There aren’t many devices that have a through line going back nearly a decade. But the Roku Ultra is one of them. And eight years after its debut (its lineage really goes back much farther than that, though), we have a new Roku Ultra for 2024, some three years after its last update.
On paper, this appears to be a fairly typical Roku rollout, with the workhorse streaming device seeing iterative updates across the board. Faster processor. Faster app launches. Better wireless networking. Improved remote control. And improved compatibility with Roku’s own budding smart home accessories lineup.
And, of course, there are all the superlatives you’ve come to expect from any company’s launch. Best. Fastest. Unmatched. Says Roku itself in its blog post announcing the new streamer: “We’ve developed a device that has it all. Our new 2024 Roku Ultra is our most powerful player to date, a culmination of years of listening to our customer feedback and leveraging our streaming expertise.”
There’s no denying that — it’s basically what Roku has done with every device every couple years. Slow and steady improvements to capitalize on a consumer base that just wants something that works, and doesn’t want to pay a whole lot for it. And on that front, the new Roku Ultra has a retail price of $99, which puts it right in line with the new Google TV Streamer, and a good bit below the Apple TV 4K, which we still consider to be the best streaming device you can buy.
Roku says the new device has a quad-core processor that is “purpose-built for cinematic streaming,” though, presumably, you can also stream things that are not cinematic. It supports Dolby Vision and HDR10+ (no word yet on other standards like HLG), as well as Dolby Atmos for audio. And Roku says it’s “30% faster than other Roku players,” but that’s probably a bad comparison given that it’s supposed to be better than every other Roku player. But it does say that “content loads quicker, navigation is more fluid, and streaming feels snappier.”
Arguably as important is the updated networking stack. The new Roku Ultra supports Wi-Fi 6, or 802.11ax. How much of a difference that makes will depend on your home network and ISP, of course, but it’s good to see the hardware keeping relatively close to the bleeding edge.
And this new Roku Ultra comes with the second-edition Roku Voice Remote Pro — the one with USB-C recharging and one-button lost remote finder capability, along with backlit buttons.
The new Roku Ultra is available now from Roku and will hit other retailers in the coming weeks.
Instagram is making its way to yet another screen, and this time, Apple TV is getting a taste of the Reels rabbit hole. The company has launched a dedicated Instagram app for Apple TV, bringing Reels, longer videos, and live shows to the big screen. So, if watching one quick clip on a phone somehow turns into an hour of scrolling, there's now a much larger screen for that.
Instagram brings Reels and more to Apple TV
Audio-Technica, a brand well known for making some of the best studio and professional headphones on the market, has just come out with the ATH-AWX7000, which the company itself claims to be its "finest headphones ever." The new flagship closed-back headphone has debuted at an eye-watering price of $3,799. It combines hand-finished Japanese woodwork with a newly developed 58mm driver.
The earcups are made from Kiso cypress, a prized wood historically used for Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples. Each housing is finished by hand with traditional Echizen lacquer, which brings out the grain and is expected to darken over time. The frame and sliders are finished in a deep navy kachi-iro shade traditionally associated with samurai.
This post is brought to you in paid partnership with Best Buy.
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