A few questions on the Roku TVs.

1a) Does the external API will work? - I can only assume it does since you can control it from your tablet or phone. However....
1b) Can we power it on / off, change volume, chance OTA channels, etc? The integration of it into an automated system would be pretty fun to explore, in my opinion.

2) How is the picture quality of either? I'm looking to replace my 42" Panasonic plasma - TC-P42C2, to be exact - that is in my bedroom.

3) Is Roku TV catching on? Should we expect to see more manufacturers, or even more models from Hisense? On Roku's website, we see 40-48-50-55" for Hisense, yet their website only lists the 40".

Thanks, all!

jwjames83 wrote:

1a) Does the external API will work? - I can only assume it does since you can control it from your tablet or phone. However....

Yes.

jwjames83 wrote:

1b) Can we power it on / off, change volume, chance OTA channels, etc? The integration of it into an automated system would be pretty fun to explore, in my opinion.

Not sure about that one, but the remote uses the same keys for changing channels as it does for navigating the Roku UI, so changing OTA channels may be possible.

jwjames83 wrote:

2) How is the picture quality of either? I'm looking to replace my 42" Panasonic plasma - TC-P42C2, to be exact - that is in my bedroom.

I have a 55" TCL, and the picture quality is pretty decent (after adjusting from the factory defaults). Here's another thread that discusses both it and the Hisense: viewtopic.php?f=28&t=78953

jwjames83 wrote:

3) Is Roku TV catching on? Should we expect to see more manufacturers, or even more models from Hisense? On Roku's website, we see 40-48-50-55" for Hisense, yet their website only lists the 40".

Can't say for sure, but this past week at CES, they announced that Haier and Insignia (Best Buy's house brand) would be producing Roku TVs as well. They also announced 4K Roku TV plans: http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2474516,00.asp

Any chance there will be a size smaller then a 32" Roku Tv?

I thought about getting a Roku TV--the interfaces are nice and very simple--but it occurs to me that I'm much, MUCH more likely down the road to want a new Roku than to want a new display. If I tie my display to my Roku like how Roku TVs do things, I figure I'm eventually going to have to either swap out TVs or simply get a standalone Roku when Roku upgrades its feature set.

So just get a TV and a Roku, and when Roku moves on simply buy a new Roku.

I don't understand this reasoning. You describe two choices:

1. Buy a RokuTV. Eventually, a few years from now when you want a better streamer, buy a standalone Roku and connect it to the TV.
2. Buy a non-Roku TV and a standalone Roku player. A few years from now, buy a new standalone Roku and replace the old one.

Why is #2 better than #1, especially when it most likely costs more, and never provides the input integration of the RokuTV?

--Mark

Hi Mark,

some folk are worried that the Roku tv's tech will be outdated in the next few years so they see the investment in integration as a bad idea -- lets say the roku 4 comes out and is totally superior to what is now available -- they want it,they buy it but if they have purchased the roku tv prior to that they see hooking the 4 to the roku tv as being wasteful and redundant even if the roku tv is as good as it is today they feel cheated.Even if an equivilent non-roku tv is the same price or more minus the Roku features.

RokuMarkn wrote:

I don't understand this reasoning. You describe two choices:

1. Buy a RokuTV. Eventually, a few years from now when you want a better streamer, buy a standalone Roku and connect it to the TV.
2. Buy a non-Roku TV and a standalone Roku player. A few years from now, buy a new standalone Roku and replace the old one.

Why is #2 better than #1, especially when it most likely costs more, and never provides the input integration of the RokuTV?

--Mark

I really like the RokuTV and on this point I mostly agree. In fact I kept my 55" TCL after purchasing a replacement because I like it so much. Here's the thing...

If you have an AV Receiver and surround sound, the input integration is a pain in the ass. It doesn't have any way to differentiate the input from your AV receiver and thus change the picture settings accordingly. Other televisions do. This is my biggest pet peeve with the set. I don't want to go switching picture modes every time I watch a Blu or use my HTPC, but I don't want to compromise my sound (by passing it through the television set, which doesn't pass it on untouched even through ARC) to circumvent this. Aside from that, if the set didn't come so very close to being well adjusted as far as picture is concerned (luckily my TCL does), the advanced picture settings are weak and need to be tweaked to include more features. You have simplified things well with the set, and I love it for that, but the techie in me wants a way to switch into "expert" mode and fine tune things that would make it that much better. I believe both of these problems are firmware issues, but will they ever be addressed? You don't need license to pass audio untouched over an hdmi ARC from any input, there is no good reason to down-convert it, at least that I'm aware of, possible hardware limitation?

