The rivalry is getting a bit intense among the high-end products, so Roku 4 introduces 4K streaming to compete with the bigger brand names like Apple, Google or Amazon.
- Roku has reached 7.5 million active users, streaming 60 hours of content per week
- Roku 4 will have 4K enabled at 60fps, and a 802.11ac WiFi connection
- It will present itself with its own remote controller, though it will also work through the app
- Roku 4 will be available later this month at the price of $130
Roku has presented itself with certain features that brought it a definite advantage on the market. While others focus on creating streaming boxes with certain services, the lesser-known brand has only one thing in mind: universal streaming of videos to your TV. It slithers its way through the competition due to its simple approach.
Their point is to simply help you find the easiest and cheapest way to watch what you want and when you want it. For the most part, it has also blended into the background of the fierce competition between the three big companies that are crowding the market. And it’s getting more vicious. For example, Amazon has recently announced that it will stop selling Google Chromecast and Apple TV.
However, Roku devices will still be available on Amazon.
This means that it’s able to be seen as non-threatening, and this is due to the entirely neutral content of its services. It’s not tied to a specific service platform, and it’s instead promoting universal streaming. According to Apple, this will be a feature their company will update to as well at some point in the future.
Roku has now reached excellent numbers, with 7.5 million active users that reportedly watch 60 hours of content per week. That amounted to 2.5 billion hours streamed just in 2015.
It’s a certain advantage that it’s so easily available, even at Walmart, and remains out of sight of competition. And, as of last year, they have partnered up with TV manufacturers to provide products with the streaming capabilities included.
The Roku 4 will introduce 4K streaming at an exceptional 60 frames per second (FPS). It now sports a quad-core upgraded processor, new optical output for better audio, an updated operating system, and 802.11ac WiFi, which is vital for ultra high-definition streaming. The speedy wireless networking standard is set to provide quickly refreshed videos with beautiful, vibrant colors.
It should be noted that neither Amazon Fire TV nor the new Apple TV can stream 4K videos at 60fps, though TiVo Bolt does have that particular feature enabled.
Roku 4 is thinner and flatter than previous products, with a much more space-convenient design, and a set of new options surrounding ultra high-definition streaming. It has a 4K channel store to provide users with a list of 4K videos available. Along with it, Roku will introduce 4K Spotlight, to collect the best 4K videos available at that moment.
It will also come with a neat remote controller that will be hard to lose. Users could activate a vibrating or ringing option to press on the streaming box, and it would notify them where the remote is. It’s a nice touch, even though the product could be easily controlled through its smartphone app.
All in all, Roku is doing its best to provide high quality content on the ‘low-end’ part of the market. The Roku 4 will cost $129, while the previous generations will see a cut in their prices.
Image source: roku.com
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