The $99 Roku Ultra is one of the most affordable high-end streaming players currently available, and has long been our pick for the best streaming device overall. And Roku just announced that it’s replacing the standard voice remote in the box with the Roku Voice Remote Pro, giving even more value to an already great package.
The new $99 bundle launches today on Roku’s website. Or if you wait, you can get it from the typical retailers such as Best Buy and Amazon starting May 15.
To be clear, the Ultra itself isn’t receiving an upgrade, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. It can stream 4K in HDR and Dolby Vision, has 802.11ac for faster Wi-Fi connectivity and an Ethernet port and supports Dolby Atmos audio. The Ultra also supports Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant and Apple’s AirPlay 2 and HomeKit smart home platforms. That means you can use the respective voice assistants to control your TV, or integrate turning it on and off into your home automations.
The Voice Remote Pro is a big upgrade over the Voice remote that was previously included with the Ultra. Typically $29 on its own, the Voice Remote Pro has all of the same core features as the older Voice remote, including features like dedicated buttons to control your TV’s volume and power, voice controls and remote listening thanks to a built-in headphone jack (with headphones included in the box).
But what makes the Voice Remote Pro so appealing is that it has a rechargeable battery via a microUSB port on the bottom of the remote, and has hands-free voice capabilities. That means you don’t have to hold in the voice command button while asking your Roku Ultra to put on a show. Instead, you can just say “Hey Roku” followed by a command. Speaking of commands, if you ever lose the remote — which, let’s be real, it’ll happen within a week — you can say “Hey Roku, where’s my remote?” and the remote will start beeping to help you find it.
You can order the new Ultra bundle for the same $99 price directly from Roku right now.