Roku is making it easier to channel surf, with the streaming service unveiling a new programming grid for its just-expanded lineup of more than 100 free streaming TV channels.
The new Live TV Channel Guide for The Roku Channel will be a familiar sight for anyone who’s ever browsed the programming grid on a DVR, complete with informational overlays for each show and the ability to quickly switch between channels.
Roku also announced that it’s adding about 30 new streaming TV channels to The Roku Channel’s selection today, bringing the grand total of live/linear channels to more than 100.
The free “linear” streaming TV channels on The Roku Channel are ad-supported, with about eight minutes of ads an hour across four commercial breaks.
Among the top free TV offerings on the Roku Channel include:
- News: ABC News Live, Black News Channel, Cheddar, Newsmax TV, NowThis, Reuters, Top Stories by Newsy, USA Today, WeatherNation, and Yahoo Finance
- Sports: Adventure Sports Network powered by XUMO, ACC Digital Network, beIN Sports Xtra, EDGEsport, ESTV, fubo Sports Network, MAVTV Select, Outside TV, and Stadium
- Movies and TV: Crime360, FilmRise Action, FilmRise Classic TV, FilmRise Family, FilmRise Free Movies, Gravitas Movies, Redbox Free Movies, and Voyager Documentaries
- Kids & Family: Ameba powered by Xumo, Battery Pop powered by Xumo, Kid Gamer TV from Studio71, Kid Genius powered by Xumo, Kidz Bop TV, pocket.watch, Teletubbies, Toon Googles, TG Junior, Rainbow Ruby, and Zoomoo
- Lifestyle: A+E Lively Place, The Bob Ross Channel, Bon Appétit, Condé Nast Traveler, The Design Network, DIY Daily, Food52, Glamour, GQ, Love Nature, Revry, This Old House, Vanity Fair, and Vogue
- Spanish language: AFV Español, América TeVé, Latido Music, Love Nature Español, MoovieMex by Pongalo, and Pongalo NovelaClub
You’ll be able to access the on-screen guide, which will display up to 12 hours of upcoming programming, by clicking the new “Live TV” tile on The Roku Channel, or you can bring up the grid at any time while watching linear TV by pressing the “left” button on the Roku remote.
Roku
You can access the programming grid for The Roku Channel by clicking the new “Live TV” tile in the Roku interface, or by clicking left on the remote while watching a linear TV channel.
The guide will let you quickly switch between an “All Channels” and “Recent Channels” view, and you’ll also be able to flip between channels by clicking the navigation buttons on the remote.
The channel guide should begin rolling out this week to Roku’s streaming players, such as the Roku Ultra, Roku Premiere+ and the Roku Express, while Roku TVs and other Roku-enabled devices will get the grid in the coming weeks.