Roku makes it easier to watch free live TV by adding voice command support and making it easier to find stuff to watch.
By upgrading to Roku OS 10.5, users will be able to access the live TV guide – which now boasts more than 200 channels to stream for free – by pinning it to their home screens alongside their other apps and channels. After updating, users can search for “Live TV on The Roku Channel” and install it like any other app or streaming service.
For those who use voice commands to navigate the Roku experience, Roku says its voice command support extends to “nearly any channel” in search. Additionally, Spotify and Netflix are now supported, two previously notable exceptions. There is also a new music and podcast row in search, making navigation a little easier. Roku is launching a new search integration with Spotify with the update.
Roku users may have noticed that its mobile app recently got a bit of a makeover. The company began rolling out new save lists and home tab features in mid-August. On the bottom panel, users will find the latter to the left of Roku Channels. The save list is accessible from both the home and remote tabs on mobile, while Roku users can bookmark anything they might want to watch in the future by clicking on the title and selecting “add to save list.”.
Roku streaming players are the only players that can pin the Live TV tile to their home screens as part of the 10.5 updates. Roku TV owners have had this capability since Live TV launched in 2020.
Roku OS 10.5 is expected to begin rolling out to Roku devices in the coming weeks.