
But what it does do, it tends to do better - and with fewer headaches. In fact, you can make the argument that it does a little less.
#Apple tv chromecast roku tv
And to be clear, Apple TV 4K doesn't do three or four or five times as much as its competitors. And those in the Apple ecosystem can make use of some of the extra features, it's not just for those with iPhones and iPads.In the world of $50 streaming sticks that absolutely can get the job done and get it done well, it's perhaps a little hard to recommend something that costs three or four or five times as much. It's still the simplest, most consistent experience you can get, with a relatively open-ended shelf life, and the late 2022 model has gotten that much better. So without further ado, let’s get into it. We get paid to make some tough decisions here, though. And at that level, it’s really more about ecosystem and personal choice than anything else. Elsewhere, we’ll get into picks that are more comparable in price and function. They’re also the most expensive - by quite a good bit. Our top two picks are in a class of their own. And that's not even counting features like Chromecast or AirPlay 2, which make it simple to stream any sort of content you want from any Android, iOS, Chrome, or Mac device.
#Apple tv chromecast roku android
The major players in the streaming device game - Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, Android TV, Google TV, Roku - are all fighting for your money, so we're here to make sure you throw it at the right streaming device for you and your budget, which typically ranges from as low as $30 to as high as $200.įurther compounding the issue is that if you have a smart TV from the past several years from any of the big TV brands, there's a pretty good chance that you might not even need to plug in any other sort of smart streaming device, thanks to the built-in operating system and a plethora of available streaming apps. But there are plenty of reasons to use an external streaming device, too. That could be one of the more popular streaming platforms, like Roku, Amazon Fire TV, or Google TV.


For many, using whatever is built into to your TV is just fine.

Or, if you want a perfect display from your computer screen use an HDMI cable to the TV.There now are so many ways for you to get all the shows and movies you want on all your favorite streaming services, be it Netflix, Max, Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, Disney+. If you really, really need chromecast protocol, get an android TV instead of a roku or a separate chromecast device. If you are playing from files, you can use a server like Plex on your computer to send them, or put them on a USB drive to play with the roku media player, or put them on a phone or tablet and send them with the roku app. If you are playing content from the internet, chances are there is a roku app to play it directly. Generally, screen mirroring of some other device is inefficient and not the best way to view things even where it does work. YouTube/Netflix/Plex and possibly others may work this way on the roku (you'll know because the phone app itself will show the cast icon). Some applications provide their own 'casting' function where the phone app tells the TV app what content to play but the TV app gets its own copy. Chromecast works over your existing network connection but the screen mirroring part does not work on the roku.

#Apple tv chromecast roku Pc
The screen mirroring that roku provides is 'miracast' which requires a wifi-direct connection between the devices, and not all PC hardware can do that.
