Roku Review......say that one 10 times fast.

Earlier this week we decided to buy the Roku 2 XS. 
There are alot of media center option out there. Apple TV as an example. (Though quite pricy)
The Roku box has a series of 'channel' and 'apps' though which you can connect your Netflix or HuluPlus account. Now if you don't have one (or both) of these accounts you will be severely limited as to how useful this box will be for you. There are other apps that don't require a paid account. Pandora radio being my favorite. This particular model also comes with the game Angry Birds.....which looks amazing on a 42 inch TV.
It has a USB port to view pictures and such through from a flash drive. It also has a Flickr and Picasa app to access your albums on there. It gets the internet via Wi-Fi or Ethernet cable and connects to your TV via AV cables or HDMI. Our Wi-Fi router is down the hall and in a room away from the living room and we had to position the box facing the door way to get a good enough signal to download the software update. The box is no bigger than my phone and takes less energy to keep on than a nightlight,hence the fact there's no on/off switch. Overall its a great addition to your TV and perfect if you have Netflix because you don't have cable. It won't replace that computer you were thinking of getting for your TV but it is extremely simple to use and alot of bang for your buck