The Roku Premiere+ is the best 4K-capable media streamer under $50.
Of course, that's because the $49.99 device and its $39.99 sibling the Roku Premiere are the only sub-$50 4K media streamers we've seen so far, though the Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K is on its way.
The Walmart-exclusive Premiere+ is identical to the excellent Premiere, but features a microphone-equipped wireless remote control that doesn't need line of sight with the device itself, and can control your TV's volume levels.
That extra $10 is worth the convenience, making the Premiere+ our Editors' Choice for budget 4K media streamers.
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Design
When we say the Premiere+ is identical to the Premiere, we mean it's the same exact media streamer, an 0.7-by-3.4-by-1.4-inch (HWD) black plastic box based on the Roku Express design.
The front panel has a glossy black surface hiding an infrared receiver, while the back holds an HDMI port, a micro USB port for power, and a pinhole reset button.
A short HDMI cable, a USB cable, and a wall adapter are included, along with a strip of double-sided adhesive for securing the Premiere+ on a surface near your TV without it getting tossed around by the weight of the cables.
It has a bit more flexibility in placement than the Premiere, since it doesn't need to directly face the wireless remote.
That brings us to the remote, which is the only distinguishing feature that makes the Premiere+ different from the regular Premiere.
The $39.99 Premiere has an infrared-only remote that requires line of sight with the device.
The Premiere+ has a wireless voice remote that doesn't need to be pointed at the hub to work.
Voice Remote
The short black wand included with the Premiere+ is dominated by a large purple navigation pad and features a purple fabric tag with the Roku symbol on the bottom.
Home, back, and power buttons sit above the navigation pad, while playback buttons sit below it.
Dedicated service buttons for Hulu, Netflix, Sling TV, and Vudu are below the playback buttons.
A volume rocker rests on the right side, and a pinhole microphone is located between the Power and Home buttons near the top.
The power and volume buttons are used for your TV rather than the Premiere+ itself.
While the remote connects wirelessly to the streamer, it has an infrared emitter for line-of-sight commands and can send power and volume control signals to your TV.
The Premiere+ figures out the right infrared commands for your TV when you set it up, which is a very quick process.
This is a major benefit, because it means you can sit down and start watching anything on the Premiere+ without using your TV remote to turn the TV on or adjust the volume.
The microphone at the top of the remote lets you search for content across multiple services on Roku, including finding free movies and TV shows that don't require a login.
It's handy, but Roku lags behind Amazon's Fire TV and Google's Android TV in putting voice control to much use beyond search.
There are no voice assistant functions like you get with Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant, and you can't control smart home devices with it.
It's useful, but not as useful as the microphone on the Alexa Voice Remote you get with the Fire TV.
Roku Channels
The Premiere+ provides access to thousands of streaming apps and services through the Roku Channel Store.
It's one of the most comprehensive selections of streaming media available, with the most big names and the fewest significant omissions of any streaming media platform.
For video streaming, you can access Amazon Video, Google Play Movies & TV, Hulu, Netflix, Sling TV, YouTube, and many other major subscription and VOD services.
There are plenty of dedicated apps (which Roku calls channels) for different networks, genres, regions, and subjects.
The Featured Free section on the menu offers lots of suggestions for movies and shows you don't need an account for on network and channel apps and Roku's own The Roku Channel.
Music streaming also has plenty of options, including Amazon Music, iHeartRadio, Pandora, SiriusXM, and TuneIn, with a new Spotify app planned for the near future.
Curiously, while Google Play Movies & TV is available, Google Music can't be accessed on Roku.
If you want to watch your own media on networked storage, there are several apps specifically for that (though without a USB port you can't load media directly from a USB drive).
You can also stream media from your mobile device using the Roku app, which also lets you use your phone as a remote with voice search.
Performance
The Roku Premiere and Premiere+ both support ultra high definition (UHD, or 4K) video and high dynamic range (HDR) content in HDR10.
They do not support Dolby Vision.
For a budget media streamer, the Premiere+ feels peppy to use.
Menu navigation is very responsive, including jumping back to the main menu from an app.
Video streams load quickly with a good Wi-Fi connection, and it usually takes at most a few seconds for most apps to load.
Inexpensive, Functional 4K Streaming
The Roku Premiere+ is the best sub-$50 4K media streamer you can get right now, and a worthy successor to the pricier Streaming Stick+.
The flexibility of a remote that doesn't require line of sight with the device and can control your TV is well worth the extra $10 over the Premiere.
We'll see how the Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K fares when it comes out next month at the same price.
If you want a more powerful streaming experience, meanwhile, the Roku Ultra features an even more advanced remote with a headphone jack and a USB port for playing local media directly, and the Amazon Fire TV Cube offers hands-free Alexa support.
They're both at least twice as expensive as the Premiere+, however, so it earns our Editors' Choice award for budget 4K media streaming.
The Bottom Line
The affordable, Walmart-exclusive Roku Premiere+ is identical to the regular Premiere 4K media streamer, but with a much more useful wireless remote.
