Roku has introduced a new generation of digital media players. This October, the Los Gatos-based digital media products company will roll out five new stunners.
The new lineup replaces earlier models of Roku's set-top box offerings. The streaming stick, which was introduced earlier this year, remains unchallenged.
"Roku stands for streaming innovation and today we're celebrating the biggest player launch in our company's history," says Anthony Wood, Roku founder and CEO. "Whether consumers simply want fast HD streaming via an inexpensive device or are looking for a top-of-the-line player with advanced features such as 4K and HDR, Roku is an easy choice."
The cheapest among the newly announced streaming boxes is the Roku Express, which will retail for $29.99. It only comes with HDMI output, cannot play 4K and does not support HDR either, but plenty have commented that it is a good value for money.
Sitting right next to the Express is the Express+, which comes with a $39.99 price tag. For the extra $10, the Roku Express+ gets an analog output, along with the cables.
The Roku Express and Express+ come with double the processing power of the Roku 1 and a form factor that is 75 percent smaller. Both are viewed as replacements of the 2013 model.
The Roku 2 and Roku 3 players' replacements come in the form of the Premiere and Premiere+, which are the company's upcoming midrange offerings. Both support 4K video playback at 60 fps and are powered by quad-core processors. A cool feature that starts with the Premiere and goes on to grace the higher-end models is the night listening mode, which adjusts the audio and maintains volume consistency.
The Roku Premiere is listed for $79.99 while the Roku Premiere+ is at $99.99. For the additional $20, the Premiere+ gets HDR10 support and an improved remote control with a headphone jack (earpieces included). The Premiere+ also comes with an ethernet port for wired connectivity and a microSD expansion slot for extra storage.
The flagship among the fleet, however, is the Roku Ultra, which will retail for $129.99. It comes with everything that the Premiere+ offers but also has exclusive features, which include a USB port, an optical digital audio out port for connecting to a sound bar or receiver, and a lost remote finder that can be used by pressing a button on the media streaming box. Roku takes the Ultra further by adding voice search to its accompanying remote control.
All of the new Roku streaming media boxes can now be preordered and will be available via the company's retail partners starting Oct. 9, except for the Express+, which can only be bought from Walmart.
