Roku confirmed that it has sent letters to some customers notifying them that they might have purchased a Roku 4 player with a “manufacturing glitch” and offering a replacement.

Roku didn't elaborate on the technical issue the company discovered, but an official said it had to do with a “small number” of Roku 4 models that were manufactured last fall. Tech blogger Dave Zatz speculates that the issue could be heat-related, and stem from some complaints about Roku 4s with noisy fans.

Roku introduced the $129.99, 4K-capable Roku 4 in October 2015, offering a new OTT option equipped with the company’s new operating system, an expanded “Roku Feed,” and alongside the debut of a new mobile app for the platform. Roku 4 is also the company’s new top-of-the-line model (complementing the Roku 3, Roku 2 and Roku Streaming Stick),  and competes with Amazon’s new 4K-capable Fire TV box and the new apps-friendly (not but 4K-capable) Apple TV, and other platforms such as the Chromecast streaming adapter and devices that use Google’s new Android TV OS.

CordCutterNews reported on Roku's customer outreach about the Roku 4 on Sunday (March 6).

Per this post in the Roku forums, here is the content of that letter:

Dear Roku customer,

Thank you for your recent purchase of a Roku 4, the newest addition to our line of streaming players. We are getting in touch after discovering a manufacturing glitch with a small number of Roku 4 players. We identified your Roku 4 player as potentially among this group, and as a result would like to replace it to avoid any potential issues that would impact your use and enjoyment.

In the next few days we will ship out a new Roku 4 player and a return label for the one you have. We ask that you return your current Roku 4 player as soon as you receive our package.

Requested action: 

- Please reply to this email with your full name and current shipping address including zip code, which will be used to ship the new Roku 4 player.

We apologize for the inconvenience, and appreciate your assistance in helping ensure you have the best possible streaming experience.

Thank you and happy streaming,

Roku

HBO Now, HBO’s new standalone OTT service, has launched an app for Roku players and integrated Roku TVs.

Roku users can subscribe to HBO Now for $14.99 per month directly via the HBO Now “channel” on those devices and are in line for a 30-day free trial offer. Roku users who sign up can watch HBO Now on their devices or at HBONow.com.

Support for HBO Now comes just days after Roku introduced the 4K-capable Roku 4 model,  a new operating system and a refreshed mobile app.

HBO Now also supports  iOS and Android mobile devices, the Amazon Fire TV, select Android TV devices, Apple TV, and the Google Chromecast.

Looking to keep the edge on its rivals in the heated OTT video market, Roku, as anticipated, has introduced a 4K-capable model as well as new OS, an expanded Roku Feed and a refreshed mobile app.

Roku’s new entry will start shipping this month and sell for $129.99, about $30 more than the recently introduced 4K-capable Fire TV box from Amazon that started to ship Monday (October 5). Roku, which topped the OTT streaming market in 2014, is also introducing the Roku 4 as the company faces off with the new Apple TV device and a next-gen version of the Google Chromecast streaming adapter.

The new quad-core device will also offer an upgraded UI (in 1080p), video frame rates of up to 60 frames per second, a USB connection for local playback, 802.11ac MIMO WiFi, HDCP 2.2, optical audio, as well as a remote control finder – activated via a button on top of the Roku 4 that will cause the remote to emit a sound to help the user track it down. 

4K Fare, New OS

Roku has also developed a curated 4K Spotlight channel that will serve as a home for movies, TV shows and other content that’s available in Ultra HD resolution. The new device will also provide a channel/shortcut that shows 4K fare from sources ranging from Netflix, M-Go, Amazon Instant  Video, ToonGoggles, Vudu and YouTube.

Roku is introducing a new operating system, OS 7, and says its overall platform now offers access to nearly 3,000 channels, and its search platform now spans 20 sources.

Roku, said company director of product management Lloyd Klarke, has added more than 1,000 channels in the past  year.

But the OTT environment is becoming “less about apps” and more about a providing a smart way for users to find what they want to watch, Klarke said.

Roku hopes to address that with an updated Roku Feed with the new OS that expands on the “Movies Coming Soon” feature that Roku bowed in April.  With the new version, Roku users will be able to follow specific actors, directors and TV series. Those are now grouped together and updated in the user’s individual feed.

“It’s like a search that keeps on searching,” he said.

In addition to the Roku 4, all “current generation” Roku devices (basically those made after May 2011) will be getting the new OS. It’ll initially be made available in mid-October and then expand to all eligible devices over the course of the following weeks.

Mobile App Does More

Roku is also booting up a new mobile app (starting with iOS and Android, with plans for a Windows Phone version) that will continue to complement the on-screen experience, but also provide features, such as search, that users can access when it’s not tethered to the Roku device. Any searches performed on the go will be added to the device, said Sharad Sundaresan, Roku’s senior vice president of product management.

Among other updates, Roku is also introducing a feature that lets users more easily connect their devices to hotel and college dorm WiFi networks that typically require an extra layer of authentication. That element, offered via a laptop or mobile browser, essentially served as a bridge/passthrough to connect the Roku to those networks, and the user will typically only have to go through this process once.

The Roku 4 will be a new member of the company’s streaming device family and continue to complement its integrated TV strategy, which now spans five brands (Haier America, Sharp, TCL, Hisense and Insignia, which is Best Buy’s in-house brand), and more than 25 models. Of that group, TCL expects to ship its 1 millionth Roku TV set by the end of 2015.

As a stats update, Roku said it has 7.5 million active Roku user accounts worldwide, and that its platform streamed 3 billion hours in 2014. It has already streamed 2.5 billion hours during the first half of 2015. Those revised numbers come about a year after Roku said it had shipped more than  10 million devices in the U.S.

Add some additional visual evidence to the pile that Roku is nearing the debut of a new model that’s expected to support 4K streaming.

AFTVnews found an image purportedly of the Roku 4 using a script that was successful in finding a next-gen Fire TV box that we later learned would support 4K. The image shows a redesigned device alongside a remote that includes some new dedicated buttons for OTT streaming services.  

This follows some FCC documentation uncovered by ZatzNotFunny, a CinemaNow promo that touted four free HD rentals with any purchase of a “Roku 4,” and evidence of a Roku “4K Showcase.”

Roku hasn’t announced any new models, but if the Roku 4 does end up supporting UHD streaming, it will contend with the $99.99 4K-capable Amazon Fire TV and the new Apple TV, which does not support 4K.