Software update makes HDR content “unwatchable” on Roku TVs

[Karlston]

Roku says it's investigating the problem.

Credit: Roku

 

An update to Roku OS has resulted in colors looking washed out in HDR content viewed on Roku apps, like Disney+.

 

Complaints started surfacing on Roku's community forum a week ago. On May 1, a company representative posted that Roku was “investigating the Disney Plus HDR content that was washed out after the recent update.” However, based on user feedback, it seems that HDR on additional Roku apps, including Apple TV+ and Netflix, are also affected. Roku’s representative has been asking users to share their experiences so that Roku can dig deeper into the problem.

 

One user, going by "Squinky" on the forum, reported having a TCL TV with the problem and shared the following photo comparison:

 

Before the update, according to a Roku forum user.

Squinky/Roku

 

After the update, according to a Roku forum user.

Squinky/Roku

 

Users have reported that both shows and movies viewed in HDR via a Roku OS app are affected.

 

Roku hasn’t provided a list of affected devices, but users have named multiple TCL TV models, at least one Hisense, and one Sharp TV as being impacted.

 

We haven't seen any reports of Roku streaming sticks being affected. One forum user claimed that plugging a Roku streaming stick into a Roku TV circumvented the problem.

 

Forum user Squinky said the washed-out colors were only on Disney+. However, other users have reported seeing the problem across other apps, including Max and Fandango.

 

“I'm surprised more people aren't complaining because it makes a ton of shows simply unwatchable. Was looking forward to Andor, and Tuesday night [was] ruined," posted forum user noob99999, who said the problem was happening on “multiple apps,” including Amazon Prime Video. “I hope the post about imminent app updates are correct because in the past, Roku has taken forever to correct issues.”

 

Users have noted that common troubleshooting efforts, like restarting and factory resetting their TVs and checking for software updates, haven’t fixed the problem.

 

On Thursday, frustrated forum user Dominick6404 wrote:

 

If (i) use a different input with the same exact settings, everything still looks great. It's not an issue with the TV itself as Roku keeps telling me when I contact support. I have been rudely hung up on twice and told to buy a new TV twice. The TV works great. HDR is only not displaying proper colors on ROKU APPS.

The problems appear to stem from the Roku OS 14.5 update, which was issued at the end of April. According to the release notes, the update is available for all Roku TV models from 2014 on, except for models 65R648, 75R648, and 75U800GMR. Roku streaming sticks also received the update. Per Roku, the software update includes “various performance optimizations, bug fixes, and improvements to security, stability.” Other additions include a “new personalized row of content within the Live TV Guide” and upgrades to Roku OS’ daily trivia, voice control, and discovery capabilities.

 

Exacerbating the problem, Roku says the update was rolled out automatically, preventing users from delaying or skipping it.

 

Ars Technica has reached out to Roku for comment.

 

Source

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