- A Philips OLED TV running Roku out of the box
- It only comes in a 65-inch size for $1,299
- Unclear whether it’ll match picture quality from LG
Roku‘s much-loved software for various streaming devices – including sticks and boxes and the well-reviewed Roku Ultra (2024) – is also available built right into some TVs, including from the likes of TCL and Sharp. But it’s mostly been in mid-range models – today, there’s a new Roku OLED TV in town, though.
The best OLED TVs are thought to many as being the pinnacle of picture quality, thanks to the pixels being self-illuminated and offering ultra-stark contrast with bright pops of vibrancy, rich and accurate colors, and wide viewing angles.
And we have a newcomer – the Philips OLED Roku TV, precisely 65 inches in size. You’ll need to be happy with that screen size as well since it’s the only one available. It’s out now for $1,299 in the United States from Sam’s Club and should be arriving at other retailers.
Still, though, you could also opt for an LG, Samsung, or Sony OLED and stick a Roku streaming device or even a Google TV Streamer or Apple TV 4K to customize the experience yourself – so it’s got stiff competition.
The leading feature here is that Roku OS is built-in, and you won’t need to invest in a separate streaming solution. You’ll find the familiar Roku City backdrop and access to the best streaming services including Disney+, Max, and Netflix, among countless others.
One of the big benefits of Roku’s platform is a treasure trove of free content as well as the paid services, but also frequent additions thanks to over-the-air updates that ship often. If you also use Roku’s smart home products, you’ll be right at home with control right from your TV. You can even pull up the view from a smart camera as a fullscreen or picture-in-picture view.
The 4K OLED panel features a 120Hz refresh rate, and is backed by support for AMD FreeSync Premium for a smooth viewing experience for gaming.
Dolby Vision IQ is supported here to adjust the picture to wherever you have the TV according to Dolby’s standards and the reading the TV picks up from a built-in ambient light sensor. Roku also promises “room-filing sound” from a 2.1 speaker system that supports Dolby Atmos.
Quite possibly, the best part is that a Roku Voice Remote comes out of the box, allowing you to press the microphone button and ask for content with just your voice or even open apps like Netflix, YouTube, Hulu, or Disney Plus. It’s pretty great.
We’re keen to test out the 65-inch Philips OLED Roku TV and see how it stacks up against competing options. The big question is which level of OLED panel it’s using – it’s almost certainly using one made by LG Display, and we suspect that it’s the same as used in the LG B4, rather than the brighter options used in the LG C4 or LG G4. If so, the price is reasonable, but not particularly special – you can get the 65-inch B4 for around the same price. If it has the C4’s panel, then it could be quite the bargain.
Remember, if you grab another OLED TV or really any other TV with an HDMI port, you can get a Roku streaming device separately and plug it in to get the TV OS, if it’s the one you prefer.
Still, if you’re sold on this new Philips OLED with a Roku interface built-in, it’s up for order now at $1,299 from Sam’s Club.
A note for anyone reading in Europe – Philips TVs are made under licence, with the brand name being applied to TVs made by another manufacturer. As a result, this doesn’t appear to be connected at all to Ambilight Philips OLED TVs such as the Philips OLED809 – those are excellent TVs, but we can’t assume that this TV will share the same performance.
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jacob.krol@futurenet.com (Jacob Krol)