In any case, there are valid arguments for both choices. I find the RokuTV is great for people who don't care to fiddle with stuff too much and want decent picture quality and awesome ease of use and input integration. Other sets are viable for people who really want to get the most from their television at the cost of user convenience.

I'll be keeping my RokuTV in the bedroom, where I'm not nearly as concerned about fine tuning. I love it for what it excels at, and the compromise for the price is not at all unfair...but a couple little features in calibration and audio handling would push it right over the top into "no brainer" territory.

The critics are too harsh on the picture IMO as well. It has nice contrast for the price bracket, excellent off angle viewing, decent motion handling, and color accuracy could be far worse. It beats my 2 year old LG 47" LCD that had excellent reviews, in almost every aspect (except the mentioned flaws, and color accuracy). That set was closer to $1000. But the market has changed...

RokuMarkn wrote:

I don't understand this reasoning. You describe two choices:

1. Buy a RokuTV. Eventually, a few years from now when you want a better streamer, buy a standalone Roku and connect it to the TV.
2. Buy a non-Roku TV and a standalone Roku player. A few years from now, buy a new standalone Roku and replace the old one.

Why is #2 better than #1, especially when it most likely costs more, and never provides the input integration of the RokuTV?

--Mark

The main reason, or at least one of the main reasons, I believe that #2 is the better option is that it is most probably possible for the Roku part of the TV to fail is such a way as to render the TV inoperative. That is why I think that is always better to have separate devices avoiding the potential problems.

I believe that the adding of internal functions to TVs is a bad idea. TVs are display devices and that is all they should be. That way you retain maximum flexibility with minimum possible of cascade failures.

Also there are always potential problems and complications integrating other external devices, such as audio systems, with a TV that has devices like a Roku built into them and bundling such into TVs makes the TV either more complex or harder to use.

It is like having a car that can act as a boat. It cannot be optimal at either function and therefore it will be less functional than two separate devices can be.

That's an interesting way to look at it, but I have never had a Roku crap out on me. Furthermore, all tvs have firmware that can go bad, no matter how simplistic they are. In some ways having the ability to update and improve that firmware is a bonus. DVD integration and things like that were always iffy in my mind because it seems like build quality took a hit to compensate the extra bits, that isn't the case here, at least not with the TCL. It's built like a tank.

On the other hand, some of those points are the same as I was trying to make.

A car that can act as a boat is a funny comparison that doesn't make any sense to me. A car and a boat are both transportation devices. When you use one car capability the boat capability is unused, and vice-versa.
A Roku Player and a TV are not similar devices that have been made one device. They are disimilar devices that when brought together create an even better device than the two devices connected to each other.
For the TV you get the Roku UI and the firmware updates that add new capabilities (see 6.1 coming out now), for the Roku you get additional codecs (mpeg2 and dolby digital) that are not available without additional cost. You also get the toslink/spdif connector.
I've been an audiophile for many years and have always believed in separate devices for my personal use, tuner, amp, turntable, etc. Those are based on what my priorities are. However just as valid are other peoples personal priorities, ease of use (not with separates), electrical efficiency (again not with separates), optimization of space (again not with separates).
All TVs now a days need to comform to fcc specifications, mpeg2, dolby digital, closed captions, etc. several types of digital inputs,usb inputs, different types of audio outputs. You can't engineer that with a couple off the shelf chips and a gate array. You need an embedded os, a media engine, various codecs, filesystem supprt for usb, a pleasant UI, OTA tuner and channel scanning, etc.
If someone can tell me of a better UI for a TV than the Roku UI please let me know.

jwjames83 wrote:

A few questions on the Roku TVs.
1b) Can we power it on / off, change volume, chance OTA channels, etc? The integration of it into an automated system would be pretty fun to explore, in my opinion.

Can't power it on, since it's off it only works with IR to turn it on.

Maybe they can change that with future firmware updates? since all other roku players stay on all the time it seems odd that the TV roku powers off.


You can do all the other stuff, though, which is fun.

RokuDale wrote:

If someone can tell me of a better UI for a TV than the Roku UI please let me know.

Nope, nothing even close. The new update took a step toward fixing some of the limitations as well. I don't regret my purchase of my RokuTV one bit. It's a bedroom unit, because I need more intricate tweaking in my main set, and because 60" Plasma = too cheap to pass. However, it is a fantastic bedroom unit...and it is still an amazing bargain at $500. I don't think there is a better deal out there on a "Smart, full array led". I am back to my roku 3 in the living room and I already miss the integration.

I really wish someone from your team would chime in about audio passthrough, and possibilities of changing options such as dynamic contrast, etc. Are these things even being looked into? The recent update did fix ARC over hdmi for my receiver. That made me happy.