If you have a mobile device, the Chromecast seems much better than the ROKU IMHO.
If you do not have a mobile device then ROKU has an advantage.
The Chromecast is great for streaming from mobile apps and video files stored on the mobile device.
It can also enable the casting of websites from your mobile device or pc using the Chrome browser.
I believe my phones cast videos better than my laptops.
For mirroring a website from a laptop desktop, a HDmi cable seems better.
Chromecast can stream video files on a pc by *rendering* the playback when using VLC to open the file.
If you do not have a mobile phone or tablet, the ROKU Express can work well if a website has its own ROKU app. You may need a mobile device and an app like the Web Video Caster app for streaming directly from Websites which do not offer a ROKU app.
To cast a video file stored on a Windows pc to the ROKU, you can use the ROKU Media Player Channel, Play On, or Plex. Alternatively, Windows10 can stream a video file to ROKU. On the ROKU, go to the settings then system to enable mirroring. On Windows10, go to the right of the screen and click on the bubble icon to bring up notices then click on the connect tile and choose ROKU then play the video file.
The ROKU mobile app on a smartphone enables casting stored media files directly from your phone (or device) to your ROKU. For myself, I prefer using the WVC app to play a video file stored on my mobile. Store the video files on a sd card because internal phone storage may be limited.
I have been collecting video files for decades.
I use Web Video Caster (WVC) to play private videos stored on a video hosting site (VK.com) when using a ROKU WVC also can send a video file on the mobile device to the ROKU. However, I am preferring the Chromecast for streaming from VK.com.. After a few clicks on the tv input and smart phone, I am moving without software/or hardware incompatibilities.
Bottomline,
I like the ROKU express for its apps but need the Web Video Caster app on a mobile device to stream directly from a website which does not have its own app on ROKU. Also video files stored on the mobile device can cast to the ROKU either through the ROKU app or through WVC.
Chromecast streams great with a smart phone and renders playback of a pc video file using VLC without a smartphone. The only flaw is VLC rendering does not play subtitles on Chromecast. I do not like the audio when casting VK videos from the Windows10 laptop Chrome browser to the Chromecast even though they are just a few feet apart but I can mirror the desktop and stream to Chromecast and get the audio. Mirroring also enables watching a movie file with subtitles.
If you do not have a mobile device, you can get a cheap tracfone smartphone and use it like a tablet on WiFi only without tracfone service activation. There are great deals on HSN for tracfones with one year of service if you decide you want mobile data accessibility or even to use it as a mobile phone. The prices and available products vary from week to week but this site can help:
This is my favorite for its battery but there are smaller cheaper ones which will do what you may want
device only option
holiday sale
or you can get the cheapest tracfone smartphone on Amazon and just use it like a tablet on WiFi, skipping a tracfone bundle, activation, or service.
Just put the smart phone into airplane mode and enable the WiFi and Bluetooth if desired.
You can even use Google Voice to send and receive calls and texts.
No comments:
Post a Comment