Roku's new streaming sticks are 35% smaller than everyone else

Roku has launched two updated versions of its dongle-style streaming devices: Roku Streaming Stick and Roku Streaming Stick Plus. They will replace the existing Roku Express and Roku Express+ devices at the same price.

While the streaming device market is crowded, Roku pitches its latest offerings by claiming they are the smallest on the market. The company said in a blog post that the new Roku Streaming Stick players are "over 35% smaller than other brands—all without compromising performance or speed."

The small size of a dongle allows it to be carried in a backpack during vacations without having to log into someone else's device. Roku added that both stick players are power-efficient to the point that they can be powered using the TV's built-in USB port, offering a cleaner setup.

Priced at $29.99, Roku Streaming Stick (3840R) is the cheaper of the two and Roku's most affordable player. It supports streaming up to 1080p (with upscaling from 720p), dual-band Wi-Fi 4, and weighs 26g. Its built-in USB-C port draws about 2.2W of power when streaming content.

The cheaper streaming stick is also getting support for voice remote, letting users change the volume, power on their TV, or search for content just by using their voice.

Meanwhile, the extra dollars for the $39.99 Roku Streaming Stick Plus (3830R) add support for 4K UHD streaming, HDR/HDR10+, HLG, and Wi-Fi 5 among various features. The device also weighs 26g and consumes about 2.5W of power when streaming 4K videos.

Roku said that both streaming sticks are available for pre-order in the US starting today. The devices will be up for purchase on Roku's website and elsewhere on May 6. Meanwhile, users can buy the older Roku Express and Express 4K+ while supplies last.

In the coming months, the streaming sticks will be available in more regions, including Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, and the United Kingdom.

While Roku is still refreshing its streaming sticks, its popular rival Google stepped away from selling Chromecast line of dongle-style devices. The search giant jumped ship last year and launched the Google TV Streamer with a bigger form factor.

On the software front, Roku will bring a new "Coming Soon to Theaters" row to improve content discovery on its platform. A common problem many users face is that they often give up after searching for something to watch and do something else instead, the company notes.

Users will be able to add upcoming movies to their Save List and find out when they'll be up for streaming. The Backdrops feature, already available in the US, is expanding to all Roku TV models streaming players in Canada.

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