Roku streaming players are fascinating little devices. For a relatively low price, you basically can stream anything and everything. But they’re also a little deceptive in that they tempt you into buying the least expensive one.
Resist that temptation. I’ve used every flavor of Roku streaming player over at least the past half-decade (probably longer, if I’m being honest with myself), and one thing has become abundantly clear: You should resist the urge to be cheap and just go for the best Roku device there is.
And that means you want to go for the Roku Ultra — which just so happens to be on sale for Black Friday.
It’s not that the Roku Ultra usually is all that expensive. It retails at $99, which isn’t bad at all for something you’re likely to use to watch TV every single day. Amortize that over time and it’s already very affordable. But Roku’s Black Friday deal lops another $30 off that regular price (that’s 30% off, for those of you who want some easy math), and now the Roku Ultra is a no-brainer if you’re looking to plug something into your TV to get all the streaming apps you could ever need.
Why Roku Ultra? To put it simply, it’s the best streaming player Roku has to offer. It’s the most powerful, which means channels (which is what Roku calls apps) should have minimal load times. It has the best Wi-Fi you can get in a Roku product, to help minimize any sort of network lag. It’s also the only one with an Ethernet port if you prefer to plug into your network instead. (Which is always better.) And if you have videos or pictures on external storage, the included USB port makes watching them a breeze.
Plus it has all the other specs you want in a high-end streaming device. That means 4K resolution with Dolby Vision and HDR10+ for the best colors and deepest blacks. (Provided that your television also supports HDR.) And comes with a rechargeable remote with private listening — it even comes with earbuds! — and can handle hands-free voice commands.
