In its review of the Roku 3 set-top box, Ars Technica remarks that the company has had success thus far due to its content partnerships and overall high standards for what should be offered in a streaming box, providing customers with a variety of choices. With the $99.99 Roku 3, the company offers an affordable, feature-filled streaming device, which Roku describes as the “most powerful, responsive streaming box” it has built so far.

“It features an ARM-based processor and other components all wrapped inside a shiny, hockey-puck shaped chassis,” reports Ars Technica. “At 3.5 × 3.5 × 1 inches, it’s a bit smaller than the second- and third-generation Apple TV and Western Digital’s Play set-top box. It also feels a bit like a paperweight, but that helps keep the puck from sliding around in your entertainment center.”

On the back side, the Roku 3 features an Ethernet port, an HDMI port, a microSD slot and a power plug. ‘The Roku 3 no longer features any RCA outputs as past iterations have, so users with older televisions will want to check out the older versions of the Roku,” notes the article.

According to the Roku site, the new streaming player has access to 750+ entertainment channels, features built-in wireless and motion control for games, and plays 720p and 1080p HD video.

The user interface is much improved, making it more user friendly and easy to navigate, suggests the Ars Technica review. A nice new feature is its ability to search for content across platforms. For example, “say you’re aching to watch the BBC’s ‘Sherlock’: simply type the name into the search option on the Home page and Roku will retrieve the different services that are streaming it — a helpful option for users who might have subscriptions to Netflix, Hulu Plus, and even Amazon Instant Video but aren’t sure which service has the most episodes to offer.”

The writer mentions the Roku app as the “favorite thing about this set-top box,” writing that, “as an Android user, I feel like I don’t always get first pick of the litter when it comes to app interfaces and features. Compared to the WDTV Android app for its streaming devices, the Roku app is a real winner. It’s easy to use, immediately responsive, and the keyboard works properly within other applications. It displays all of your downloaded channels at a glance, allows you to launch a channel by speaking its name, downloads other apps, and pushes content from your smartphone to the Roku itself, though it only supports photos and music.”