The world of streaming online video is evolving at a rapid pace. The Roku HD-XR Player is a slick product for getting Internet streaming video to your TV. For a very reasonable cost it can deliver HD-quality movies, TV shows, and a number of other Internet services including Netflix and Amazon Video on Demand directly to your HDTV via a broadband Internet connection.

Roku HD XR – A Wealth of Streaming Connections

With built-in connections for wired Ethernet and wireless 802.11 b,g,n networks, the Roku HD-XR provides a range of options for connecting your television to the Internet. The Roku HD XR player also provides a number of different options for connecting it to your television including: HDMI, composite video, S-video and component video. The HD-XR supports video modes of 720p, 480p and 480i and its flexibility allows you to connect it to just about any television you might own.

The Roku HD-XR player is easy to setup, compact, cost effective, intuitive to use and has a list price of $129. It comes complete with everything you need to get going, although you will also need to have a Netflix account which costs $8.99 per month for a standard streaming video access account. If you are one of the over 12 million current Netflix customers you are all set and you won’t need to pay anything extra.

Roku HD, Netflix, Amazon Video on Demand

After the initial set up you will have access to download over 70,000 titles are that are currently available from Netflix and Amazon Video on Demand pay per view. A growing number are available in HD. The small footprint, lightweight Roku HD-XR allows you to:

Watch streaming movies via Netflix from a rapidly growing collection of over 17,000 titles. Enjoy Amazon Video on Demand’s high quality pay-per-view video, providing immediate access to over 50,000 movies and TV shows priced from 99 cents. Watch full TV series without commercial interruption and without needing multiple DVDs. Access the Pandora free Internet radio service that plays music personalized to your tastes. Access over a dozen other free channels through the Roku Channel Store. Pay the same rate regardless of how many Netflix movies or television episodes you watch. Watch live and archived baseball games from around the country with your MLB.TV premium subscription. Access all these features using an intuitive, easy to use on screen interface. Potentially get rid of costly cable or satellite TV movie channels. Never have to go to a video rental store or pay late fees again. Ever.

The size of the Roku HD-XR hides its true power. This streaming video device weighs only 11 ounces and measures only 5 x 5 x 1.75 inches. You can carry the small, portable Roku HD player to other rooms of your home and connect to other televisions as the device can be moved from one TV to another. Given the Roku HD-XR’s portability you might even take it to a friend’s house and use it there as long as they have a high speed broadband Internet connection.

The Roku HD-XR features a straightforward interface and a simple remote control that doesn’t require you to decipher numerous complex buttons. It is easy to see why the Roku Player is Netflix members’ #1 Rated Streaming Device and why the Wall Street Journal, CNET, WIRED, Amazon users and others have given the Roku player overwhelmingly positive reviews.

There are also a growing number of additional free channels that you can access with your Roku HD-XR player. These include:

Flickr.com , where you can browse your own photos and public photos as well.

, where you can browse your own photos and public photos as well. Facebook Photos, to view Facebook photo albums, as well as friends’ photos.

Photos, to view Facebook photo albums, as well as friends’ photos. SmugMug.com , to view your online albums as well as popular content from SmugMug.

, to view your online albums as well as popular content from SmugMug. Additional free services including: MediaFly.com, Blip.tv, Twit.tv, Revision3.com, FrameChannel.com, DreamTV.com and Highwaygirl.com.

The Roku also provides access to a paid service named MobileTribe that allows you to enjoy online social networking from your TV. MobileTribe helps you stay in sync with your online communities with a single, low cost application. Easily access your existing accounts on Facebook, MySpace, Orkut, Yahoo!, Flickr, Picasa, Google and YouTube, all from your TV.

The Roku is not the only device that allows you to stream video from Netflix and Amazon to your TV. However there is no other device that compares to the features, cost, simplicity, small size, light weight, and ease of use of the Roku. If you are interested in access to streaming video content this is a device well worth checking out.