Everyone has hit on some good points, so here is my 2 cents. I have used a blue ray, an Xbox, a PS3 and a Roku for various streaming and HD content. The best device for streaming via internet or via local media on a PC is by far the Roku. Best device out right now hand down if you don't need to play physical media. It does Plex which is an awesome media organizer/browser and is what I primarily use since most of my content is on my computer. Not to mention it is extremely quick when comparing to the other devices. The best for physical media is probably going to be a blue ray player. It is quiet, easy to use, cheap, and can do a lot of the stuff a Roku can, just not quite as much and sometimes not as well. Many do Plex now BUT in my experience, it is not as robust as the Roku and does not stream media from a PC as well. Sony makes a nice blue ray and it has the same interface as the PS3. Samsung and LG blue rays tend to be junk though, I should know, I used to see what was returned and what wasnt at best buy and 3 out of 5 people would return the samsung and buy the sony. I even did it when I bought one for my parents. The best bang for your buck, or do-it-all device is the PS3. It has a large selection of streaming services(which all work very well), as well as can play blue rays AND games. They even have the super slim model now which cuts down on noise and power consumption by A LOT. Down side is you can not use universal remotes with the PS3 without special adapters.