Versus: Fire TV Stick vs Roku Streaming Stick vs Chromecast

Design, Remote and AppsProving the e-tailer still has a few surprises up its sleeve, Amazon announced the Fire TV Stick on Monday, a ridiculously affordable version of the set-top hardware that appears to have left little behind on its way to the shrink-ray.Of course, stick-sized media streamers are somewhat old hat by now, with that path already well traveled by Google's Chromecast and the Roku Streaming Stick - and given that Fire TV Stick won't arrive until just before Black Friday, we don't know for sure if it's as amazing as Amazon says it is.In the meantime, we've got technical specifications and other product details to go by, which is enough to pore over and see how Fire TV Stick stacks up against the competition.DesignLet's face it: There's only so much engineers can do with a device not much bigger than a stick of gum, so buyers shouldn't expect too many design miracles from Amazon, Roku or Google.The trailblazing Chromecast is easily the most shapely of the bunch, adopting a more rounded look toward the rear of its 72 x 35 x 12 mm frame, while the Roku Streaming Stick makes up for its otherwise squarish 79 x 28 x 13 mm (3.1 x 1.1 x 0.5 inch) looks by adopting the same purple hue as the company's logo.For being the new kid on the block, the Fire TV Stick is pretty utilitarian when it comes to design - it's simply a 84.9 x 25 x 11.5 mm (3.3 x 1.0 x 0.5 inch) black rectangle with the Amazon logo emblazoned on one side, a standard male HDMI Type A connector at one end, and a micro-USB (for power only) on the opposite side.Looks may be one thing, but any of these devices are likely to be unplugged and tossed into a bag or purse for taking entertainment on the road; thankfully, they're all quite light and portable, with the Chromecast packing on the most weight at 34 grams (just shy of 1.2 ozs.), followed by Fire TV Stick at 25.1 grams (0.9 oz.) and the Roku Streaming Stick at 18.1 grams (0.64 oz.).When all is said and done, we still prefer the Chromecast for a more unique design, although points could be awarded to Amazon for its ability to make the otherwise generic-looking Fire TV Stick pretty much disappear onto the back of most HDTV sets, which is more than we can say for Roku's device, which sticks out like a sore thumb.RemoteWhen Chromecast was released more than a year ago, Google was quick to point out that no remote control would be required - after all, the required smartphone, tablet or Chrome browser on a desktop computer essentially already offer complete control over playback.Roku and Amazon have other ideas about this concept, given their respective Streaming Stick and Fire TV Stick devices actually pull content from the internet only upon the command of a remote control or mobile app.That makes the Roku Streaming Stick or Fire TV Stick a better choice for viewers who prefer to hold a traditional remote in their hands, which are powered by a pair of AA batteries.Roku's RF-based remote resembles the one that comes bundled with its current-generation set-top boxes, complete with shortcut buttons for favored nation channels M-GO, Amazon Instant Video, Netflix and Blockbuster On Demand; unfortunately, Roku skimped on the headphone jack featured on its more expensive hardware.Amazon likewise cheaped out on the remote for its Fire TV Stick, which offers only basic navigation and playback buttons and none of the voice search or game controller functionality full-sized Fire TV owners enjoy.However, Amazon is separately offering both the $29.99 Fire TV Voice Remote as well as the $39.99 Fire Game Controller, each of which also happens to be fully compatible with Fire TV Stick right out of the box.For those looking to toss hardware remotes in a desk drawer and forget about them, the news is even better: All three devices can be controlled from mobile apps on iOS or Android, although at this writing Amazon's free Fire TV Remote app is a no-show on Apple's App Store.AppsAlthough Google has made great strides over the last year or so in securing the support of content providers for Chromecast, Roku continues to dominate with more than 1,000 channels, ranging from movies to TV shows, sports, news and music.Aside from iTunes Store content - which none of these stick-based devices are capable of playing - any of these sticks are capable of streaming the most popular services, including Netflix, Hulu Plus and YouTube, although there is one noticeable exclusion on Chromecast, which lacks Amazon Instant Video support.While Roku may cater to more eclectic tastes thanks to a diverse channel catalog, all three devices are also capable of streaming from the likes of Plex, software frequently used by home theater junkies to view content stored on their own computer or network-attached storage (NAS).That just leaves us with fringe services such as Walmart-owned VUDU, which is available on Roku and compatible with Chromecast, but has thus far chosen to sit on the sidelines for Amazon's Kindle Fire, Fire TV and now Fire TV Stick.We're giving the apps nod to Roku here for sheer quantity and diversity of choices, but we wouldn't count Chromecast