New streaming TV boxes for fall

LOS ANGELES - If it's fall, it's time for new streaming media TV boxes.

Apple, Google, Roku, Amazon and Tivo all have just announced new ones that have either just come to stores, or will be there later this month. All are aimed at the growing movement towards cutting the cable cord, and downsizing the TV bill.

So ICYMI, here's a guide to what's new.

In a nutshell, you connect these boxes to your set, and get to watch Internet entertainment from the likes of Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, YouTube and elsewhere.

The boxes range from $35 on the low end with Google's Chromecast to $299 for the entry-level TiVo Bolt, the most full-featured, by far, of the entertainment boxes. However, the Bolt also has a DVR to record TV shows, and charges $12.50 monthly to subscribe. None of the other boxes have a subscription fee.

And in the political theater department, Amazon will no longer sell the streaming media boxes from Google and Apple, due to the heightened competition along the players and the fact that Amazon's Prime entertainment offering of TV shows and movies aren't available on Google or Apple's boxes.

The lineup:

--Roku now can stream ultra high definition 4K video content, with the Roku 4, selling for $129, and that’s up from $99 for the Roku 3. Additionally, the unit has a button to send out an audible alert to find your lost remote control, and has voice search. Roku is taking pre-orders now, and says the unit will be shipped later this month.

--Amazon’s FireTV also got the 4K upgrade, at the same $99 price as last year's model. Amazon promises faster processing power, and an improved remote with voice recognition. The new Fire TV is now available at Amazon.com.

--Google has the bargain of the bunch, with the $35 Chromecast. Unlike the streaming boxes, the Chromecast sticks directly into an HDMI slot on the back of your TVs, and doesn't have a remote control. Instead, you operate it via your smartphone or tablet. The new version, available now, sees little noticeable changes, but promises easier discovery of apps and operations.

--Apple TV: The revised box jumps from $69 to $149 for a box that emphasizes the future--what if the world of apps that we have on phones could be on the TV too? For now, it’s a promise, as there's little sign of TV apps on Apple's website beyond games and viewing rentals on AirBnB. So the big selling point currently on the new Apple TV is navigation through Siri. As in, “Find me movies with George Clooney.”

Apple says the new Apple TV will be available later this month.

--TIVO: Finally, the Bolt, from the company that invented TV recording on a hard drive. Unlike the other boxes, this is a streaming media box that's also a DVR, and hence, that's why it's more pricey. The new unit can show you 4K TV programming, and it also has tools for commercial skipping and a way to watch shows at faster speeds without the sound going haywire on you.

But cord-cutter alert--TiVo says you can buy the unit to potentially replace your current cable box--and that could be a huge savings. I pay nearly $400 yearly to rent two DVRs from Verizon. So even when you add in paying TiVo for DVR services, you could ditch the cable box and save yourself a lot of money with the Bolt.

Follow USA TODAY columnist and Talking Tech host Jefferson Graham on Twitter where he's @jeffersongraham and listen to his daily audio tech reports on iTunes, Stitcher and TuneIn.