Roku

Will Roku’s new smart-home gadgets work with HomeKit and Matter?

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Those who use Roku streaming devices will find the new smart-home gear, like the doorbell camera, integrate seamlessly.
Those who use Roku streaming devices will find the new smart-home gear, like the doorbell camera, integrate seamlessly.
Photo: Roku

Roku is best-known for its streaming media devices. But it’s branching out with a whole-home strategy that will see a range of smart-home gadgets, including security cameras, lights and plugs, go on sale next week at Walmart, the company said.

But a report indicates the company isn’t saying yet whether its new gadgets will work with the new Matter smart-home connectivity standard supported by Apple and other companies. It’s designed to let devices from different makers work together on systems like Apple’s HomeKit and others.

Roku’s lack of clarity is a bit odd, given that it’s among the companies supporting Matter, and that might give some would-be purchasers pause.

Roku users can now enjoy Apple Music

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Roku users can now enjoy Apple Music
Add Roku to the list of devices that can play Apple Music.
Photo: Roku

Apple Music is now available on Roku streaming devices. Starting Monday, subscribers to the Apple’s streaming music service can listen on any Roku.

This adds to the list of extensive devices that can play Apple Music.

Awesome, affordable Apple TV alternatives on sale right now

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Awesome, affordable Apple TV alternatives
Get yours from just $19.99.
Photos: Amazon, Roku

You don’t have to splash out on an Apple TV to enjoy Apple TV+ and Apple Music alongside all your other favorite streaming services. They’re now available on a whole host of brilliant third-party devices — many of which are on sale now.

Unlike Apple, the likes of Amazon and Roku are offering big Black Friday discounts that are already live. Here are our picks of the best Apple TV alternatives that you can buy today from just $19.99.

HBO Max plans to fix broken Apple TV app ‘within days’

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HBO Max’s free tier won’t include first-run films
A major overhaul is also on the way.
Photo: WarnerMedia

HBO Max plans to fix its buggy Apple TV app “within days,” while other platforms will see big fixes before the end of the year.

Users have been plagued by issues that affect playback control, subtitles, and general usability. Executives insist they aren’t blind to the problems, and a major overhaul for all platforms is on the way.

Apple TV can’t match Amazon and Roku in popularity

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Apple's new Apple TV 4K with redesigned Siri Remote
It's ahead of Chromecast, though.
Photo: Apple

Apple TV (the hardware, not the streaming service) makes up around 12.5% of set-top boxes in a very fragmented marketplace, according to analysis from Parks Associates.

That lags behind Roku and Amazon’s Fire TV Box, which currently stand neck-and-neck. Nonetheless, Apple TV ranks a few percentage points ahead of Google’s Chromecast. Back in 2017, Chromecast came in ahead of Apple TV. And, as recently as 2018 and 2019, the two remained competitive.

Roku OS update adds AirPlay 2 and HomeKit support to older streamers

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Roku OS update adds AirPlay 2 and HomeKit support to older streamers
Roku got closer to Apple with AirPlay 2 and HomeKit support. Even the new Voice Remote Pro has an Apple connection.
Photo: Roku

The release of Roku OS 10 brings support for Apple’s AirPlay 2 and HomeKit to several more Roku streaming devices and smart TVs. These streaming options were once reserved for pricey settop boxes but are now available on very affordable devices.

Apple TV 3 loses YouTube support, but there is a workaround

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Apple TV Siri Remote
Sad times for third-gen. Apple TV owners.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

YouTube is now officially dead on the third-generation Apple TV. Users who attempt to watch the app will be greeted by an error message that confirms Apple’s aging hardware is no longer supported.

That’s hardly surprising given that the third-generation Apple TV is close to a decade old now. But there is a workaround (sort of) for those who still want to watch their favorite YouTube channels on the big screen.

Roku acquires ill-fated Quibi’s back catalog of shows [Updated]

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Power players Jeffrey Katzenberg and Meg Whitman apparently couldn't save Quibi.
Power players Jeffrey Katzenberg and Meg Whitman ran Quibi.
Photo: Fortune Brainstorm Tech/Flickr CC

Update: The New York Times says the deal has been completed. Quibi’s 75 shows and documentaries will appear from free on the Roku Channel through 2021. The deal last for seven years.

