Editors' Note: This version of the Roku 2 has been replaced. A full review of the most current 2015 Roku 2 can be found here.

Sometimes a device gets even better when it loses a few frills, especially if it becomes even more affordable in the bargain. The Roku 3 stood as our Editors' Choice media hub because of its low price, huge selection of online services and channels, an intuitive menu system, and the option to listen to what you're watching through a headphone jack on the remote control. The Roku 2 keeps all of these handy features and still supports full 1080p HD. It only loses the motion-sensing remote control for games and an Ethernet port, neither of which are must-have features. And at $79.99 (direct) it's $20 less expensive, making it our new Editors' Choice. 

Design
Almost physically identical to the Roku 3, the Roku 2 is a small, square, black plastic puck measuring 3.7 inches on each side and standing 1.2 inches tall. It weighs just 3.5 ounces, so particularly heavy HDMI cables can potentially throw the little player off-balance and lift it up. It has no buttons and only one indicator light on the front. The back panel only holds HDMI and composite outputs and the power connector. The lower price tag and composite video output come at the cost of an Ethernet connector; you need to use the Roku 2's integrated dual-band (802.11a/b/g/n) Wi-Fi to take it online.

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