It’s getting a lot more expensive to be a streaming fan. Streaming service costs are up across the board, but so are prices for the devices that beam your favorite shows to the TV.
Roku is raising prices on some of its flagship streaming hardware by 50%.
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The high-end Roku Ultra sees one of the biggest price hikes, up $100 to $150.
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The Roku Streaming Stick gets a 33% increase from $30 to $40.
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The Roku Streaming Stick Plus now costs $60, up from $40.
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The Roku Streaming Stick 4K goes from $50 to $80
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The Roku Streambar SE jumped from $100 to $150.
In an interview with The Desk, Roku chalked up the increase to RAM supply issues caused by the AI boom, which is currently driving up prices across consumer electronics, from consoles to smartphones to PCs.
The good news is that Roku is currently running a sale in its official store, where consumers can pick up the devices at their original prices. However, you’ll be limited to just three sticks or set-top boxes per transaction.
You can also buy Roku hardware from third-party retailers like Amazon and Best Buy, both of which are currently showing the lower, original pricing. Some devices are even cheaper.
The news comes after Apple raised the price of its Apple TV streaming device from $129 to $199, despite not updating it in years. The 128GB version is also now $249, up from $149. The company also cited the RAM crunch as the reason for price increases, which hit almost all of Apple’s non-smartphone products.
As 9to5Google reports, Walmart also doubled the price of its budget Onn 4K Google TV streaming stick last month from $15 to $30. It’s currently out of stock.
Roku has said it tries to keep costs lower by “using less memory and also being more versatile in the types of memory we can use,” CEO Anthony Wood told The Desk in May. “In the TV business, every dollar matters. It’s a hugely price-competitive market.”
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That came before Fox Corporation announced in June that it would acquire Roku for $22 billion, combining Fox’s TV portfolio and Tubi streaming service with Roku’s streaming devices.
Most new TVs these days are internet-connected and include an app interface from Amazon, Google, Roku, or other providers. Among our picks for the best budget TVs is Roku’s Plus Series. But maybe you have an older TV kicking around in the den or beach house, but you want to stream Netflix or HBO Max on the big screen. That’s where a media streamer like Roku or Amazon’s Fire TV lineup comes in. Plug it in, connect to Wi-Fi, and you’re ready to go.
Our top picks include several Fire TVs, but the Roku Streaming Stick Plus is our choice for the most user-friendly streamer. As PCMag’s Will Greenwald notes, it’s a power-efficient device that can reliably run from your TV’s USB port without also being plugged into a wall adapter, offering a “capable device that offers a simple and accessible way to stream media.”
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I’ve been a PC gamer since you had to install games from multiple CD-ROMs by hand. As a reporter, I’m passionate about the intersection of tech and human lives. I’ve covered everything from crypto scandals to the art world, as well as conspiracy theories, UK politics, and Russia and foreign affairs.
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