Roku is negotiating to buy the content catalog of ill-fated short form streaming video service Quibi, the Wall Street Journal claims.

Quibi, which made short, episodic shows for watching on your phone, launched in April 2020 and shut down in October, giving it a shelf-life as short as the shows it produced.

Roku players gain AirPlay 2 streaming and HomeKit capabilities

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Roku with Apple AirPlay 2 support — finally!
With AirPlay 2, an iPhone can easily stream video to a large TV. And it’s coming to Roku.
Photo: Apple

Roku players will soon support AirPlay 2, Apple’s wireless video streaming technology. This will allow an iPhone, iPad or Mac user to share content directly to a supported Roku device.

In addition, Roku announced a new iOS app, and upcoming support for Apple’s home automation system.

Apple TV reigns with best picture quality among streaming devices in pandemic’s early days

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Apple TV Siri Remote
Streaming video quality during early 2020 was above par using Apple TV devices.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

While it might be far down the pecking order of best selling streaming boxes, the Apple TV and Apple TV 4K got high marks in the first quarter of this year for best picture quality speed and shortest lag time in starting videos, according to data collected from billions of sensors embedded into video applications.

The results are a clear sign of how well streaming devices and services performed in a period where more people around the world were homebound due to the coronavirus pandemic and turned to watching television en masse.

Apple Watch owners get Roku controls on their wrist

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Roku-Apple-Watch
Leave that phone in your pocket.
Photo: Roku

Roku just debuted a new Apple Watch app that lets you control its streaming devices from your wrist.

You can use the app to launch your favorite Channels and control media playback. You can also use its voice recognition capabilities to search for movies and TV shows.

Apple TV+ is live. Here’s how to sign up.

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AppleTV+
Even Roku can get Apple TV+.
Photo: Roku

Apple TV+ is here, and anyone can test it out for a week for free. After that, the $5-per-month charge will be billed automatically, just like any other Apple subscription you may have. Unless, of course, you get to watch Apple TV+ for free. But we’re getting ahead of ourselves.

Apple’s new TV subscription service is pitched as a rival to Netflix, Amazon Prime and so on. It works on Apple devices. Plus, you can watch Apple TV+ on Samsung TVs, Roku boxes and in pretty much any web browser. Signing up is absurdly easy, but a few tips will help you get the most out of the service.

Apple TV+ is coming to Roku

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AppleTV+
How are Apple Originals looking on your TV?
Photo: Roku

Apple TV+ will be available on Roku boxes when it launches next month.

Roku revealed this morning that the Apple TV app will be available on its platform starting today, allowing users to access their iTunes video library as well as subscribe to Apple TV channels right from their Roku devices.

Apple’s newest services lack ‘depth,’ analysts warn

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Apple TV+ could have 26 million paying subs by 2025; 2.6 million currently
Apple TV+ could have 26 million paying subs by 2025; 2.6 million currently
Photo: Apple

Apple’s newest services don’t deliver the “depth” investors want to see as iPhone sales fall for the Cupertino company.

Some analysts are particularly disappointed with the upcoming Apple TV+ video streaming service. They don’t believe Apple has any hope of competing with Netflix.

Roku CEO explains why Apple TV+ needs Roku support

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Roku
Roku isn't worried about Apple TV+
Photo: Roku

Roku CEO Anthony Wood says Apple’s new Apple TV+ streaming platform is going to be great for his company despite some analysts claiming it could hurt Roku over the long term.

Wood made an appearance on CNBC today talking about the benefits of Apple finally embracing third-party streaming boxes like Roku and Amazon’s FireTV. Even though Apple has hundreds of millions of active iPhones and iPads to push its Apple TV+ service, the way Wood sees it, Apple TV+ needs Roku to be successful.

