Mike and I are total movie buffs! We rent new movies on the day they come out, which is Tuesdays. I know-kind of sick that we do that-lol. It's the truth though! And, now that the economy is struggling so are our entertainment options. Movies at home are cheap and if the right movie is playing on your TV; it can also be a great time! So, when I found out about the Roku-a digital video player that INSTANTLY streams high quality movies from Netflix and Amazon Video On Demand from the internet DIRECTLY to your TV-well, to say that I wanted to know more is quite the understatement. Not only was I excited, but you should have seen Mike when he found out about it. Like a kid in a candy store.


Recently, Roku sent us their digital video player for me to review and I have to say that it is pretty cool! The Roku comes with everything that you need to get connected asap and it is super easy to do. Just a few cable connections and you are done! Set up is also a breeze. All you do is follow the on screen prompts and within minutes you can be watching a movie on the Roku. You can watch movies in one of two ways-through your Netflix account or through Amazon Video On Demand. Through Amazon, you have over 40,000 movie choices, but you will pay PER movie. Amazon.com choices cost between 99 cents and $3.99 to rent for 24 hours, with no subscription fees required.

We went ahead and signed up for the cheapest Netflix plan available, which is $8.95 per month. That plan allows you to rent 1 movie at a time-except that with the Roku it doesn't matter because you can watch movie after movie after movie! You don't have to RETURN anything so all you really need is the cheap 1 movie out at a time plan! Netflix choices are unlimited -- watch as many as you want, as frequently as you want -- with any Netflix unlimited membership. At Netflix, you have over 12,000 movie choices available with new ones being added each week. I will say the only bummer is that it can be difficult to find new releases available for the Roku at Netflix. I know that Roku is working on that, but the new releases are slim for now. However, the cool thing is that you will still get your Netflix DVD's in the mail as usual-the Roku does not impact the number of DVD's you receive-so you can still get your new releases that way. And, all that you do to actually watch movies is add the movies you want to watch to your Netflix queue and they instantly show up on the Roku. From there, you just choose the movie you want to watch!





Of course, the Roku comes with a remote control and you can pause, stop, rewind, and fast forward movies just like on a DVD player. The picture quality is awesome and some movies are even available in HD! The Roku is truly an awesome addition to the family entertainment center. Kids will love watching their favorite movies and so will mom and dad! The Roku is great for last minute family movie nights and popcorn. Best of all, moms don't have to remember to return anything! One thing NOT to add to the list of to-do's for the day! At $99.99, the Roku is also very affordable! We LOVE the Roku at our house-even my techie husband can't stop raving about it! We're definitely not the only ones though-The Wall Street Journal, CNET, WIRED, and other publications have given the Roku player overwhelmingly positive reviews as well.

Want It: The Roku Digital Video Player is priced at $99.99 and can be purchased at Roku.com.