Best non-stick/dongle alternative to Roku?

[Dreakon13 132]

I'm getting a little tired of my Roku's.  It seems the more unusual things I try to do on them, the more hurdles I run into.  Odd issues and incompatibilities that don't seem to effect my smart TV's or other devices, hearsay about how they are harder to develop for, more closed off, more erratic/nonsensical decisions with firmware updates, etc.  Reports of apps like YouTube getting ready to leave their channel storefront.  I'm getting ready to jump ship.

That being said, they're pretty affordable and I don't like sticks or dongles that hang from the HDMI ports.  They still require outlet power for full performance (the alternative being to plug into a USB port which is fine but the one Firestick I tried still complained about it not being enough) so it's harder to hide the cables with my setup.  I don't want to spend hundreds replacing my Roku Ultra and Premiere if I can help it, like I might need to for an AppleTV or NVIDIA Shield.  It kinda seems like that Amazon Firestick may be my only option for an affordable streaming device on my non-smart TV's.

Is there another option I'm missing?  Appreciate any insights.

Edited May 8, 2021 by Dreakon13

[Luke 37060]

Hi, YouTube is not leaving Roku. The current conflict between Google and Roku is only about YouTube TV.

[Dreakon13 132]

1 minute ago, Luke said:

Hi, YouTube is not leaving Roku. The current conflict between Google and Roku is only about YouTube TV.

Good to know, I think somewhere in the back of my head I knew this but I wasn't sure if YouTube and YouTube TV were two separate things.  It's one of a few different frustrations I have with Roku at the moment though.

[Sammy 735]

Roku may turn and ban YouTube now that Google has made YTTV part of YouTube. 

Pure speculation on my part but seems par for the course. 

[Sammy 735]

The MiBox s is a cheap alternative but it does have an issue with interlaced content on some LiveTV channels (only 2 for me). FireTV is a good option too.

ShieldTV (not Tube model) is the best device you can get but you pay for the best too.

[Sammy 735]

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B089VLB6QC/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_glt_fabc_0RWRAS3TEN3ESVJPEQXT?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

 

But you can save a few bucks maybe by deleting the remote cover and buying the FireTV and power cable separately.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B079QHML21/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_glt_fabc_2NKBD4JKNT9C7FQ6K8Y1

 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08Q7KGNSJ/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_glt_fabc_SHZNG1CAC2511TSKQ1RM?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

Try also code 4KFTV15 to save a couple more bucks.

[BillOatman 500]

I had a mibox, tivo4k, and new Chromecast on the bedroom tv.  They all worked "great at the price point".  But ultimately "good enough" was not for me, and I ended up with the shield tube.  In this case honestly, you get what you pay for. 

[Sammy 735]

It all depends on your use case. For me the MiBox s works great in the bedroom but in the family room it has to be a ShieldTV (2017 until I update my gear and need a 2019).

[BAlGaInTl 279]

I use a dongle (Chromecast), but I don't run it behind the TV.  Instead, I have an HDMI cable with a female adapter on it at the end.  The adapters are super cheap.  You can get a two pack for under $10, or a single one for around $5.

With that said... you may also consider the newer Chromecast with Google TV:

Chromecast with Google TV - Google Store

I don't have too much experience with it yet, but maybe somebody else could chime in.

[vdatanet 1549]

On 5/10/2021 at 5:27 AM, BillOatman said:

I ended up with the shield tube

Too many problems playing high bitrate content.

[ebr 14910]

55 minutes ago, vdatanet said:

Too many problems playing high bitrate content.

It is a fine device if you don't need to support bitrates over about 30Mb/s (which most really don't).

[vdatanet 1549]

4 minutes ago, ebr said:

It is a fine device if you don't need to support bitrates over about 30Mb/s (which most really don't).

Playing this item (and many like this) the Shield Tube buffers and the device becomes unstable.

I have HEVC items with higher bitrate that play fine, so I guess the encoding format also affects the memory leak. For me, it is a faulty device, with a problem in the firmware, not in the hardware specifications.

 

[Carlo 4330]

I'm with Sammy.

For me the best device for the money right now (non hdmi dongle) is the MiBox-S. It has a decent home screen, good specs, handles higher bitrate files better then the Shield Tube does but is WIFI only out of the box.  Like the shield it can do HDR->SDR. A $12 USB3 dongle allows Ethernet hookup if you prefer (I do) and it's a treat to use.  For me this is "the box" for bedroom or auxiliary TVs or even the family room but I'd go with a Shield TV Pro for any setup with better than 5.1 sound.  The Shield TV is the best device I know of for high end sound setups (you get what you pay for).

The new style Shield TV remote is hands above the MiBox-S and Fire remotes as well.  It just feels good in your hand and doesn't have a "cheap" feel.