Right around this time last year, Roku announced a new product that made it easy upgrade the pitiful speakers built into your TV with its new plug-and-play Wireless Speakers. The only catch? Your TV needed to be a Roku TV.
The company has removed that caveat with its new Smart Soundbar. You can use it with any TV, smart or not. That's because the Roku Smart Soundbar actually has the rough equivalent of a Roku Ultra--the company's top 4K media streamer--built in. At the same time, the company announced that it will be introducing a new wireless subwoofer, as well. The sub, interestingly enough, can quickly connect with the new Smart Soundbar or Roku's existing Wireless Speakers, and will automatically adjust its crossover settings depending upon which device it's paired with.
Read on for full details directly from Roku:
Roku, Inc. (NASDAQ: ROKU) today announced it is expanding its portfolio of premium audio products to include the new Roku Smart Soundbar and Roku Wireless Subwoofer. Specifically designed for how people watch television, the Roku Smart Soundbar is an incredibly easy way to add premium sound and powerful movie, TV and music streaming to any TV with an HDMI input. The optional Roku Wireless Subwoofer expands the Roku Smart Soundbar with even deeper, richer bass. Customers can pre-order both products from Roku.com starting today for $179.99 MSRP each.
"We've been very successful in delivering best-in-class streaming experiences to our customers and we're constantly innovating in order to deliver on our promise of making TV better," said Mark Ely, Vice President, Players and Whole Home Product Management at Roku. "The Roku Smart Soundbar is a great value and makes it easier than ever to add incredible sound and powerful streaming to any TV. In addition, if you want heart-pounding bass you can easily add that too."
Roku Smart Soundbar
Meticulously engineered to deliver room-filling sound and powerful streaming in brilliant HD, 4K UHD and HDR, the Roku Smart Soundbar is powered by the Roku OS. The Roku Smart Soundbar reduces clutter while featuring simple set up, an easy-to-use home screen while providing access to 500,000+ movies and TV episodes and millions of songs. Four premium drivers offer distinctive clarity, immersive depth and dynamic bass response. Advanced volume modes enable consumers to reach for the remote less often. Automatic Volume Leveling offers uniform audio level across various types of content, including quieting loud commercials. Night mode lowers the volume for louder scenes and boosts it for quieter ones. Speech Clarity boosts voice frequencies for address intelligibility for crisp, clear dialogue. Automatic software updates will deliver new capabilities over time. Additional features include:
Roku Wireless Subwoofer
The Roku Wireless Subwoofer is optional adding powerful bass and a thunderous response to a Roku Smart Soundbar without needing to run a separate audio cable. Featuring an easy wireless setup, and a sealed cabinet design with a powerful 10-inch driver, the Roku Wireless Subwoofer allows users to expand the premium audio of the Roku Smart Soundbar with for a theater-like experience in the home. Roku TV Wireless Speakers that are connected to Roku TV models will receive a software update in the coming months to add compatibility with the Roku Wireless Subwoofer.
Pricing and Availability
The Roku Smart Soundbar and Roku Wireless Subwoofer are each priced at $179.99 MSRP. Both are available for pre-order at Roku.com starting today and are expected to ship in October. General availability at Best Buy and Roku.com is also expected in October.
For more information on the Roku Smart Soundbar or the Roku Wireless Subwoofer visit Roku.com.
Additional Resources
• Visit the Roku website for additional specs and information.
• Why All AV Enthusiasts Should Be Upset About Roku Losing Twitch at HomeTheaterReview.com.
• One Thing We Don't Talk About When We Talk About Cord-Cutting at HomeTheaterReview.com.