Apple in talks with Roku to add AirPlay 2

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roku
You won't have to choose between Apple TV and Roku anymore.
Photo: Roku

Apple is closing in on a deal that could bring its AirPlay 2 technology to Roku’s TV set-top boxes.

At CES 2019 Apple revealed that it had partnered with some of the world’s biggest TV manufacturers to add AirPlay 2 to new and some old TVs. Adding support for Roku could bring AirPlay 2 support to other TV manufacturers as well, just in time for Apple’s streaming video service.

AirPlay 2 support could make your Roku way better

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AirPlay 2
Streaming TV from your iPhone could soon be as easy as getting an inexpensive Roku box.
Photo: Apple

iPhone, iPad and Mac should soon easily stream video to Roku boxes if an unconfirmed report is correct. Roku is reportedly talking with Apple about adding AirPlay 2 to its products. 

Apple has recently been working to significantly broaden the availability of its proprietary video and audio protocol.

Roku follows in Apple’s footsteps by removing InfoWars app

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Infowars app
Apple removed the InfoWars app last year.
Photo: Infowars

Streaming service Roku is the latest tech company to follow Apple’s lead in banning right wing conspiracy website InfoWars from its platform.

Apple booted podcasts from the website off its platform back in September, following by banning InfoWars and host Alex Jones from the App Store. These decisions prompted other tech companies such as Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter to follow in its footsteps. Now they have been joined by Roku.

Facebook wants to add a camera to your TV

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Facebook Portal
The Portal is Facebook’s first video calling product.
Photo: Facebook

Facebook is allegedly planning to take on Apple TV and Amazon’s Fire TV with a new set top box of its own.

The social network just debuted its new Portal smart speaker earlier this month and according to a new report its smart TV box could pack some similarly creepy features.

You can now enjoy Roku’s free channel on your iOS devices

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Roku
A new way to watch free movies.
Photo: Roku

Want to give the Roku experience a go, but don’t own a Roku TV streaming device? Today may be your lucky day, since Roku has announced that its free, ad-supported streaming service, the Roku Channel, is now available for people to watch, via the internet, on your smartphone, tablet, or personal computer.

To access the content — which includes plenty of good, albeit slightly older movies like The Matrix trilogy, in addition to other content — you’ll simply need to create a Roku account.

Walmart plans to take on Netflix with its own streaming service

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75% of Netflix users have no plans to jump ship to Apple TV+ (right away)
75% of Netflix users have no plans to jump ship to Apple TV+ (right away)
Photo: Stock Catalog/Flickr CC

Netflix and HBO might be getting some fresh competition soon and we’re not talking about Apple’s growing TV streaming ambitions.

Walmart is supposedly planning to get into the streaming game and it hopes to beat the competition by making the cheapest priced TV streaming service available.

The best Cyber Monday deals of 2017

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Cyber Monday 2017
Grab a bargain today!
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

The holiday season is finally upon us and you know what that means? Killer deals on all the tech gadgets you’ve been lusting after all year.

Cyber Monday deals for 2017 are already setting the internet into a tizzy of anticipation with big discounts on 4K TVs, smart speakers, drones, iPads, smartphones and much more. Cult of Mac will be rounding up the best deals right here so you can spend less time Cyber Monday shopping and get on with life.

Here are the best deals worth checking out:

Roku’s new 4K streamer kills Apple TV on price

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Roku
Roku is dominating the streaming wars.
Photo: Roku

Apple’s plan to dominate the 4K TV streaming market is up against some tough competition from the top company in the game.

Fresh off its IPO, Roku revealed its brand new lineup of streaming dongles today and while they may not pack as much processing power as the new Apple TV 4K, they have one killer feature that will lure in tons of buyers: a cheap price tag.

Roku continues to trounce Apple TV

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apple tv and siri remote
Apple TV can't compete with Roku.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

The gap between Apple TV and Roku continues to widen — only not in Apple’s favor.

According to the latest research data, Apple TV is getting absolutely dominated in the streaming set-top box race. As top rival Roku inches closer toward taking over half the market, Apple TV still struggles to crack into the top three streamers. And the future isn’t looking too bright.