It didn’t seem that long ago that there were only four channels on the TV to choose from, you only got to watch whatever was on at the time, adverts and all, and at the end of the night you only had Teletext and Ceefax for entertainment, these days there are so many ways to watch TV and Films, it seems there is an infinite amount of entertainment just a buttons press away. To get you started the Roku Express is a low-cost place to start your streaming experience or simply use it for a secondary TV, in the box you get the Roku Express streaming player, remote, two AAA batteries, power adapter with Micro USB cable and High Speed HDMI Cable. The stick comes with an easy step-by-step setup guide to get going suitable for beginners, just connect to the internet and start streaming and the remote includes quick launch buttons.  With over 4,500 channels available in the UK (and more being added all the time), the Roku platform offers diverse content that fits everyone’s needs and wants. It’s your morning yoga routine, the perfect dance party playlist, the best brunch recipe, a celebration of your faith or learning a language, there’s something for everyone. Even your dog has a channel. The wide selection of free, subscription and rental channels brings choice into the equation (e.g. subscribe to a channel for a variety of content, rent certain types of content or just browse the free ones). You can also personalise your screen by picking only the channels that interest you and manage your interface via the Roku app. The types of channels include:

•             Subscription services, e.g. Netflix, NOW TV, Amazon Video, hayu

•             Rental Services, e.g. Google Play Movies & TV, Sky Store (Sky Cinema), Rakuten TV

•             Catch-up TV, e.g. BBC iPlayer, ITV Hub, All 4, Demand 5

•             Music, e.g. Deezer, VEVO, TuneIn Radio

•             Live TV, e.g. TV Player (BBC One, ITV, Channel 4, Dave)

•             News, e.g. Sky News, BBC News, Aljazeera, Bloomberg, Euronews, Reuters TV

•             Sports, e.g. BBC Sport, Redbull TV, WWE, NOW TV (Sky Sports)

•             Video, e.g. YouTube, Vimeo.

The next generation Roku Express has 5X more power to stream and involves no extra monthly fees, you can search across channels and access the free Roku mobile app which then allows you to control your Roku player, search directly with your keyboard. This also allows you to enjoy private listening by using your headphones to prevent disturbing others and you can even add up to three friends who can join in on their phones too. You can also cast to TV, see your photos, videos, and music on your big screen, the technical specification include 802.11 (b/g/n compatible) with WEP, WPA, and WPA2 support, compatible with HD TVs up to 1080p (1920 x 1080) with up-scaling from 720p, it has a micro USB for power and HDMI 1.4, the streaming player includes an IR receiver (compatible with various universal remotes) and measures up at 1.4 x 3.3 x 0.7 inches. The Roku Express is well made and easy to use, the instant access keys are useful for quick navigation but the remote could be smaller and the Roku unit is also rather large, however it works exactly as it should and get even the most technophobic person streaming in no time. RRP £29.99

Current Cheapest Price

4 out of 5

Pros

Easy set

No extra fees

Plug in and play

Quick launch remote

Free Roku mobile app

Cons

Large unit and remote