or Fire TV Stick out for the future, as Google and Amazon continue to line up support from other content providers.Interface, Games and SpecsInterfaceIf you've already compared Fire TV and Roku 3, there's not likely to be many surprises here: Both Fire TV Stick and Roku Streaming Stick deliver the same user interfaces found on their more expensive set-top editions.On Roku Streaming Stick, the customizable grid layout is about as good as it gets - viewers can bring their favorite channels front and center and access them without drilling down into menus or (God forbid) submenus.Unfortunately, Amazon hasn't quite figured out how much we dislike the Fire TV user interface, which puts the needs of the e-tailer ahead of the viewer thanks to a noisy default Home menu, which mashes up everything into one unruly mess - and keeps the stuff we want buried in those aforementioned submenus.If user interfaces aren't your thing, Google's Chromecast is likely to win over your heart. There's essentially no UI to speak of, since everything happens from a compatible smartphone or tablet app, which is used to "cast" content to an HDTV.Although we continue to hope Amazon will see the light, for now Fire TV Stick will have to take a backseat to reigning UI champion Roku, with a second-place nod to Chromecast for choosing to just get out of the way entirely.GamesWe wouldn't necessarily recommend buying a streaming stick for even casual gaming, but Amazon handily dominates this realm at the moment, thanks to Fire TV Stick's ability to use the Fire Game Controller (available separately) originally offered with the Fire TV media streamer.While it's not going to replace anyone's PlayStation 4 or Xbox One, Amazon has bulked up its gaming content with tons of free titles as well as paid games starting at only 99 cents, including Flappy Birds Family, The Game of Life and Sonic the Hedgehog 2.By comparison, the Roku Streaming Stick completely abandons the Roku 3's ability to play Angry Birds and a selection of other titles, while Google's Chromecast was never intended to play games at all, so move along please ... nothing to see here.SpecsAmazon must be on a roll here! Much like Fire TV, the Fire TV Stick is quite the potent beast when it comes to raw hardware specifications, featuring a dual-core processor (down from quad-core on the set-top version) with 1GB of RAM and 8GB of onboard flash storage.By comparison, both Chromecast and Roku Streaming Stick remain stuck with single-core processors and a meager 512MB of RAM; the former also includes 2GB of flash storage, while the latter looks positively skimpy with a mere 256MB.Fire TV Stick and Roku Streaming Stick also acknowledge the need for strong wireless streaming signals, since both are equipped with dual-band, dual antenna MIMO-compatible Wi-Fi, while Chromecast limps along on a single band of 2.4GHz 802.11b/g/n alone.All three devices are capable of streaming up to 1080p HD, while Fire TV Stick and Roku Streaming Stick are noteworthy for supporting audio passthrough of up to 7.1 surround channels, while the former adds Dolby Digital Plus certification.Oh, and in case it's not clear, all three streaming sticks require an available HDMI port for use, along with AC power supplied by the micro-USB port on the opposite end; it's kind of the Achilles' heel of these devices.Price and ConclusionPriceLast year, Google Chromecast looked like an unbeatable value at only $35 (UK£30, about AU$39), but then Roku came along with its own Streaming Stick for only $49 (about UK£31, AU$56), which included a dedicated hardware remote control.Amazon has decided to stick the Fire TV Stick (pun intended) squarely in the middle of this streaming war by pricing the device at only $39 (about UK£31, AU$44) - and early adopters who also happened to have Amazon Prime accounts were able to score one for even cheaper (only $19) for the first few days.This one is a bit of a toss-up: On paper, Fire TV Stick comes off as the best value, but for only $10 more, buyers can get way more content from Roku - so we'll call it a tie, unless you're a casual gamer, and then Fire TV Stick is likely to be a better investment in the long run.ConclusionGoogle Chromecast is looking more and more like a niche player now that the original streaming dongle is being squeezed at both ends by larger, more established players. It doesn't help that Google has a somewhat checkered history when it comes to streaming devices (Nexus Q, Google TV), although for compatible apps, it's a pretty nice choice.That said, Roku devices tend to be on the underpowered side, causing them to more easily reveal kinks in the armor when using resource-intensive channels like VUDU, and the Streaming Stick is already less powerful than Roku 3 to begin with.Assuming Amazon can get its act together on the content and user interface side, we'd say Fire TV Stick has a pretty good shot for long-term survival when it starts arriving on November 19 - and if nothing else, the dirt-cheap price makes a great impulse buy that's likely to retain its value longer than Chromecast or Roku Streaming Stick.

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