The Roku Streambar combines the function of a home theater soundbar and a streaming box with all common apps. But for whom is it worth buying the hybrid? a test.
Roku Streambar review
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Inexpensive all-in-one solution for sound and streaming
At first glance, the Roku Streambar is just a compact soundbar – but it hides a fully functional streaming box. This makes the largest product in the Roku portfolio a small all-rounder that can turn even a simple PC monitor into a home theater with a digital streaming interface. Worth considering at a price of 110 euros, but the small device doesn’t work miracles either. Thus, the Roku Streambar is a minimalist solution for smaller rooms or the second screen in the bedroom – in order to give a large living room home theater a worthy sound, you have to dig a little deeper into your pocket.
We liked that
- Combines the functions of soundbar and streaming box
- Room-filling sound with Dolby Atmos
- Controllable via smartphone app
- Wall installation possible
We didn’t like that
- Set up with Roku account only
- Limited peak power (32 W)
- LAN, cinch and AUX connection are missing
The Roku Streambar is a singular outlier in the range of the cheap US provider for streaming sticks: In contrast to the manufacturer’s decidedly simple TV dongles, the Streambar combines the functionality of a home cinema soundbar and one at a current price of around 110 euros digital user interface with 4K UHD video streaming from Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, Apple TV and more.
However, Roku is not alone with this idea on the market: Competitor Amazon also equips soundbars from manufacturers such as TCL with its Fire TV streaming interface.
Installation and setup
Compact and shapely, the Roku Streambar does not really have to hide and is very frugal in terms of storage space: the small device finds enough space even with little space under the TV screen. If wall installation is desired, two sockets for threaded rods are embedded on the back of the device, which enable this with a separately available bracket without any problems.
Simple, chic and compact, the Roku Streambar even finds enough space under a PC screen. (Source: © Netzwelt; Photo: Richard W. Schaber)
If you want to use the full range of functions of the Roku Streambar, the soundbar must now be connected to a TV or screen using the supplied HMDI cable, on which you can carry out the further setup steps using the remote control that is also supplied.
The users are then promptly slowed down by the need for a Roku account – which of course nobody usually already has. However, once this has been set up, the user interface can easily be further adapted to the respective user wishes. Video and audio streaming apps are available to an almost unlimited extent on the pleasingly clear Roku OS.
On the back of the Roku Streambar are HDMI, USB and optical ports. There are threaded sockets for wall mounting to the right and left of the recess for the connections. (Source: © Netzwelt; Photo: Richard W. Schaber)
If the Roku Streambar is actually only used as a soundbar on the TV, everything is actually already done with the placement of the enclosed optical sound cable on the TV and streambar.
Hearing test: This is how the Roku Streambar sounds
Once you have clicked into a program with high-quality sound via the Roku streaming interface, you should immediately notice a big difference: Compared to the usually extremely one-dimensional sounding speakers of a TV set, the small Roku Streambar brings an amazing amount of sound into the room .
Since the compact budget soundbar also supports common surround options such as Dolby Atmos, the streaming sound sounds lively and actually a bit spatial. The small woofers in the stream bar then give explosions and film music more than just the beginnings of a real bass.
No real competition for larger devices
This describes the advantages of the Roku Streambar compared to the integrated TV speakers of average devices – of course, the small device quickly reaches its limits: turned up too loud to fill a huge living room with sound from a distance of several meters, the Roku Streambar naturally no longer sounds particularly good pleasant.
Nobody who is used to a high-quality stereo system with head-high tower loudspeakers will be even remotely happy with the 32-watt stream bar when listening to music. Of course, the Roku device cannot replace a meticulously constructed 5.1 sound system with a subwoofer the size of a beer crate.
Big plus streaming function
However, the Roku Streambar proves to be very practical as an audio streaming station, which can also be fed with content from mobile devices via Bluetooth and AirPlay without any problems. The possibilities for classic cabling are less numerous – because you will look in vain for an aux socket and cinch connections on the back of the Streambear as well as an Ethernet port for an Internet connection via LAN cable.
Where other soundbars may well produce larger sound, the streaming connectivity of the hybrid product from streaming expert Roku is not just a practical function on the edge, but the core of the repertoire. The device proves to be surprisingly user-friendly when it comes to playing different types of media without spasms. In addition, USB hard drives can be connected to the Streambar by cable in the traditional way.
However, you cannot connect additional speakers to expand the Roku Soundbar to a 5.1 system. If you’re looking for a compact and affordable soundbar that can do that, the Sonos Ray could well be something for you.
Roku stream bar
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Don’t you agree? Are you looking for suitable alternatives? We have an extensive list of Roku Streambar alternatives ready for you in our speaker overview.
Roku Streambar: data sheet
Here you can find the technical data for Roku Streambar. You can easily compare size, weight and other properties with other products.
| Dimensions | 365 x 64 x 108 millimeters |
| weight | 1.1 kilograms |
| waterproofness | ✘ no |
| Colours | Black |
| watt | 34 watts |
| battery life | – |
| screen | ✘ no |
| Zigbee hub | ✘ no |
| streaming services | ✔ Yes |
| Bluetooth | ✔ Yes |
| WIRELESS INTERNET ACCESS | ✔ Yes |
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