Roku's got streaming player deals for Black Friday Weekend

Roku's announced Black Friday deals to help consumers plan their streaming shopping strategy this holiday season. The company is offering deep discounts on three Roku players that meet a variety of streaming needs: the Roku 3 with voice search for $79.99; the tiny and portable Roku Streaming Stick for $39.99; and the limited-time, limited-quantity Roku SE for $25. These deals will be available online and in store from national retailers.

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Roku unveils Search and Discovery streaming Features; upgraded Roku 3 and Roku 2 players introduced

Roku Inc. today unveiled two new ways for consumers in Canada to find and discover streaming entertainment on their Roku players.

The first feature, ‘Roku Search’ enables consumers to search for movies, TV shows, actors and directors and view pricing and availability details across top streaming channels.

The second feature ‘Roku Feed’ allows consumers to follow entertainment and get automatic updates on pricing and availability.This feature is launching with a focus on ‘Movies Coming Soon’ taking the guessing out of when a box office hit is available for streaming, which services offer the movie or how much it costs.

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Roku adoption moves past Apple TV in the US

Roku has finally surpassed Apple TV in terms of popularity in the US. "The Evolving Market For Streaming Media Devices," by market research firm Parks Associates revealed that "44 percent of households that own at least one streaming device use a Roku," while Apple's avowed hobby, the Apple TV, accounts for "26 per cent of both sales and usage." Both the latest Roku and Apple TV sell for about the same price although there are various Roku models featuring lower prices and limited features.

While not acatually in the same league, Google's Chromecast has been making waves. Being a much cheaper (and functionally limited device) may have added to its popularity. Google and Roku sold an estimated 3.8 million streaming media devices last year, with Apple selling just over 2 million Apple TVs. 

While Apple has pushed modest updates to Apple TV in the US (more limited in Canada) and includes various new services, Roku's business model is to offer as much free content as possible as well as integrate the ability to play casual games with their wireless controller. Many believe that Apple TV is up for a redesign and a feature upgrade, perhaps in tandem with the upcoming iOS 8 release in the fall which could change the game in streaming media device market.

Source: Appleinsider

New Roku 3 update brings search to smartphone

For those Roku users who don’t have the company’s HDMI Streaming Stick, you now have a chance to do searches on your smartphone with the upcoming update for Roku 3 devices. The rollout is expected to wrap up by April 22. So if the update hasn’t come your way, just wait a bit. Those using other models will also be getting the update in the coming weeks. And for the time being, be a bit more patient and suffer through typing with the remote.

Source: Roku Blog