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Message
i think i'm moving to android streaming box over roku
Posted on 12/11/25 at 8:37 am
Posted on 12/11/25 at 8:37 am
a tale of 2 black friday purchases;
1. a roku ultra to put on my slowing Frame TV because all the reviews claimed it was super fast, supported all the codecs and Plex was instantaneous. I've found none of that hype to be true; several of my plex videos still buffer, sometimes crash when i put on subtitles and in general it will take forever sometimes to recognize my main server and display my media. I have to go back to 'movies' and reselect it for them to appear. Its hard-wired cat6 so i expected so much more from it. I'm still within the return window.
2. bought a 75' TCL QM7K. yes, the tv picture is insane so that doesn't hurt, but the real story is the native plex app on android; its SO frickING FAST. it plays EVERYTHING. Its instant, i turn on subtitles and it doesn't even freeze the show, it overlays and instantly they're running. in the past 3 weeks i haven't seen it buffer a SINGLE TIME. every video plays; not hiccups no weirdness, no having to refresh to 'find' my plex server, in short its working insanely well... the kicker? its not even hard-wired yet. its doing his all over WiFi.
tl;dr i am super disappointed w/ the brand new roku (and i've used roku for years) and very very surprised at how buttery smooth and reliable the android OS has been for streaming.
maybe its the TCL tv processor or something, but i'm willing to give it a shot on my Frame and see how it works.
1. a roku ultra to put on my slowing Frame TV because all the reviews claimed it was super fast, supported all the codecs and Plex was instantaneous. I've found none of that hype to be true; several of my plex videos still buffer, sometimes crash when i put on subtitles and in general it will take forever sometimes to recognize my main server and display my media. I have to go back to 'movies' and reselect it for them to appear. Its hard-wired cat6 so i expected so much more from it. I'm still within the return window.
2. bought a 75' TCL QM7K. yes, the tv picture is insane so that doesn't hurt, but the real story is the native plex app on android; its SO frickING FAST. it plays EVERYTHING. Its instant, i turn on subtitles and it doesn't even freeze the show, it overlays and instantly they're running. in the past 3 weeks i haven't seen it buffer a SINGLE TIME. every video plays; not hiccups no weirdness, no having to refresh to 'find' my plex server, in short its working insanely well... the kicker? its not even hard-wired yet. its doing his all over WiFi.
tl;dr i am super disappointed w/ the brand new roku (and i've used roku for years) and very very surprised at how buttery smooth and reliable the android OS has been for streaming.
maybe its the TCL tv processor or something, but i'm willing to give it a shot on my Frame and see how it works.
9
Posted on 12/11/25 at 8:52 am to CAD703X
Roku is junk
TCL is even more junkier.
Get a Samsung and fire TV box. The sticks are fine just don't have much
TCL is even more junkier.
Get a Samsung and fire TV box. The sticks are fine just don't have much
Posted on 12/11/25 at 8:53 am to CAD703X
Apple TV the best!
Posted on 12/11/25 at 9:41 am to CAD703X
I agree though it seems like all of the cheaper options are fire or roku. Samsung TVs have been shite for a very long time now.
Posted on 12/11/25 at 10:02 am to CAD703X
Let us know how it goes.
I’ve tried the $20 Walmart 4k and the $30 Walmart 4k+. The $30 one is an upgrade.
None are anything like the Roku Ultra but they both have good TV controls, RF Android controls, and I get smarters pro and better functioning Jellyfin clients.
I’ve tried the $20 Walmart 4k and the $30 Walmart 4k+. The $30 one is an upgrade.
None are anything like the Roku Ultra but they both have good TV controls, RF Android controls, and I get smarters pro and better functioning Jellyfin clients.
Posted on 12/11/25 at 10:11 am to Dallaswho
quote:The ONN Pro?
I’ve tried the $20 Walmart 4k and the $30 Walmart 4k+. The $30 one is an upgrade.
thats what i'm looking at; its has great reviews comparing it to the aging shield and no-ethernet is a dealbreaker so the plus is out.
pretty good remote (tap a button on the box and it will make your missing remote beep), light up keys, voice activated..
i'm pretty sold on this. reviews say it runs circles around the aging Google TV for half the price.
eta i like that i can sideload plexamp as well. that's a great extra bonus.
This post was edited on 12/11/25 at 10:26 am
Posted on 12/11/25 at 10:38 am to CAD703X
Just the 4k+ is the $30 one. It is actually newer and supposedly faster than the pro but may be lacking some features. Like the rj45 jack.
