4200x
Latest
Roku 3 goes on sale tomorrow for $99 with upgraded CPU and a new UI
Almost two years after its last major set-top box rollout, Roku is ready to introduce its first third generation player. Other than a new curvier design outside the Roku 3's main differences are a more powerful processor inside, the addition of dual band WiFi and a tweaked remote with audio out (headphones included) for private listening. Of course, hardware is only half the story and the new player debuts a reworked interface that will also spread to "current generation" players (read: Roku 2, new HD, LT and Streaming Stick) as an update in April. Roku 3 goes on sale tomorrow through Roku.com and Amazon.com for $99, taking the place of the current top of the line XS model. We'll go more in depth about what's new this time around, including a video preview of the new UI, after the break.%Gallery-180695%
Roku 4200X appears in FCC filing, shows off smaller footprint
The last time Roku properly refreshed its line of media streamers was back in 2011 with the Roku 2 series but we're apparently in for at least one new addition, if not a whole new line. This 4200X (the current players are in the 2000/3000 series) just popped up in the FCC's database, although most of the juicy information was withheld. Still, as seen above, its measurements indicate a box that's just 2.25-inches on each side, smaller than the current top of the line Roku 2 XS which is 3.3-inches long on each side. Other than WiFi with 2 and 5GHz bands we didn't uncover much else, although we wonder what the company may add in a new model. One possibility is the (official) YouTube channel we've been waiting for since 2011, which CEO Anthony Wood recently told analyst Michael Wolf "isn't far away", but would require new hardware. Otherwise, the current boxes have 1080p output, more than 700 channels, and a Bluetooth gaming remote on the high-end units. Previous FCC leaks of the 2 and refreshed HD saw official launches within weeks, so we should know more about this new version pretty soon.
