The TiVo can output at 1080p/24fps, neither the Roku or the Apple TV are capable of that. Something to think about if your display can utilize that format.
Both the Apple TV and Roku stream far more apps than the Tivo does and IMNSHO both of them are far easier to use and navigate than the apps on my Tivo, I love my Tivo, but it's not a great streamer, it's all about compromises, the Roku and Apple TV are shining stars at what they do and I have had both as streamers in a Tivo ecosystem.
Correct me if I'm wrong but the roku seems to be much more reliable and stable for streaming. I was really hoping the Bolt would be an improvement over my Roamio or s3 or s4 etc but it is not.
Not so sure about that, I've seen a couple of reboots on my Roku already. YouTube app in particular can crash it when loading/playing a video, just like it does on a Mini.
The Roku is much faster running apps than a Roamio or Mini, but the Mini is no slouch.
They are different beasts. TiVo is rather limited in its streaming capabilities. As mentioned the Roku and Apple TV have hundreds more apps. As far as the Apple TV goes, the current gen is the one you want, the prior generations lack the App Store and have little value outside the preloaded apps, iTunes and sharing / mirroring. I have the Roku stick and last 2 generations Apple TVs and when both the Roku and Apple TV have the same app, the Apple TV usually has the better version.
We've found the Netflix app to be much better on the Roku.
We also watch Acorn TV, which is not available via Tivo AFAIK.
In general, as others have said, the apps run more smoothly with better interfaces on the Roku.
One other thing that matters to us, but may not to others-- there is NO way of turning off the display of the TIME on the screen (I.e., in Now Playing), so if you watch late, or in then middle of the night, you'll be hit over the head with what time it is!
On the Roku, you can turn off the display of the time. A minor item, but can be a big issue to some!
It would be good if the Roku remote included Volume and Mute controls. OTOH, it would be good if the Tivo Remote's Input button actually worked, too!
So, that's not that big a deal. One ends up with multiple remotes anyway-- TV, Tivo, and Roku--to ensure one can control all features. One could try using a universal remote instead, but we've found that usually means one more remote, not one substituting for all the others!
It does work but it's dependent on what device you are switching inputs on. Works fine on our Onkyo receiver (although we do have the Slide Pro Remote and learned the code to make it cycle through the inputs) and our son's Vizio TV's.
I used the mini primarily for YouTube approximately 1yr. but I had too many crashes that required rebooting the Mini, so I've given up on the using it. YMMV.
Regardless, I've recently gone to a Fire TV Stick and find it a superior experience. No crashes so far. Faster UI. More enjoyable. Won't go back.
This is from someone who originally tried to go with the one box Mini approach to simplify things, but the Fire Stick is really that much better. Really surprised me.
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