I’m not a big TV guy I just want my apps to work and not have multiple remotes. Plus we have wired wireless notes all over the house so WiFi is pretty robust here.
I’m not a big TV guy I just want my apps to work and not have multiple remotes. Plus we have wired wireless notes all over the house so WiFi is pretty robust here.
This post was edited on 12/11/25 at 10:40 am
Posted on 12/11/25 at 12:26 pm to CAD703X
If you really are open to Android TV, checkout the ONN devices at walmart. They are $20-$60 depending on which version you get and they seem to be rock solid and get regular updates from everything I have seen on AVSforums.
EDIT: Sorry I am so slow. I see the discussion already moved to this suggestion.
EDIT: Sorry I am so slow. I see the discussion already moved to this suggestion.
This post was edited on 12/11/25 at 12:28 pm
Posted on 12/11/25 at 12:28 pm to notsince98
like 2 posts up? 
kidding
kidding
Posted on 12/11/25 at 4:06 pm to Pondyrosa
quote:
Roku is junk
If you’re not doing IPTV or plex/emby/jellyfin then the Roku Ultra and Apple TV are as good as streaming gets.
Android wins by a mile for the edge stuff.
Posted on 12/11/25 at 4:23 pm to Dallaswho
quote:i haven't sideloaded apps in forever but i'm looking forward to putting plexamp on my android box and turning the visualizer on
Android wins by a mile for the edge stuff.
Posted on 12/11/25 at 6:34 pm to notsince98
I got the 2025 Plus model for an extra kodi TV a couple of weeks ago. The newer CPU is far more important and significantly faster than the 2024 Pro with an already older CPU in it.
38% single core and 53% multi core gains.
38% single core and 53% multi core gains.
Posted on 12/11/25 at 6:57 pm to UltimateHog
quote:i read all that too but i gotta have my ethernet.
8% single core and 53% multi core gains.
Posted on 12/11/25 at 8:06 pm to CAD703X
Ah yeah I gave up ethernet with wifi 7 but if it's a must that trade off is a sluggish and slow pro model. Don't think I could do it slow apps and navigation drive me insane.
Posted on 12/11/25 at 8:16 pm to UltimateHog
Oh come on it's not that big of a difference
I've read a ton of articles about both
I've read a ton of articles about both
Posted on 12/11/25 at 8:56 pm to CAD703X
It's actually pretty big, I just did this research a few weeks ago getting mine and consensus was get the plus the cpu matters way more and that it is noticeably faster and snappier. 38% single core is massive as is 53% multi, that's like 3 generations. The pro is on a 12nm chip from 2018 for Pete's sake.
USB-c power is also quite a nice update. The Pro just feels like it's old old already, they need to update it next year.
USB-c power is also quite a nice update. The Pro just feels like it's old old already, they need to update it next year.
This post was edited on 12/11/25 at 9:04 pm
Posted on 12/12/25 at 6:18 am to UltimateHog
How does it compare to the TCL Android experience? That is butter smooth on my QM7K so that's my benchmark. Anything comparable and I'm going to be happy
Ethernet, just-added Gemini AI support, find-my-remote button, light up remote, usb3 port and extra storage for sideloading apps more than makes up for the extra 1/2 sec to launch Plex to me
Ethernet, just-added Gemini AI support, find-my-remote button, light up remote, usb3 port and extra storage for sideloading apps more than makes up for the extra 1/2 sec to launch Plex to me
This post was edited on 12/12/25 at 6:19 am
Posted on 12/12/25 at 10:11 am to CAD703X
quote:
i read all that too but i gotta have my ethernet.
problem solved for $10
you don't have to give up expansion and ethernet with the Plus
This post was edited on 12/12/25 at 10:12 am
Posted on 12/12/25 at 10:12 am to Don Quixote
no. just no. i bet that works great..until it doesnt quote:
problem solved for $10
incorrect. The splitter is $10, the ethernet thingie is another $17.
pretty much the cost of the Plus at that point.
eta and you still have to buy a usb storage stick as well, another $20+
This post was edited on 12/12/25 at 10:17 am
Posted on 12/12/25 at 10:15 am to CAD703X
I use the USB ethernet solutions on several devices and they work great with android. Only way to get full 1Gbps speeds for most of them.
This post was edited on 12/12/25 at 10:16 am
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