4K Ultra HD TVs running the Roku TV smart-TV OS could be released in Australia by TCL however the Company will have to produce a special version as the US chipset is primarily designed for analogue TV.
The recently released Roku 4K box has a quad-core ARM
processor however TV manufacturers such as TCL who showed a Roku OS TV at CES
will struggle to release a similar TV in Australia.
ChannelNews understands that Telstra had to significantly
modify their Roku based Telstra TV offering.
Channel has also been told that at least two Chinese house
brand TV distributors are looking offer 4K UHD TV’s with a Roku smart-TV OS
after Best Buy started selling a house brand TV under the Insignia brand.
What is not known is what content Australians would get with
a Roku OS TV as the Telstra TV offering is limited with the primary use being
to access Netflix, Presto and Stan content.
The Best Buy house brand TV’s come in 43-, 50- and 55-inch
screen sizes. They feature quad-core processor, 802.11ac dual-band Wi-Fi to
stream 4K movies, and access to more than 3,000 streaming channels, including
more than 10 4K Ultra HD channels.
Those channels include Amazon Video, Netflix, Plex, YouTube
and UltraFlix.
Many of these CXhannels are not available in Australia.
To enhance 4K viewing, Roku added such features as the 4K
Spotlight Channel to provide instant access to a curated selection of 4K
content from a variety of streaming services in one place.
The TVs also feature a customisable home screen that places
streaming channels alongside sources such as a game console, or Blu-ray player.
A universal search feature helps viewers find the
availability and pricing of movies and TV shows across more than 25 streaming
channels. Search results are ordered with the least expensive results listed
first.
The Roku Feed notifies viewers when content of interest
becomes available through streaming services and at what price.
Roku TV can be controlled by remote control or through the
free Roku mobile app for iOS and Android.
In addition, users can cast video from Netflix and YouTube,
as well as share personal video, photos and music, directly from a mobile
device to the Roku TV.
Roku began licensing its OS in 2014, and in 2015, almost 40
Roku TV models were available from five TV brands, including Haier, Hisense,
Insignia, Sharp and TCL, in sizes ranging from 28 to 65 inches.
