Hold up. Stop the presses. We need to make a correction to Scott Wasser's upcoming review of the Roku Smart Soundbar before it even goes live (look for that next week). One of Scott's only beefs was that the Smart Soundbar didn't support surround sound expandability by way of wireless speakers, the way so many soundbars do. But Roku just announced today that this caveat is no longer valid.
Read on for full details from the press release below:
Roku, Inc. (Nasdaq: ROKU) today announced a Roku OS software update that will enable surround sound expansion of its Roku Smart Soundbars, making it easy for its customers to use Roku TV Wireless Speakers to expand their systems with room-filling multichannel sound for TV, movies and music. Walmart will also be expanding their onn. Roku surround system with the addition of onn. Roku Wireless Surround Speakers, expected on Walmart shelves and Walmart.com in February.
"We want to simplify home theater the same way we simplified streaming and we're taking a big step towards that vision by expanding our Roku Smart Soundbars to support surround sound capabilities," said Mark Ely, Vice President, Retail Product Strategy at Roku. "We want customers to be able to expand their system over time without having to spend a lot of money or run wires throughout the home. The Roku Smart Soundbar is an incredible two-in-one device that adds exceptional sound and powerful streaming to a TV and when Roku TV Wireless Speakers and a Roku Wireless Subwoofer are paired with the Smart Soundbar you get truly immersive surround sound without breaking the bank."
"Customers are responding well to our onn. brand, which includes a Roku Smart Soundbar and subwoofer, because they love the quality and value of onn. products," says Ryan Peterson, vice president of consumer electronics for Walmart. "Roku is known for their quality and affordability as well, and we're looking forward to offering our customers a premium surround sound experience with the new onn. Roku Wireless Surround Speakers to add to their onn. Roku Smart Soundbar."
Roku Surround Sound
The Roku Smart Soundbar offers premium sound quality with crisp dialogue and dynamic bass, an easy-to-use 4K and HDR Roku streaming player built in, simple set up and a remote with TV power and volume buttons. With the Roku Wireless Subwoofer, adding heart-pounding bass to entertainment is easy and now Roku TV Wireless Speakers, or the new onn. Roku Wireless Surround Speakers, can be placed behind the sofa or in the back of a room to provide consumers with immersive multi-directional sound.
Roku Smart Soundbars support Dolby Audio from streaming channels like the Apple TV app, Disney+ and more, as well as any input source. Even stereo content will be more immersive when adding rear speakers as Roku sends sound to all speakers.
Roku audio devices are built with expandability in mind so consumers can add to their home entertainment system over time. The devices can be set up in a matter of minutes by simply plugging them into power, pairing them to each other via very easy to understand menus and completing a quick sound check. Traditionally home theater can be hard to set up, but Roku aims to simplify home theater for consumers by making high quality products that provide access to endless entertainment, offer premium audio, connect to each other wirelessly and are all controlled by one remote.
Availability
Roku Surround Sound capability will be available as a Roku OS software update for all Roku Smart Soundbars and will begin rolling out to devices in February.
The onn. Roku Wireless Surround Speakers will be available for $149 in Walmart stores and online at Walmart.com mid-February to pair to the onn. Roku Smart Soundbar and onn. Roku Wireless Subwoofer.
Additional Resources
• Visit the Roku website for additional details.
• Why All AV Enthusiasts Should Be Upset About Roku Losing Twitch at HomeTheaterReview.com.
• Roku Announces New OS 9.2 and Updated Player Lineup at HomeTheaterReview.com.
• at HomeTheaterReview.com.