Despite the fact that everyone makes mistakes, this year Roku’s mistake was a major one. They released a very sub-par product, given that they manufacture some of the highest-rated and best-reviewed streaming devices on the market.
Compared to the Amazon Fire TV Stick Lite and Chromecast HD, the 2022 Roku Express does not have the capacity to be competitive in the $30-ish streaming device market that only supports HD.
Roku Express
Pros
- Quick
- Outstanding Roku software
Cons
- Generally the same since 2016
- Remote that doesn’t turn the TV on/off or control the volume
- No power brick included
- HD streaming only
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Remote
The biggest drawback of the 2022 Express is that it hasn’t been updated since 2016, including the remote control.
The Roku remote will not be able to control your television’s power, volume, and input functions. Therefore, you’ll need to use both your TV’s original remote and the Roku remote to use the device.
To get the Roku remote to work, you’ll need to point it at your TV (specifically the Roku Express box).
Glaring Omission
Furthermore, the only noticeable alteration to the 2022 Express is a worrying absent component: there’s no power brick included in the box.
Roku is asking customers to either acquire their own power adapter or connect the device to a TV through USB in order to provide power.
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USB Input
It’s strange that a single device should be taking up two ports on TV, especially since it only has one USB input.
Price
Roku is trying to maintain the Express’s price at $30, but because of inflation, this cost-cutting move has been made; it makes the product appear cheaper than it should be.
This notion is especially evident when comparing the Express to other HD streamers, as Roku apparently hasn’t kept up with the times as we’re now at the end of 2022 rather than 2016 like what they believed.
Shortly after the release of the Roku Express, Google unveiled the $30 Chromecast with Google TV HD streaming device – two products with extremely different features.