our experience with media streamers is the lethargic user interface, which totally puts us off (that’s politely put). we conclude that this due to 1) snail-powered processor, and 2) heavyweight UI. we might be wrong, but based on our beliefs, we thought the new Roku 3 Streaming Media Player might dispel our presumptions. sporting a faster processor (though no specific was offered), the new Roku 3 has a much curvier aesthetic – much like a pebble – while maintaining roughly the same physical size as the older siblings. along with a speedier processor, Roku 3 also promised a redesigned interface and will be significantly faster when browsing or switching between apps. also packed into this little package are over 750 channels of entertainment (naturally, this will be stateside-only thing), 1080p HD support, dual-band wireless technology, Ethernet and USB ports, as well as a microSD slot. if you ask us, that’s a lot to pack into for such a tiny device.
as with the earlier Roku, it comes with a remote – an enhanced remote, to be exact – that features a built-in audio headphone jack for private listening (with volume control) via an included in-ear headphones. like before, the remote also doubles up as a motion-sensing game controller for playing games such as Angry Birds Space (yes. the perpetually angry avian is still alive and flapping in the latest generation of Roku). similarly, a free app is also available for using your iDevices or Android devices to make the sleek little black box do your biddings. the Roku 3 Streaming Media Player is billed as the most powerful Roku ever, and therefore it is totally natural that it commands at slightly higher sticker of $99.99 ($94.98 on Amazon). check out a few more product images and a product clip below, or learn more about the third-gen Roku HERE.