Roku unveiled a number of new products today, including the Streambar. This is a tiny little sound bar, which Roku says is a “compact” sound bar, and it costs just $129.
That makes it a really great competitor for something like the Sonos Beam which is priced at $399.
The Streambar comes roughly a year after it announced its first sound bar. It comes in about 14 inches long, and is also shorter, so it can better fit in front of TVs in your living room, or bedroom. Where there may not be much space.
Roku Streambar uses HDMI ARC
Much like the other newer sound bars, the Streambar also uses HDMI ARC for connecting to your TV. The advantage to using HDMI ARC is that your TV can control the sound bar. So you won’t need another remote to control the Streambar.
It does also have support for optical audio, if you happen to have an older TV. There is also Bluetooth and Spotify Connect available for streaming music, while the TV is turned off.
The Streambar also works with the other wireless speakers and subwoofer that Roku unveiled last year. So you can have a cool surround sound setup.
Streambar also has a few software audio features on tap. You can make speech easier to hear, and also level out the volume across the content you watch. This means that the commercials won’t be extra loud, while the actual show you are watching is quiet. Finally, there is a night mode that will allow you to hear the TV without waking up other people in the house.
It is, of course, controlled by the Roku Voice Remote that is included. It also has support for 4K content and HDR. It uses the HDR10 and HLG standards for HDR. For audio, there is support for PCM and Dolby Audio.
Streambar also supports Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant.
When can I buy it?
The Streambar is available today for pre-order and will start shipping in mid-October.
It’ll be available in the US, Canada, Mexico and the UK.
As mentioned, the Roku Streambar is going to cost you $129. Making it one of the cheaper sound bars on the market today, and it is also going to be one of the better sounding ones in this price range.
If you are looking for a decent sound bar that is going to sound good but also offer up Roku compatibility, this is a really good option.