NEW Roku 2 and 3 With Voice Search and More Speedy.

[afterlife2]

I think I'm going for the Roku 2. Anyone got it yet? Came out last month

Roku 3 refreshed with voice search, but the new Roku 2 is an even better buy
Aside from the remote, Roku 2 and 3 are now identical

• By Chris Welch
• on April 6, 2015 03:01 am
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• @chriswelch
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  Roku is refreshing its very successful line of set-top boxes today. The new players have already appeared a bit prematurely at retailers in recent days, but today they're official. First up, the flagship Roku 3 is gaining voice search, which should put it on better footing against Amazon's Fire TV box.
  
  It's basically what you'd expect; hit the dedicated voice search button on Roku 3's new remote, and speak out the name of a movie, show, actor, or director you're looking for. Results come up instantly, and in a brief demo, the Roku proved very accurate at understanding a spoken name or film title. As usual, you can click through and Roku's software will tell you where you can watch a specified movie or show based on which video services you currently subscribe to. You can initiate a voice search from anywhere (and at any time), though if you do so mid-movie, you'll briefly be taken out of Netflix or whatever app you were watching to see your results. The "new" Roku 3 retains its $99 price point.
  
  
  
  
  Another new software feature being introduced today, the Roku Feed, aims to give you a heads up whenever movies in theaters right now eventually make their way to on-demand services including Amazon Instant Video, Vudu, Netflix, and others. Add a film like Furious 7 or The Divergent Series: Insurgent to your feed, and Roku will automatically notify you the moment it's available to stream somewhere.
  
  Follow movies from the theater to your favorite streaming services
  
  This "Movies Coming Soon" feature is just the beginning of Roku Feed, so it should be interesting to see where else the company takes it. My request would be for the Roku to present users with its own list of movies and shows leaving Netflix and Amazon soon, but we're not there yet. For now, we've still got you covered there.
  
  
  
  
  But the best announcement today is most definitely the new Roku 2. Roku's middle-of-the-line media streamer isn't really so "middle" anymore. It's been upgraded with the same hardware specs and speedy performance as the Roku 3. The two devices are basically identical now. By going with the Roku 2, you lose out on the 3's fancier voice-capable remote, but since you can also initiate voice search with the Roku smartphone app — also being updated today — that's unlikely to be a deal breaker for most people.
  
  At $69, this much faster Roku 2 is a pretty nice deal when lined up next to the Apple TV and Amazon's set-top box. It's in the same "impulse buy" territory Apple was shooting for with its recent price cut, and I'd probably pick this over Apple's aging box — even if you won't be able to watch HBO Now for a few months. The shortcut buttons that Roku chooses for its remotes change from time to time. On Roku 3, you'll now see Netflix, Amazon, Rdio, and Hulu. On the Roku 2, Sling TV takes Hulu's spot, which should give Dish's internet TV service some nice exposure. Both new players are available starting now. Looking beyond today, the obvious question is when we'll see an even more powerful Roku 4, but the company is keeping quiet on that subject for now.

 

[mr sarnoff]

I have a 2014 Roku 2 I like as I understand it it has a slower SoC than the current Roku 3 or 2 .

TBH it could be a little faster especialy on You Yube using browser HTML mark up language but other than that it's decent on the rest of the decently implemented channels .

 

[afterlife2]

Showtime got added today:
https://www.roku.com/channels#!details/8838/showtime

 

[zieglj01]

Showtime got added today:
https://www.roku.com/channels#!details/8838/showtime

Well you get 30 days free - then you pay per month - time will tell
if it is worth it - if you drop cable, then you still get to pay money.

 

[afterlife2]

For $11 a month not too bad.

 

[Cos]

Until Roku supports 3D content and streams in 4k, I will stick with existing Roku 3, no complaints on speed

 

[zieglj01]

Until Roku supports 3D content and streams in 4k, I will stick with existing Roku 3, no complaints on speed

My Fire TV and Roku stick are fine for me - my Roku 3 bit the dust.

 

[afterlife2]

My Fire TV and Roku stick are fine for me - my Roku 3 bit the dust.

Did you try to get it repaired?
Yeah Cos I think I'll wait too for 3D support too. It's hard to believe that have not done it since Netflix/Amazon Prime have 3D titles.

 

[zieglj01]

Did you try to get it repaired?

Since I had the Roku stick - and that they are not known to be easy to deal
with, I did not try to have it repaired.

I like Amazon Fire - since I can stream all My music from Amazon music,
and even build my own playlist.

I use both since neither one has everything.

 

[Cos]

Amazon Music is on Roku 3 , though I haven't tried it yet.

 

[zieglj01]

Amazon Music is on Roku 3 , though I haven't tried it yet.

Yes, you can play your Amazon music on the Roku 3.

 

[Hobbit]

I wish I held out for these new roku's instead of adding a fire tv. This thing just shoves amazon down your throat. At least I found the Fired TV app that give you a personal screen with your personal apps only (kind of like the default screen on the roku) so you can avoid all the amazon crapola.

It's this bad; I wanted to put the fire tv remote app on my droid. What a nightmare. I had to download one amazon shopping app from the play store, then download amazon's app store from the shopping store, then finally download the app which they charge you for without a free trial only to find out it's not even that good. THEN, a few days later I removed amazon app store from my phone.... only to find out later the mouse app won't run unless amazons app store is there! REALLY! I mean REALLY!

Did I mention the fire tv search engine really sucks too compared to the roku? It only brings up things you can buy from amazon (go figure)..... With all these "features" on the fire tv you'd think they'd be selling it for half the price of the roku cause they'll make up the difference quickly selling/renting you their apps, movies and music. Or at least giving it away for free to amazon prime users.

Yes the fire tv is faster than the original roku 3. Though the kids and wife can't tell the difference...