Roku Unveils Two New Streaming Sticks, Starting at $30, and New TVs for 2025
Roku on Wednesday announced two new inexpensive streaming devices for 2025 — the Streaming Stick and Streaming Stick Plus — as well as three new series of Roku TVs.
The company says the sticks are over 35% smaller than other brands’ models, such as Amazon’s Fire TV sticks. Its new Streaming Stick costs $30 and has HD resolution, while the Streaming Stick Plus has 4K resolution, HDR capability and costs $40. Roku’s current streaming sticks are CNET’s favorite streaming devices thanks to their simple, clean menu systems and affordable pricing.
Both new Roku Streaming Sticks are available for preorder now and will ship May 6.
Meanwhile, Roku’s more expensive streaming devices, including the CNET Editors’ Choice Roku Streaming Stick 4K with Dolby Vision HDR ($50), the higher-end Roku Ultra box ($100) and the Roku Streambar SE soundbar ($100) remain in the lineup.
The Roku Pro Series is new for 2025.
New Roku TVs for 2025: Mini-LED and bigger sizes
The company also unveiled three new Roku TVs series for 2025. The updated versions of the current Roku Plus and the Roku Pro TVs both have mini-LED backlights, and the new entry-level Roku Select comes in more sizes. In my review of the 2024 Roku Pro, I found that the TV was good for gaming thanks to low input lag, and I appreciated the simplicity of the Roku operating system, but the Pro’s picture quality wasn’t as good as the Hisense U8 and the TCL QM6. Check out my list of the best TVs of 2025 for more details.
The new model of the Roku Pro offers twice the contrast of last year’s model, according to Roku. It also has an improved version of Roku’s Smart Picture technology with scene-by-scene picture adjustments, as well as a backlit voice remote.
The Roku Plus’ big improvement is an upgraded backlight that uses mini-LED technology, which improves brightness and is also featured in the Pro and other competing midrange TVs. Roku also touts faster app launch times and a 2.1-channel sound system on the Plus.
The cheapest Roku TV for 2025, the Roku Select, comes in a wider range of sizes, from 32 all the way up to 85 inches. The previous Roku select topped out at 75 inches.
Pricing and availability for the TVs will be announced in the coming months.
Simpler lineup of sticks, mini-boxes begone
Until now, the company has had a number of similar streaming sticks for a similar price, with confusing names like Roku Express 4K Plus and Roku Streaming Stick 4K, so hopefully these new products will simplify the choice.
The Roku Streaming Stick and Roku Streaming Stick Plus will replace the current Roku Express and Roku Express 4K Plus at the same price. Roku says the Express and Express 4K Plus, which are actually miniature boxes and not sticks at all, will still be available at select retailers while supplies last.
All Roku devices let you stream from thousands of streaming services using the Roku interface, as well as surf the popular Roku Channel and a new Coming Soon to Theaters row for movie trailers.
This is a developing story. Stay tuned for hands-on impressions and more.