While they both can stream an endless selection of shows and movies, it's all their other features you'll want to consider before you buy.

If you pit the two streaming giants head-to-head, which comes out on top? Google has its search and personalization prowess. Roku has its Swiss-like brand neutrality. Both are available preinstalled in TVs, projectors and have standalone streaming devices. Both have external hardware to add their flavor of streaming to any display with HDMI. 

There are actually some significant differences between the services. So which do you choose? Let’s take a look at the different hardware, their interfaces, as well as other, less obvious aspects like smart home compatibility and which will sell your personal data (spoiler: both). For the most part, this guide looks at the streaming device hardware, although aspects like the interface, app availability and so on, will be the same on TVs and projectors that come with Google TV or Roku preinstalled.

Both Google TV and Roku are the operating systems for a wide variety of TVs and projectors. Given how easy and inexpensive streaming devices are, the included streaming service shouldn’t be a huge factor in your purchasing decision.

On the streaming device side, there’s only one Google option: The Google TV Streamer for $100. 1 output, Wi-Fi, Ethernet and can output 4K HDR, including Dolby Vision, as well as Dolby Atmos. It’s powered via USB. There’s a button on the back that helps you find the remote, which is convenient.

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