This week on TechHive: What I’d like to see from Roku in 2018

Last week, Roku laid out its hopes and dreams for 2018 in a letter to shareholders. Not surprisingly, the outlook focused on Roku’s business goals, such as expanding its smart TV business, joining the smart speaker wars, and making more money from streaming apps.

While the letter didn’t reveal any new product plans, it did get me thinking about how Roku’s hardware and software might improve this year. In response to Roku’s wishes for 2018—its first full year as a publicly traded company—I’ve laid out a few of my own. Read the full column on TechHive.

Weekly rewind

Sports without the sports: If you want to keep up on sports without actually watching any games, now you have a couple new options. This week, CBS launched a free streaming service called CBS Sports HQ, with live, anchored coverage of the latest news and highlights. The concept is similar to CBSN, a round-the-clock free streaming news service that launched in 2014, though so far I wish it included more highlights and less talking. It’s available on the web, phones, tablets, and connected TV devices including Roku, Apple TV, and Fire TV.

Stranger still was the launch of a Fox Sports stream on Pluto TV, a free app that offers online video channels through a cable-like grid guide. The stream doesn’t include any live games, but it does offer nationally-televised Fox Sports shows such as Skip and Shannon Undisputed and The Herd with Colin Cowherd. At the very least, it’s something to put on in the background when your sports-loving, cable-having friends come over.

Another look at YouTube TV: Now that YouTube TV has expanded its lineup, added more streaming device support, and increased its reach to 85 percent of the country, we’ve updated my review over at TechHive. YouTube TV is now the best bundle for most people, hitting a sweet spot on pricing while offering the most popular news, sports, and network TV channels. It also has an easy to understand interface with powerful search features.

Still, one size never fits all with streaming bundles, so read our review roundup and channel comparison to see if any of these services work for you. We’re constantly updating the guide as these bundles evolve, and with big improvements coming to both Hulu and DirecTV Now this spring, YouTube’s position atop the hill is hardly stable.

More Catch-Up

Here’s another neat tool for picking the right streaming bundle.
The Netflix effect: NBC-owned channels will cut ad time by 10 percent.
FuboTV is adding AMC networks soon.
AT&T hints at more “flavors” of DirecTV Now to come.
Got an AirTV streamer? Now it does over-the-air DVR.

Save more money

DirecTV Now is still offering some great device deals if you’ve never tried the service before. Get an Apple TV 4K with three months of prepaid service for $105, which is $45 off the regular price without DirecTV Now, or get the new Amazon Fire TV with one month of prepaid service for $35, which is half the regular price without DirecTV Now.

Worth noting: Even if you’ve subscribed to DirecTV Now before, you can still get these deals by signing up under a different name and email address. The offer is limited to two per mailing address.

Thanks for reading!

Quick reminder that while I’m gainfully employed as a freelance writer, this newsletter is a labor of love. If you’d like to send some back, you can contribute through Patreon (for recurring donations), through Ko-Fi (for one-time donations), or by sending some feedback on what you’d like to see covered here. Just reply to this email or find me on Twitter.

Until next week,
Jared