Roku XD launches at Best Buy

By Geoff Duncan March 30, 2011

Roku‘s streaming video set-top boxes have been on the market for a while now, but the company just landed a major traditional retail partner: as of today, the Roku XD is now available for sale via leading electronics retailer Best Buy. The move marks the first time Roku has brought a product to retailers directly, although last year Netgear-branded Roku units went on sale at a variety of consumer electronics outlets.

Roku XD with remote — Image used with permission by copyright holder

“Having sold over 1 million Roku players through online sales only up until now, we are incredibly excited to announce our entrance into brick and mortar retail with nationwide availability from the preeminent consumer electronics retailer,” said Roku founder and CEO Anthony Wood, in a statement. “Customers can now grab a Roku off the shelf at Best Buy, take it home and be up and running, enjoying their favorite TV show, movie, music, or sports team in just a matter of minutes.”

The Roku HD can stream video at up to 1080p resolution via HDMI (although it works with standard-definition TVs too) and gives users access to more than 100,000 movies and television shows through the likes of Netflix, Crackle, Amazon Instant Video, and Hulu Plus—although, of course, separate subscriptions are required—long with access to live and on-demand sports from the NBA and NHL. The units can also stream music from services like Pandora, MP3Tunes, MOG, and Rdio, tap into Flickr and Facebook, and more. The devices connects to home networks via 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi, although a wired connection is also an option.

The Roku XD is available through Best Buy stores and BestBuy.com for $79.99.

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