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One of the best bargains in home video will get a little better Wednesday, as Roku unveils a pared-down redesign of its streaming-video set-top boxes, complete with HD streaming for all three models — including the cheapest, $59 version — along with access to Netflix’s collection of "Watch Instantly" movies and TV shows.

Set to go on sale Wednesday, the revamped Roku box is still about 5 inches square, but it replaces the 1.75-inch high, 11-ounce shell with a slimmer, lighter design that’s now just an inch or so high with a weight of about 7.3 ounces — still not as tiny as the new, 4-inch-square Apple TV but a refreshing change from the older, boxier Roku.

Meanwhile, Roku has jettisoned the old, standard-def-only Roku SD and dropped the price of its now lowest-end Roku HD by $10, to $59. As with the original Roku HD, this new version is capable of handling 720p HD playback from the likes of Netflix and Amazon On Demand, and it also comes with an Ethernet port, Wi-Fi, and HDMI and composite video outputs.

Pretty nice, bit Roku has also shaved off a couple of features from the revamped HD model, including the optical digital audio port and the component video output. Now, one could argue that component-video and optical audio (a.k.a. Toslink) connections are becoming archaic in the age of HDMI, which can handle both HD video and multi-channel audio simultaneously, but those with older TVs and receivers may beg to differ.

Then again, such users could always set their sights on the new, premium Roku XDS, a $99 version of the Roku box that restores the HD’s missing component-video and optical audio outputs while adding support for dual-band 802.11n (the new, speedier Wi-Fi standard) as well as 1080p video playback — take that,Juicy Couture jackets, Apple TV.

Bear in mind that you’ll only get streaming 1080p video from content providers that support it, such as Vimeo — but not Netflix or Amazon, for now. You’ll also be able to side-load 1080p video files using the built-in USB port, which Roku will activate in October using a downloadable USB playback app.

The Roku XDS will also come with a new remote that adds a pair of new buttons: an "instant replay" control that zips back your program a few seconds, plus an "information" button that gives you quick access to the details on any of Roku’s 75-odd downloadable content channels, including Pandora, MOG, MLB.TV, Facebook Photos, Flickr, UFC, Flixster, Twit.TV, Revision3, and Blip.TV (but not Hulu Plus, or at least not yet).

Last but not least is the middle-of-the-road Roku XD, which is essentially the Roku HD plus 1080p playback, single-band 802.11n Wi-FI support, and the new, "enhanced" remote, all for $79. (The $59 Roku HD comes with a "basic" remote minus the "instant replay" and "info" buttons.)

So, how does the new Roku stack up compared with competitors like the $99 Apple TV and the $129 Sony SNP-N100 (a.k.a., the Netbox)? Well, I haven’t had a chance to properly review each device, but here are a few quick points to consider: Both the Sony and Roku boxes handle 1080p video, versus the 720p-only Apple TV, and they also both support channels from a variety of third parties (Roku has its 75 content channels, while Sony has about 35, including Hulu Plus). For now, the only third-party "channels" on the Apple TV are Netflix, YouTube,BBC, and Flickr.

But Apple TV also lets you access video, music, and snapshots on local PCs and Macs via the new "AirPlay" feature on iTunes (iPhones and iPads will also be supported soon), while the Sony Netbox will tap into local PCs that support the DLNA media-sharing standard. On the other hand, not even the high-end Roku box is capable of streaming media from your local network (although as I mentioned above, side-loading media via USB will soon be an option for the XDS). Food for thought.

Got any questions about the new Roku boxes? Post ‘em if you got ‘em.

— Ben Patterson is a technology writer for Yahoo! News.

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