop. Your OS is different from the OS on the Roku. It has different drivers, different software, and different stuff compiled into the kernel.

      No two Linux OS are the same. Because of this, it is entirely possible to make a busted ass compile of Linux. If the kernel is busted, then the source of the problems most definitely is the Linux OS. But the CAUSE is compilation ineptitude.
  • Sure it sucks, but does it support OGG?

  • I own a Roku (Score:4, Informative)

    by notanatheist ( 581086 ) on Thursday May 27, 2004 @11:45AM (#9268045) Homepage
    Yes, I'll agree it isn't perfect but it is interesting. It will pick up smb shares without a hitch from browsing your network. There is info available for doing NFS as well. I've got the weather plugin working perfectly. It's also nice viewing all my photos on a 42" HD Plasma. Most "media PC" type machines don't offer component out especially with support for 1080i which is what I run. If you buy one be sure to grab the latest firmware and also install the copy/delete programs so you can easily delete some of the built in stuff. You can also do all that through telnet too. I would like to know if it's possible to overclock the CPU. I'd willingly put a larger heatsink on mine if it'd help performance. Video support still needs more work too. All in all, I do like it.

  • Maybe it was defective... (Score:3)

    by LilMikey ( 615759 ) on Thursday May 27, 2004 @11:47AM (#9268062) Homepage
    The reviewer seems to stress the fact over and over again, with a much redundnacy, and many repeats, simply restating the idea that the unit locked up a lot. Maybe *gasp* he had a defective unit...

    And it doesn't seem he has anything against Linux besides a poor word choice. He even sort of commends Linux on the TiVo.
  • I am surprised that the review was this bad. I don't own one of these, but I have been following some discussions about them on avsforum.com, thinking I may soon buy one.

    On avsforum, there are certainly complaints, and people asking for more features, but nothing as bad as this guy's review.

    Also, I think the review may have been a bit aggressive. The advertised features of the Roku are for display of digital images and audio - in an HDTV environment. The other things this guy reviewed are not part of t

  • A favorable review (Score:3, Informative)

    by SimReg ( 99053 ) on Thursday May 27, 2004 @12:22PM (#9268557) Homepage
    Home Theater Spot gave the unit a favorable review here [hometheaterspot.com] . Based on their reveiw, the unit looks pretty nice.
  • I have a DishNetwork DVR that runs Linux. It has two tuners and two outputs so that you can watch and record on two separate television sets in different rooms (yes, it means more cabling). The difference with the Roku is that I enjoy the DishNetwork DVR very much as it's well set up and fairly easy to use.

    However, like the Roku, the sucker is unstable and crashes at least once a week. I mean, the whole bloody thing just shuts down, and you end up with an awful burst of snow and white-noise on the TV.

  • Hmm... (Score:2)

    by Mz6 ( 741941 ) *
    Riko who?

  • Roku good, Roku bad? Don't ask Charlie. (Score:3, Interesting)

    by gordguide ( 307383 ) on Thursday May 27, 2004 @01:37PM (#9269674)
    The review is by Charlie White.

    Now, it may well be that the thing is not ready for prime time, although some other reviewers seem to think it is.

    It's just that, I've read Good Old Charlie's stuff before, reviewing things I'm intimately familiar with.

    His experiences, conclusions, and pretty much everything else conflicted with mine so much that I now simply trash anything with his byline without reading it at all (I didn't notice his byline on this article until the bottom of page 2; in other words, the end. I wish I'd noticed it earlier, coulda saved some time).

  • So (Score:2, Funny)

    by MrLaminar ( 774857 )
    "the review paints a pretty grim picture of this unit, and appears to put part of the blame on its Linux-based OS and software."

    And for this, fellow Slashdotters, he MUST BE PUNISHED!!! ARRRGHHHH! MAN THE STOCKADE!

  • Customizable? (Score:2, Interesting)

    by n17ikh ( 750948 )
    I wonder how hackable this thing is. If it's possible to install a *different* version of Linux on it (or even Win98SE for the mostly non-Linux literate folks like me)and how fast its processor is and what amount of RAM it has. and I wonder if the extra cost would be worth all the component outputs, or if an Xbox would be better for that sort of thing... It would probably cost more and be harder to hack, but might you get better performance? Or would you be better off building your own sub-$300 PC with

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