Let’s check out 20 ways you can enhance your Roku experience.
The Roku Channel features a selection of free movies and TV shows. Roku provides a periodically updated listing of the most popular channels that offer free content. To see this list, press the Home Button on your Roku remote, go to Streaming Channels, then select Top Free. From there you can add any of the channels to your own list. If you know the name of the free channel you want to add, you can go to Streaming Channels and type it into the Search option and see if it is available on Roku. Another way to find free movies and TV shows is to go into the search category on the main page and type in the movie or program title and see if it is offered by a channel available on Roku, and if any viewing fees are required.
This provides a listing of channels that offer 4K content. However, not all content offered by those channels is in 4K. You will have to check out what they are offering. To make your 4K content search easier, you can also install the 4K Spotlight App from the Roku Channel Store and find available programs and movies offered in 4K across multiple channels. These devices will receive TVs signals via an antenna and then stream them wirelessly to your Roku streaming stick or box, via the installation of their companion Roku Apps. In addition, if you opt for the Tablo in combination with a USB hard drive, you can also use your Roku to schedule and playback any content that Tablo can record onto its companion hard drive. Also, you may have a monthly data cap, which means that if you watch too much streaming content in a specific month, you may be charged overage fees. You can go into a secret menu and change the “bitrate” at which your Roku receives the streaming signal. This may reduce problems such as buffering and freezing, as well as save on any data cap. However, you may have to settle for a lower-quality video stream. To make this adjustment press Home five times, RW three times, FF twice on your Roku remote. You can then opt to leave the setting on Auto (default) or set it to a specific rate. Roku has a secret menu that allows you to check the precise strength of your Wi-Fi signal in relation to your Roku device. To see it, pick up your Roku remote and press Home five times, then Up, Down, Up, Down, Up. This code will bring up a secret Wi-Fi menu to see things like signal strength. You can then use this as a guide to see if you need to move your Roku device closer to your router, your router closer to your Roku device, or if you need a to get a better router that offers greater signal strength.
The app provides voice search capability in addition to other Roku functions. For Roku TVs, the mobile app controls both streaming and TV functions, such as input selection, OTA channel scanning, and both picture and audio settings. The mobile app also provides the ability to listen privately to your Roku channels using the smartphone’s speaker or earphones.
Screen Mirroring does not require a network connection, the signal is sent directly from your smartphone to the Roku device or Roku TV. However, you cannot perform any other tasks on your phone while your content is being mirrored. If you tap on another icon, the content will cease playing. To enable screen mirroring on Roku, activate the Screen Mirroring/Miracast feature on your Android Phone first via your specific phone’s settings. Then, on your Roku remote, press the Home Button, click on Settings, System, Screen Mirroring, and then choose from one of several Screen Mirroring Modes.
Prompt — Your Roku device will display an on-screen prompt confirming a screen mirroring request.Always Allow — Screen Mirroring is enabled any time it is detected. There is no on-screen prompt.Never Allow — All screen mirroring is blocked without an on-screen prompt appearing. This option disables Screen Mirroring features when selected.Screen Mirroring Devices — You can choose “Allowed Devices” or “Blocked Devices”. If the “Always Allow” or “Never Allow” options have already been chosen you will not be able to use this selection.
To Cast, both your mobile device and your Roku do need to be connected to the same WiFi network. Unlike Screen Mirroring, not all apps support Casting. If a smartphone app is compatible with Casting (YouTube and Netflix are two examples), the Cast Logo (see the photo above) will appear near the top of your smartphone screen. Click on the logo and casting will be initiated. In addition, if your Roku device or Roku TV has a USB port you can play back content from USB flash drives. For more details on setup and use (including compatible digital media file formats), refer to the Roku Media Player Support Page To do this you have to use a third-party app from Appestry called Quick Remote. For Alexa, the app is available for Android and iOS, but for Google Home, the app is only available for Android. For details on what to do after you download the Quick Remote App, just follow the instructions for Alexa and Google Home (also includes examples of voice commands that you can use). The Quick Remote app limits you to 50 free commands per month, which runs out fast. For access to more than 50 commands a month, the subscription fee is $.99 per month or $9.99 per year. If you missed or didn’t quite understand the last few seconds of a show or movie you are watching due to an interruption or background noise, or the lines were not spoken clearly, you can use the Roku replay button to go back and repeat it with the addition of not only hearing the voice but displaying the text of what was said (if available). To set this up on your Roku, go to the onscreen menu, click on Settings, then Captions (on some models you may be prompted to click on Accessibility, then Captions), followed by Instant Replay. Having troubles? Try these tips for when Roku’s closed captioning won’t turn off or when the captions don’t turn on. Having troubles? Try these tips for when Roku’s closed captioning won’t turn off or when the captions don’t turn on. When activated, your Roku device sends audio wirelessly to the remote so you can listen with the earphones. This is great for late-night private listening and for listening to music. You can even move about the room (just put the remote in your pocket). If you want your Roku device to send sound to both your earphones and your TV audio system at the same time, you can access a special menu by pressing the following buttons located on the right side of the remote: Volume Up (twice), Volume Down (twice), Volume Up (three times), Volume Down (three times) and activate Audience Audio. To select or change a theme, press Home on your Roku Remote, go to Settings, go to Themes, select My Themes. Here you will be able to select from some pre-installed theme options, but if you select Get More Themes, you can select from additional options that you can add to your selection list. Some Themes may require a modest payment to use. However, you can organize your list to better reflect your channel viewing preferences, by moving your favorite channels to the top of your list. To do this: One workaround is to screen mirror your smartphone and use any web browsers you have installed there, or you can install the Web Browser X app from the Roku Channel Store which does provide access to Google Web Browsing. However, since Roku doesn’t provide the ability to connect a wired or wireless keyboard, using the buttons and scrolling capabilities available on the Roku remote is kind of cumbersome. However, there is a virtual keyboard available via the Roku mobile app. The Web Browser X app requires a subscription payment of $4.99 per month. It must be also pointed out that while Roku does provide a Firefox app, that is only for streaming videos, Firefox for Roku does not support actual browsing. To prepare, make sure your Roku has the latest firmware update and you have packed all needed accessories: HDMI cable if you are using the box version (streaming sticks have a built-in HDMI connection), power adapter, and remote, and also don’t forget your smartphone. In addition, find out if the Hotel or Dorm you will be staying in provides WiFi and that the TV you will be using has an accessible HDMI input that you can select from the TV’s controls or remote. Plug in your Roku stick or box, press the Home on the Roku remote, go to Settings, Network, then Set Up Connection, and then select Wireless. Once you establish the Network connection, then select I am at a Hotel or College Dorm, after which several additional prompts will appear on the TV screen for authentication, such as entering a WiFi password to use the specific network and the Roku server (which may require a smartphone, tablet, or laptop).
