re: Apple TV vs Roku 3 vs amazon fire tv - gifts

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The Roku is easier to use and faster to respond. I only use the Apple TV for the few things Roku does not have, and then I get pissed that I'm having to use the crappier Apple TV.

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I pretty much agree, even with the Roku 2xs (roughly same age as ATV3 that I have). Personally, I think the screen mirroring in the typical home environment is novel, loses its charm, and fades into obscurity. It's highly useful in any sort of presentation setting- I'm not suggesting it's a bad feature at all. I just find little use in it for the majority of "sitting around the house" purposes (ex: husband and wife are fewer than 15ft from each other. Wife wants to show husband something static (like a web browser screen) on MacBook Air. You can click two buttons and wait a few seconds (probably in the 3-15 second range. Depending on connection, you may even fail to connect or take a little bit longer) and have it on the TV. Or you can turn the computer screen toward them and just have them look, which is usually fewer than 5 seconds, depending on seating arrangements. In the setting of a home where there are frequently more than two people and they like to share screens, it becomes more useful. I don't have that setting and don't know many people who do). I find the more useful feature is the "regular" Airplay, which is highly comparable to PlayOn Roku with neither being particularly more impressive than the other in terms of function (re: both highly functional). In terms of ease of use, Airplay may have a slight edge, but they're comparably easy to learn, and once learned, about as easy as each other.

I'm really just trying to play Devils' advocate for the OP. I'm a techie and spend way too much on owning all the devices, so I'm trying to point out every flaw I can think of that may sway you one way or the other. There's nothing that's "overall bad" about any of these toys. If I seem like I'm leaning one way or the other out of spite or fanboyism, feel free to take me with a grain of salt, but I'm trying to give an honest overview of all the flaws, however small, that may have been useful to know ahead of time.