I’ve been a Roku believer for a while now. I think I got my first Roku back in 2011 – the boxy, clunky Roku XD. The streaming world has changed a ton since then, and so has Roku. I’ve tried out various models over the past few years, and today I’m taking a look at their new middle-of-the-road streamer, the Roku Premiere (model 4620R, if you want to be picky about it).
It’s getting increasingly hard to buy a big flat-screen TV these days that doesn’t do 4K (for better or worse), so it’s only fitting that Roku has added a few mid-range 4K models to their lineup. The Roku Premiere is the baby brother to the higher-priced 4K streamers in the line, and as such leaves out 4K’s biggest selling point – HDR. In fact, it leaves out a lot of things that used to grace Roku’s mid-range boxes – namely ethernet, an RF or Wi-Fi direct remote, USB and micro SD. It’s pretty bare-bones with its sole HDMI port (an HDMI cable is not included).
So what is this box good for? Well, it’s a good stepping stone into 4K for people who have 4K TVs with little to no smart features built in. It is pretty snappy for the price, so it may be a good option for someone who’d normally go for a Chromecast or Roku Streaming Stick and wants a little more oomph.
For serious die-hard Roku fans or serious streamers, I’d recommend shelling out a little more for a Premiere+ or Ultra instead.
