Anyone have experience with Roku Smart TVs?

[Grimham]

My girls (10 & 11 years) both want a TV for Christmas for their bedrooms. At first I was completely against it, but now after some thought, it's not a bad idea. We do not have cable, we use Playstation Vue, Netflix, Amazon and Plex. And since everything goes through the network I can automatically have the signal turn off at certain times (as I do now at bedtime with their iPads and laptops).

I am thinking of a 32' 1080p Roku TV that will also double as their PC monitor. I know I'd have to look at the TV to see if the quality is acceptable for a PC, but what I really want to know is how good is the Roku part in comparison to a dedicated Roku? Can you load custom Roku channels? Does Roku release updates for that portion of the TV or does the TV manufacturer handle that? Do these previous questions depend on which manufacturer you go with? Any thoughts would be appreciated.

 

[defaultluser]

If you want that sort of in-depth experience, why not buy one and try it out? It's easy to return if you buy from a place like Costco, and it's not like a 32" TV is heavy.

 

[Verge]

The roku's i believe are just the stick versions, jammed into an hdmi slot inside the tv. It's separate of the tv firmware, and probably runs playstation vue very poorly.

I'm thinking about getting one for my guest bedroom, i don't care how fast PSVue is for them.

 

[morgwon]

my only grips with the TVs (Insignia at least) is that the only remote you get is the Roku remote. So if you are watching OTA TV you can't changed the channels except by going through the channels using the CH+/CH- buttons.

 

[rhansen5_99]

What is your price range and what brand of TV are you looking at? I think the options for Roku TV are TCL or the Insignia brands. If you could find a good deal on a 32" TV the upgraded roku (2016) black sticks appear to be a lot snappier than the blue ones. They also have Bluetooth audio options through the roku app on a smart phone. FYI I currently have a roku 3 / dumb tv setup for my kids and it also works until they loose the tv remote or the roku remote, but I dont know if dropping down to 1 vs 2 would help them

 

[Zaphear]

I've quite a bit of experience with Smart TVs (A/V Home Integrator)...and what I've always noticed is they're really not that great lol, really slow response and they tend to beat up the TVs innards with the heat they cause. Same goes for "Smart" BluRay players.. they just can't take the extra heat. I alllllllways suggest buying an external Roku (2 or 4 if they've a 4k TV) and just strap them to the back of the TV with some Zip Ties. They're so cheap it's not that much of a price difference if you just buy a regular tv and add that on.

 

[thebeephaha]

The roku's i believe are just the stick versions, jammed into an hdmi slot inside the tv. It's separate of the tv firmware, and probably runs playstation vue very poorly.

The TCL Roku TV I have in by bedroom actually appears to be running the Roku software natively as the Roku interface is where I select different HDMI inputs, change TV settings etc.

 

[SJetski71]

I've quite a bit of experience with Smart TVs (A/V Home Integrator)...and what I've always noticed is they're really not that great lol, really slow response and they tend to beat up the TVs innards with the heat they cause. Same goes for "Smart" BluRay players.. they just can't take the extra heat. I alllllllways suggest buying an external Roku (2 or 4 if they've a 4k TV) and just strap them to the back of the TV with some Zip Ties. They're so cheap it's not that much of a price difference if you just buy a regular tv and add that on.

Everything i've read, or experienced, leads me to believe the same. Keep it all separate, a budget 1080P TV + external Roku box.

Another benefit: you can upgrade the Roku box a couple of years down the line and keep the same TV.

99% of TV's will accept a PC signal via hdmi, some of them will display slightly blurry red text, but that shouldnt be too much of a concern for children's use.