Since Roku 4 officially made it to the retail markets in October last year, it has set the bar in video streaming. After all, its predecessor device, the Roku 3, is considered as the gold standard in video streaming.
True to its hype, the Roku 4 did come out late last year as the hands-down best video streaming system that money can buy as it offered more options compared to its closest competitors in the Apple TV and the Amazon Firestick.
Roku 4 also works best with a 4K TV, which is already considered as Ultra HD, and with its quad-core processor, it has an amazing OS and capable of streaming 4K videos at 60 frames per second with hardly any problem at all.
For its price of $129.99, Roku 4 is faster, more well-rounded and more open than any product that Roku has released in recent years. It borrowed from the great features of its predecessors and adding more to its legacy in equal measure.
The Roku 4 is also the most egalitarian streaming set-top box there is in the market today. It does not promote streaming services, it actually allows the consumers a freedom of choice. It does not care if the user picks Netflix over Amazon, or Vudu over Hulu because it is not selling a subscription.
Did not see it coming
With its closest competition being kept at bay, Roku actually did the almost unthinkable by coming up with a new Roku Streaming Stick, which the company announced recently. The new stick is thinner and longer compared to the first one.
The surprising thing is that the new streaming stick, which is an update from its first version released several years ago, came out as good as the other high-priced comparable products including the Roku 4.
What’s more, the device costs only $50, which is very competitive compared to the price of the Roku 4 which retails for $130.
Roku may not have seen it coming but its new Streaming Stick has and continues to eat up on the market of the Roku 4. Only a handful of technical-savvy people could actually notice the difference because the Roku Streaming Stick outputs in HD while the Roku 4 is capable of streaming 4K videos, which is a whole lot brighter and crisper.
In addition to the new Roku Streaming Stick, the company has also offered a software update for various devices which it calls as the Roku OS 7.1. The new software makes the process of looking for things to watch a lot easier since Roku becomes compatible with several channels, cites Neurogadget.
While Roku 4 is still superior in a lot of ways compared to the new Roku Streaming Stick, the latter also has one big advantage in the use of the mobile app. Doing so would help users enjoy private listening option which the Roku 4 does not have.
The Roku Streaming Stick is also very handy especially if its size is considered and as far as price is concerned, it is considered a great buy and investment too.
A new streaming player
Roku has recently announced a brand new streaming player called the Roku SE. However, the company said that the SE version will be around for a limited time only because it has made the device in limited quantities only, reports Albany Daily Star.
The new media streaming player will sell through Amazon, Best Buy, Walmart, and Kohls, as well as through Roku’s own website for a recommended price of only $49.99.
Reports have it that the price of the device would be sold at an all-time low of $25 come Black Friday although that is still months away and it is still uncertain if there will be more quantities left when Black Friday arrives.
The Roku SE actually looks pretty much like the other Roku players with rounded corners and slick back finish. It will support up to 1080-pixel video streaming. It will work with HDMI and analog TVs, and will run the operating system Roku OS 7, which shall provide access to Roku’s nearly 3,000 streaming channels offering 300,000 movies and TV episodes.