In news that will free up an HDMI port, Roku, the brand best known for making little streaming dongles you plug into a TV, is now making its own TVs, the company announced at CES.
The TVs will be separated into Select and Plus categories, with Plus models coming with an upgraded remote.
According to Roku, the TVs will be sized from 24 inches all the way up to 75 inches. In other words, they'll be useful for either a small bedroom or one of those kind of embarrassing "man-caves" you see online. The best part? They'll all be priced at $999 or less. They'll also be compatible with Roku's wireless soundbars and subwoofers.
Unfortunately, Roku didn't have any other info to offer in regards to screen resolution, refresh rate, port selection, or other odds and ends that people look for when buying a TV.
The move is an interesting one from Roku, as the company has licensed its Roku OS smart TV software to TV manufacturers like TCL for years. Unless Roku introduces snazzy exclusive features we haven't seen yet, it sounds like these TVs will be similar to those sold by TCL: affordable and running on Roku software. That doesn't mean they won't be good or worthwhile, but it means they likely won't be state-of-the-art powerhouses either.
Still, you won't have to dedicate an HDMI port to that Roku streamer anymore. Count your blessings.
