Roku Premiere

Is this affordable streamer the stuff 4K dreams are made of?

For anyone going down the apps-per-pound route, the Roku Premiere might appear high on a list of prospective video streamers, not least because it gives you access to Apple’s unparalleled library of 4K HDR films. But approach things from a performance-perpound position, and it won’t appear at all.

The Roku Premiere is compact and light, but you wonder why Roku didn’t choose to make a neat little stick instead of a small streaming box. It doesn’t have the weight to stand flat on a surface, instead it dangles out of your TV at the end of a bundled HDMI cable, with a USB cable and wall plug providing power.

There is also a remote in the box – a pleasantly ergonomic affair with a stripped-back selection of buttons that includes dedicated shortcuts for Netflix, Google Play Movies & TV, Rakuten and Spotify. The remote requires line of sight, which is a shame when you consider that the Premiere otherwise encourages you to hide it away. It doesn’t have a microphone for voice control, either.

Both of those issues can be overcome by downloading the Roku app, which you can use to send touch and voice commands via the internet. You can also use the app to turn your phone into an audio receiver that enables private listening via headphones: useful if you want to listen without connecting your headphones directly into your TV.

Rudimentary design

The rudimentary design hides a decent spec sheet, with Apple TV giving you pay-as-you-go access to the best selection of 4K HDR films available. Netflix and Amazon Prime Video are here in 4K HDR form; all the major catch-up services are all covered; Rakuten and Google Play Movies & TV give you more pay-as-you go streaming options, while Now TV offers access to Sky content, including sports; and Spotify, Tidal, Deezer and Tunein give you plenty of music and podcast options.

The only HDR format supported is HDR10, which is a shame. A lack of Dolby Vision and HDR10+ could be an issue, but the absence of HLG may prove to be the bigger disappointment to most Premiere users in the long run, as that’s the BBC’S format of choice.

But the Roku Premiere’s real problem is its picture. In the past, video streamers had a rather computer-like quality to their performance, but these days you can buy budget examples, such as the Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K, that deliver a proper, cinematic picture. Sadly, the Roku is not one of those.

Lacks subtlety

Play It via Apple TV and the colours are overblown and lacking subtlety, particularly in the brightest parts of the picture. The film has a warm, vibrant palette in daylight scenes, but the Premiere bumps this up to comic book-like unrealism. Black detail, meanwhile, is almost non-existent, leaving you lost in the regular dark scenes – action scenes in the sewers are virtually impossible to make sense of.

Edges are crudely drawn and indistinct, details blend into one another and motion exhibits significantly more judder and blur than you get from rival devices. All told, it’s a rather unpleasant viewing experience that’s a long way from the quality offered by the Apple TV app on other devices.

Netflix, unfortunately, is no better. Play Lost In Space and the same issues are present. The lack of subtlety to colours is particularly pronounced, with skin tones proving patchy and unnatural in their shading and clear banding evident in the sky of the alien planet. Drop down to a standard dynamic range (SDR) with The Good Place, and the story improves. Motion is still a problem, with the blur proving distracting at times, and there’s a fizz to edges, but colours are a closer to natural. It’s not an amazing picture, but it’s not terrible.

Decent punch and clarity

The Roku Premiere isn’t as weak in the audio department. Play some music via Tidal (Roku’s Tidal app maxes out at ‘Hi-fi’ quality so won’t play ‘Masters’) and there’s decent punch, clarity and overall balance, with nothing that sticks out in an unpleasant way.

However, it lacks solidity and richness, with the sound coming across a little lightweight. Dynamics are weak, too, both in terms of the low-level subtleties that reveal the nuance in a track and the big shifts that generate drama. They continue to be an issue with films and TV shows, with voices lacking a little natural warmth and set pieces falling short of generating peak excitement.

The Roku Premiere is a small, affordable device that promises much, but falls a long way short of offering an acceptable 4K HDR performance. The garish colours and lack of detail ruin what could be a great viewing experience.

For just a bit more money, you can buy a proper little video streamer in the form of the Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K. Unfortunately, the Roku isn’t good enough at any price.