The Toshiba is a Fire TV. That's an Amazon thing and it comes with Alexa. I'm not a fan.

The TCL is a Roku-based system.

I think Roku has a wider selection of streaming options. As someone mentioned, Amazon, Apple, and Google (Chromecast) have been in a pi$$ing war...I think Roku has managed to stay out of that fray...

Just another thing to consider in addition to the resolution....

Here's the TCL 43'
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B079...th=1#customerReviews

Mr. SK is interested.

quote:

Originally posted by ShiroKuro:
Here's the TCL 43'
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B079...th=1#customerReviews

Mr. SK is interested.

Lisa gets primary credit, I get subsidiary credit.

quote:

Originally posted by wtg:
The Toshiba is a Fire TV. That's an Amazon thing and it comes with Alexa. I'm not a fan.

The TCL is a Roku-based system.

I think Roku has a wider selection of streaming options. As someone mentioned, Amazon, Apple, and Google (Chromecast) have been in a pi$$ing war...I think Roku has managed to stay out of that fray...

Just another thing to consider in addition to the resolution....

I use and like roku.

Quirt, noted!

Yeah, I'm leaning toward Roku as well.... You can still watch Amazon Prime, right? (I am so clueless about this stuff).

We were planning on going to look at TVs in person yesterday but I spent too much time at the piano dealership! (the second one, not the one where the guy didn't leave me alone) :P Which is kinda silly because we will probably buy a TV soon, but probably not buy a piano for another 6 to 12 months

We'll try to go to Best Buy or something this weekend and I'll post a report.

Basics:

You need some hardware (built-in - that's a smart TV, or standalone - various sticks and dongles). Also software (apps) to access the various streaming services. Roku, Google (Chromecast), Amazon (FireTV), and Apple (AppleTV) all make hardware and have apps for various channels.

At the time I bought our last Samsung TV, they had their own built-in hardware and apps but nothing standalone. eta: I looked it up, and they still have their SmartHub/SmartTV products.

Most TV manufacturers are partnering with the major hardware providers and building in their devices, and by extension, their apps.

So there were some turf wars going on, most notably between Amazon and Google. Initially Google's Chromecast device didn't have an app to support Amazon Prime streaming, which was crazy because so many people are Prime members.

I think some of the craziness has abated, but the takeaway is you have to look at what channels are supported by the manufacturer of the hardware you choose, whether it's built into the TV or you buy a streaming device. This was from Consumer Reports:

quote:

YouTube TV

Price: $50 per month.

Who it’s best for: Cord cutters looking for a different option. YouTube TV offers access to more than 70 networks, including all the major local networks. It supports up to three simultaneous users. You get a cloud DVR—a virtual recorder that stores programs for you on YouTube’s servers—that lets you save as many shows as you want for up to nine months before they’re deleted.

Right now the service’s biggest limitation is that it isn’t supported on Amazon Fire TV streaming players. But apparently, Google and Amazon have ended their feud, so YouTube TV, along with YouTube and YouTube Kids, will soon be available on Amazon Fire devices.

Here are the major players:

Google/Chromecast: https://www.google.com/chromecast/built-in/tv/

Amazon/FireTV: https://www.usatoday.com/story...smart-tvs/529456002/

Important bit from the above article:

quote:

An affordable Amazon smart TV — no prices were announced — would save the consumer the $40-$70 it costs to buy the add-on Fire TV stick units, which connect to TVs to bring Internet entertainment to consumers. They are similar to the Roku devices but have more limited channel lineups.

Roku (Click on Products and look at RokuTV) It will come up with a list of TVs that have Roku built in): https://www.roku.com/

eta: And as Ax pointed out, you can attach a TV (smart or otherwise) to a computer and use the computer to stream the channels.

Probably the first entry in streaming support, but now pretty much gone by the wayside, using a DVD or Blu-ray player with built-in WiFi and apps provided by the manufacturer of the player.

See, isn't that simple?

Have the Amazon Fire TV gismo.
Bought it because there are three Amazon Echo Alexas in my place.
Call it Echo, not Alexa because there is an Alexa device nearby.
It works better for streaming than the Comcast box, but we are not impressed.

WTG thanks for those explanations and links!

So, the Roku page shows their TVs with Prime Video, Netflix, and Roku icons, suggesting that those channels are all accessible.

The question is, is there some difference in what Amazon offers through Roku vs. Fire, and that's probably impossible to know.

It also probably doesn't matter that much because there aren't really specific things we want to watch, we just want access to both Amazon Prime and Netflix. Well, the only specific thing we want to watch (TV Japan) is as yet unavailable on anything other than traditional cable.

Anyway, I am def leaning toward the Roku option

To answer your question, SK, yes, you can watch just about everything on Roku. Amazon Prime, Netflix, Hulu, YouTube, YouTube TV. They all cost, in one way or another, but, if you already have Amazon Prime, that's free.

In addition to all of the above, there are now a number of free, ad-supported services (Roku has one of their own, then there's other stuff ... Crackle maybe? And others) that will allow you to watch things over Roku with commercials.

In response to your next question, as far as I know, Amazon Prime over Roku has identical offerings to Amazon Prime over Fire. I think there'd be an outcry if it were different.

quote:

Originally posted by QuirtEvans:
In response to your next question, as far as I know, Amazon Prime over Roku has identical offerings to Amazon Prime over Fire. I think there'd be an outcry if it were different.

That's good to know.

Re the costs you mentioned in your post above this one... We have Amazon Prime, so that takes care of one piece of it. We don't currently have Netflix, but I assume there's still some kind of monthly fee... What are the costs for the other services? A similar model to the Netflix style of a monthly fee?

We don't watch much regular TV, we mostly watch the Japan channel and not much of anything else. if we had Amazon Prime on the tv, there are some things we'd watch there, and then we'd like to watch movies now and then...

So I'm thinking we should be ok without needing too much of a subscription (for example with Hulu or something). But until TV Japan is available outside of the cable habitat, we will continue to have a traditional subscription.

Which is the one thing I hate the most. Phooey.

Netflix costs us $12.99/month. I don't know if discounts are available.

quote:

Originally posted by ShiroKuro:

quote:

Originally posted by QuirtEvans:
In response to your next question, as far as I know, Amazon Prime over Roku has identical offerings to Amazon Prime over Fire. I think there'd be an outcry if it were different.

That's good to know.

Re the costs you mentioned in your post above this one... We have Amazon Prime, so that takes care of one piece of it. We don't currently have Netflix, but I assume there's still some kind of monthly fee... What are the costs for the other services? A similar model to the Netflix style of a monthly fee?

We don't watch much regular TV, we mostly watch the Japan channel and not much of anything else. if we had Amazon Prime on the tv, there are some things we'd watch there, and then we'd like to watch movies now and then...

So I'm thinking we should be ok without needing too much of a subscription (for example with Hulu or something). But until TV Japan is available outside of the cable habitat, we will continue to have a traditional subscription.

Which is the one thing I hate the most. Phooey.

Yes, monthly fees. Most monthly fees are similar ... HBO is more expensive, Hulu is a little cheaper.

Don't forget that there are movies on the free, ad-supported services.

What some people do is rotate. Netflix for a couple of months, then cancel Netflix and sign up with Hulu for a couple of months, etc. Binge what you want, and catch anything you miss the next time you rotate through.

A decent comparison of some, not all, streaming services:

https://www.tomsguide.com/us/b...ces,review-2625.html

quote:

Don't forget that there are movies on the free, ad-supported services.

Yes, I imagine that we'll want to take advantage of that.

Also, thanks for the link Quirt, that's quite helpful!