I just took a look at CSI in HD. It looks really good. But not quite as good as broadcast HD. And, of course, it does not sound as good as DD 5.1 that is broadcast. Still, it is a good way to catch episodes that one missed on TV. And it also has the advantage of having no commercial interruptions, so in that way, it is better than watching the show broadcast.
On the setup menu of the Roku box, it mentions that the HD is 720p. There is no option for any other HD format; the only other options are SD in either 4:3 or 16:9. This, however, does not explain why HD content on it looks not as good as broadcast HD for me, because I have a 720p set. My guess is that they are compressing the picture more than what is done with broadcast TV. Still, the HD programing on it is now more detailed than watching a DVD. But it suffers more from compression artifacts than a well made DVD.
I also took a look at Star Trek in HD. It is amazing to see it so clear, which is the impression I got when I saw some episodes broadcast in HD early last year. It is certainly more clear than the DVDs, though, of course, the HD version has new special effects, not the original ones that look shabby even on DVD. But the original effects, of course, are what we all grew up with, and also fit the show better, not being obvious CGI effects, though most of the new special effects are fairly unobtrusive.
The HD programing is a huge step up in picture quality over what was done with the Roku Netflix box last year. And even SD programs look a bit better now that they have upgraded the software. This is making me very glad I have this little box.
If you have a Netflix account, and you have a great internet connection, this is definitely worth the cost of one of these boxes plus the cost of an inexpensive HDMI cable.