Streaming

The Roku Express (2017) is an affordable streaming bar that enables access to tons of content.

The Roku Ultra (2017) is an excellent value, especially if you can live with run-of-the-mill audio, but it's similar to last year's model.

The new Nvidia Shield is a big improvement over its predecessor, with a variety of video apps to watch and great-looking games to stream.

The Elgato Stream Deck is a strong recommendation for anyone looking to up the production value on their gaming stream.

The Amazon Fire TV streams content in 4K and offers improved voice search.

CyberLink PowerDirector 15 Ultra makes the challenge of video editing fun with a colorful, well-designed and inviting interface.

The Roku Ultra lives up to its name, with 4K resolution, HDR support, digital audio, USB connectivity and more than 3,500 channels.

The inexpensive Roku Express offers a lot of channels, but an awkward design and sluggish performance undercut its value.

This small device lets you take your Dish DVR recordings wherever you go, but it’s not as versatile as other wireless hard drives.

The Insignia Roku TV is a bargain 4K ultra-HD set with a surprisingly good picture and one of the best smart-TV setups available, thanks to Roku

Pinnacle Studio 19 caters to a more pro-level video editor, but it doesn't support 4K, and its performance was glitchy.

We wish Sony Movie Studio 13 were faster and more intuitive, which would make it easier to take advantage of its flexible features.

The Roku Streaming Stick (2016) is a well-designed, inexpensive, content-rich streaming stick that occupies admirably little space.

The Roku 4 streams in full 4K at up to 60 frames per second and has more than 2,500 channels, but it's familiar and a bit pricey.

Google's Chromecast Audio makes it easy to stream high-quality audio from most streaming music services to powered speakers.

The Nvidia Shield is a powerful set-top box with 4K streaming and fluid gameplay, but this expensive Android TV device needs more apps.

GeForce Now streams lots of games with beautiful graphics and solid frame rates for an affordable monthly fee, but it has room to improve.

The redesigned Chromecast offers improved performance and makes it easier to find movies, shows and audio to stream.

The Slingbox M2 can stream whatever you see on your TV, but it doesn’t improve much on the previous generation.

The LG 65UF9500 delivers a sharp 4K picture with good color and smart webOS software in an attractive design.

Although the Chromecast is almost foolproof in both setup and functionality, what it does is limited compared to the competition.

The leader of the streaming player pack, the Roku 3 offers the most content choices, a comprehensive search feature and a remote that enables private listening.

Channels' effort to combine over-the-air and online TV is still a work in progress, but it has a lot of entertainment potential.

The Tablo requires considerable effort and equipment to enable HDTV recording. Cord cutters should look elsewhere.

The Google Nexus Player performs well and delivers a good combination of content and games, but it needs more apps.

The PlayStation isn't exactly broken, but it is compromised, semi-functional and in dire need of more content.

Microsoft's Wireless Display Adapter makes it easy to stream video from your mobile device to the big screen and delivers excellent video quality.

The previous block is a shopping Review.

SlingBox M1 beams live and DVR'd cable or satellite TV over the Net to computers and mobile devices, with good quality and no monthly fees.

Running Android 4.2 and XBMC media software, the Midnight MX2 promises to outperform set-top boxes such as Roku, but falls short of its potential.