I feel bad for the roku shawn guy. He just had to deal with the bad 7.7 upgrade and now a whole new version. Any bets on how many problems it will introduce. On the side note finally refresh rate switching.

How does the Single Sign On work?  I read somewhere that you just authenticate any one of the supported TVE channels, then the authentication is re-used for all the other channels?  Or will there be a dedicated section in the Roku menu to store the sign-in?

And will there be a choice to use a different account for any particular TVE channel?

The website pictures of the remote for all the new Roku players show the same 3 out of the 4 shortcut buttons (Netflix, Sling, Hulu, then a variable 4th shortcut based on the Roku model).  Will all the new retail SKUs follow this arrangement, or for example will Best Buy's stock have a different pattern?

Incidentally all the 2017 TCL Roku TV's that I bought have the same first 3 remote shortcut buttons (Netflix, Sling, Hulu), plus Starz.  Even though TCL's website pictures show a different arrangement (Netflix, Sling, HBO Now, Amazon).

Anyways, sure wish we could choose the shortcut buttons that we want.  For example I'd like to get the Streaming Stick+ for travel, but its 4th remote shortcut is PS Vue which we don't use.  We'd like DTV Now instead, which is the 4th shortcut on the remote bundled with the regular Streaming Stick.

I hope Roku comes out with a USB to Ethernet adapter like the Chromecast has. I try to keep all of my media devices on a wired connection.

Off Topic I hope the Chromecast comes out with a 24hz option.... It already has a 50hz option.... As I use both devices. Mainly Roku for most video stuff which I'm happy this is coming & Chromecast for YouTube & Spotify free. However I still use it for Go90 and other niche video channels.

Anyways I cannot wait for version 8 on my Roku's.

Also sorry for those that have had issues. Hopefully version 8 resolves them.

On another note I wonder if the HDMI-CEC will be updated to pause & play with the TV remote like you can with most Blu-Ray players....

sterod wrote:

Did the Ultra receive any hardware upgrades to make it worthwhile to purchase over the previous model released earlier this year?

I'm also curious about this. Anyone know the differences between the new 2017 Ultra versus the Ultra released last year?

JPRESCO wrote:

sterod wrote:

Did the Ultra receive any hardware upgrades to make it worthwhile to purchase over the previous model released earlier this year?

I'm also curious about this. Anyone know the differences between the new 2017 Ultra versus the Ultra released last year?

The only thing that jumps out is the new Ultra doesn't have an optical out any longer. That is going to anger some people that don't use HDMI for their audio.

beq wrote:

How does the Single Sign On work?  I read somewhere that you just authenticate any one of the supported TVE channels, then the authentication is re-used for all the other channels?  Or will there be a dedicated section in the Roku menu to store the sign-in?

And will there be a choice to use a different account for any particular TVE channel?

If you sign in once it auto signs you in to other channels. The feature has actually been functional and working in 7.7 (I noticed it auto logging me in a few weeks ago), but I guess they didn't want to officially announce anything until 8.0.

Bacon wrote:

If you sign in once it auto signs you in to other channels. The feature has actually been functional and working in 7.7 (I noticed it auto logging me in a few weeks ago), but I guess they didn't want to officially announce anything until 8.0.

Yes, I am encountering that feature. It's similar to what tvOS (Apple TV) does, but without asking.

^ That's interesting, so it wasn't just channels from the same owner/developer (ex. Disney, Viacom, etc)?

atc98092 wrote:

JPRESCO wrote:

sterod wrote:

Did the Ultra receive any hardware upgrades to make it worthwhile to purchase over the previous model released earlier this year?

I'm also curious about this. Anyone know the differences between the new 2017 Ultra versus the Ultra released last year?

The only thing that jumps out is the new Ultra doesn't have an optical out any longer. That is going to anger some people that don't use HDMI for their audio.

Also curious if any changes to the chipset, wi-fi range, etc.  Our 2016 Ultra had some range issues communicating with its Wi-Fi remote when hidden behind TV.  Another strange example -- I have two old 4200X Roku 3's (bought at different times) hooked up to same TV -- one can use HDMI-CEC to auto change the TV input, the other can't.

beq wrote:

Anyways, sure wish we could choose the shortcut buttons that we want.  For example I'd like to get the Streaming Stick+ for travel, but its 4th remote shortcut is PS Vue which we don't use.  We'd like DTV Now instead, which is the 4th shortcut on the remote bundled with the regular Streaming Stick.

Very likely Roku gets a payment from each streamer for including their button. If they let you choose button functionality, they wouldn't receive this. Probably some models get different buttons depending on how much Netflix or Amazon or HBONow or whoever paid for them. If they didn't pay for universal coverage, the button only shows up on some players.

Personally I think the shortcut buttons are useless and I never use them. One of mine is for Rdio, which is dead.

JPRESCO wrote:

sterod wrote:

Did the Ultra receive any hardware upgrades to make it worthwhile to purchase over the previous model released earlier this year?

I'm also curious about this. Anyone know the differences between the new 2017 Ultra versus the Ultra released last year?

I'm interested also... it appears the new ultra is more or less like the 2016 Premier+ since they deleted the optical port.  Would be interested in knowing if there were any chipset upgrades from last year, or they just renamed the Premier+

don't be a hurry to get 8.0 , i got and the new auto detect video DOES NOT WORK WILL a step back!!!!!!!!!!!!

It also appears they removed the ability of the Ultra to decode DD+ to straight DD. There's a comparison chart on their web site that lists the players and example TVs, and the TVs are the only ones that list DD decoding.

fuzzy wrote:

don't be a hurry to get 8.0 , i got and the new auto detect video DOES NOT WORK WILL a step back!!!!!!!!!!!!

If you are referring to the auto-refresh rate adjust, it works on my Ultra.

fuzzy wrote:

don't be a hurry to get 8.0 , i got and the new auto detect video DOES NOT WORK WILL a step back!!!!!!!!!!!!

Is your TV 120hz or higher? Does it have a 24hz or 96hz mode? Did you look up the model? You 100% positive it can handle 24p mode?

Make sure it's enabled in the advanced Roku system settings?