Why Do Streaming Devices Become Outdated?

How-To Geek

By Corbin Davenport

Published Aug 24, 2023

Why do old Roku Streaming Sticks, Apple TV boxes, or other players eventually stop working?

Corbin Davenport / How-To Geek

Streaming devices become non-functional over time due to outdated hardware and software. Updates end, applications and services move on to newer platforms that don't work on old devices.
New media codecs require hardware-level decoding for optimal performance. Devices without hardware decoding capabilities rely on software decoding, which increases CPU or GPU usage and affects battery life.
Streaming devices can stop working due to broken networking, such as expired certificates or outdated TLS components. Other factors include demanding apps, offline servers, dropped dependencies, and company shutdowns.