If you're the kind of person who constantly loses the remote to your Roku streaming device and spends an eternity finding it, there's good news for you. Now, there's a free Roku app available for the Apple Watch that lets you control your Roku device directly from your wrist.
The company announced that an Apple Watch app that lets you control your Roku devices, including Roku media players and some Roku TV models, with a simple tap of a button, very much like the Roku mobile app for iOS and Android devices, but resized for your Apple Watch.
Considering its screen limitations, the Roku app for the Apple Watch is pretty solid as far as its feature set is concerned. In addition to the usual media controls like the ability to play and pause content, the app also includes a home button, a select or "OK" button, a back button, as well as a directional arrow layout.
It also allows users to launch their favorite channels or platforms, which are arranged in the order of the most recently launched, making them quite convenient to access and saves them the trouble of having to scroll all the way down to the bottom of the screen to find it.
Moreover, the app also comes with voice search functionality. To enable the feature, just select the microphone icon and then say commands like "Launch Netflix" or "search for comedies." You can even change the TV's source with commands like "switch HDMI 1," according to the company. The voice search feature is compatible with Apple Watch versions 1 through 5- it apparently doesn't work with the first-generation watch.
Wait. There's more. The app also comes with the Remote Finder functionality so if you choose to use the actual remote control but can't remember where you left it or if it's stuck between your sofa cushions, the app will signal the Roku Remote to play an audible chime so you can locate it. This feature is only available on the Roku Ultra or a Roku TV.
To get the Roku Apple Watch app, you need to update your Roku iOS app to the latest version (6.1.3). The app should then show up on your Apple Watch provided that you don't have the "Automatic App Install" disabled in the Watch's Settings.
