Roku Crosses 100 Million Homes – Should You Join Them?

“What streaming device should we get?”

My mother-in-law had always been an Apple TV user. But the touchy remote control had gotten a bit tougher to use over time.

My answer was clear: Roku.

I’ll go into those reasons in a moment, but Roku just crossed a major milestone that’s worthy of celebration. More than 100 million households have chosen Roku as their preferred streaming platform.

The company announced today that 44% of all U.S. TV viewing now occurs through their operating system. That’s 30% higher than second place (Amazon’s Fire TV OS).

Key Reasons Roku Was My Recommendation

If you live in a home with older folks or children, Roku just makes sense. It starts with the remote. The buttons are “grippy,” soft, and easy to press. It’s hard to get lost or confused while navigating with the Roku remote. Each movement is accompanied by a satisfying “Ker-plunk” sound to register you moved to the next thing.

The initial sign-up phase is generally easy. When you install an app, you usually have the option to aim your phone at a QR code on the screen, allowing you to use your phone to sign in, instead of having to plod through the alphabet to type your email address with the remote.

The user interface makes a lot of sense, with large tiles and an interface you can adjust to put your favorite streamers in the order you prefer.

And, of course, there’s the ever-popular Roku Channel, packed with lots of free goodies.

I like that you can use your phone as your remote control if you misplace yours.

And as an iPhone user, the ability to AirPlay to Roku is an underrated bonus.

Best of all, Roku devices are cheap. While I tend to prefer my Apple TV, those devices are far more expensive.

Reasons You May Not Want Roku

If Roku has so much going for it, why wouldn’t you want to choose it?

I find the static visual advertisements to be a bit overwhelming, especially compared to my Apple TV, which gives me a clean menu of icon tiles without the ads.

While the navigation is clean and easy to understand, it’s also very slow when compared to other streaming boxes. I like to move quickly from app to app. Roku intentionally slows that down.

While I chose the recommended Roku stick above for its ability to control my TV’s volume, I’ve been frustrated at how much the volume jumps with every press. Roku makes big leaps up or down, making it sometimes hard to fine-tune the sound. Sometimes it can feel like you’re using a Fisher-Price TV remote – it’s really light.

Still, Roku makes a darn fine product for the price. If you’ve never tried it, now’s the time.

Be sure to follow Streaming Smarter on Facebook, Bluesky, Threads, X, Instagram, and YouTube to discover streaming news, discounts, and tips!