Comparison Chart of Chromecast, Apple TV and Roku Content Options

Friday July 26, 2013 11:55 AM PDT by Jordan Golson
Marketing Land has assembled this comparison chart showing what subscription and rental services can be used with the new Google Chromecast, the Apple TV, and the Roku streaming boxes.

The new Chromecast, which costs just $35, plugs into an HDMI port on a television, and needs to be charged via a USB connection. The Roku box is perhaps the most direct competitor for the Apple TV, with the Apple TV supporting AirPlay mirroring and streaming from iOS devices while the Roku delivers a number of additional content sources.

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104 comments


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gatearray
73 months ago
Wow, 20% of the functionality for 1/3 the price of ATV... No wonder all the cheapskates are falling all over themselves for this thing. :)
Rating: 9 Votes
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dustinsc
73 months ago
Not a very useful comparison since it ignores the casting function on the Chromecast and AirPlay. And even if it mentioned the existence of these services, it still wouldn't get to the issue of the difference between Google Cast and AirPlay.
Rating: 8 Votes
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tempusfugit
73 months ago
AirPlay makes the appleTV vastly superior than the others as long as you have Macs or iOS devices. Second place goes to Roku for making a pretty decent device. Chromecast is pure garbage.
Rating: 6 Votes
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Ethere
73 months ago

Wow, 20% of the functionality for 1/3 the price of ATV... No wonder all the cheapskates are falling all over themselves for this thing. :)


The Chromecast is great for $35 bucks. Just the fact I can use a tab from Chrome and shoot it up on the TV is worth that much. Hell, some HDMI cables themselves cost $35.
Rating: 5 Votes
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Chupa Chupa
73 months ago
Merge Chromecast's formfactor w/ Roku's feature set with Apple's AirPlay and you'd have the perfect streamer.

But as-is all 3 are lacking in either content or portability.
Rating: 4 Votes
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whooleytoo
73 months ago
It's a bit of an arbitrary comparison in that chart, given no mention is made of Airplay or Home Sharing (or presumably other features on the other devices).

Plus, it's quite US-centric, no Hulu Plus, HBO Go or Amazon Prime here, so they're much more 'level'.
Rating: 3 Votes
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curmudgeon32
73 months ago
These things are so cheap, you don't need to have just one. I use Apple TV like 95% of the time, but switch to my old 1st gen. Roku if I need to do an Amazon rental or something.
Rating: 2 Votes
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Elbon
73 months ago

ATV won't do any local content.


Apple TV streams local content. You can do it either via AirPlay or via iTunes Home Sharing.
Rating: 2 Votes
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jmh600cbr
73 months ago

AirPlay makes the appleTV vastly superior than the others as long as you have Macs or iOS devices. Second place goes to Roku for making a pretty decent device. Chromecast is pure garbage.


Garbage is a bit rough. At the $35 price point it is impressive what chrome cast is accomplishing.

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As a Canadian this chart is vastly different. Most premium features of the Apple TV and the roku are unavailable. Literally the extra 85$ for Apple TV is to have airplay and iTunes. I can say I most definitely will own both devices.
Rating: 2 Votes
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tempusfugit
73 months ago

Garbage is a bit rough. At the $35 price point it is impressive what chrome cast is accomplishing.

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As a Canadian this chart is vastly different. Most premium features of the Apple TV and the roku are unavailable. Literally the extra 85$ for Apple TV is to have airplay and iTunes. I can say I most definitely will own both devices.


AirPlay, iTunes, iCloud(photostream etc), flickr, vimeo, MLB TV, NHL, and a whole lot of other stuff too on the Apple TV. Plus whatever is on your computer screen, not just a chrome tab, in real time. $35 is a waste of money if it gets you far less than 1/3 the functionality. Some people prefer the bargain bin no matter what though.
Rating: 2 Votes
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