Roku Launches New Smart Home Monitoring System and New Features
When I ask people about Roku, the first thing that comes to their mind is the streaming media device. They were one of the first companies to market a streaming media device that seems to be all the rage today. But that is all about to change today. The company is expanding its smart home product line to include a new smart home monitoring system and new features at an affordable cost.
Today, the company announced an expansion to Roku's Smart Home lineup to include home monitoring devices, adding to the existing suite of security cameras, video doorbells, lighting, plugs, and more. The new Roku Home Monitoring System SE includes all the essential pieces to feel safer at home – two entry sensors, a motion sensor, a wire-free keypad, and a hub with a built-in siren – with the option to either monitor your home yourself or subscribe to professional 24/7 monitoring. The products will be available starting today online at Walmart.com and Roku.com and exclusively in Walmart stores starting May 19.
"Roku's new home monitoring system provides peace of mind while being easier than ever to set up, control, and monitor," said Mark Robins, vice president of Roku Smart Home. "We are proud to further extend Roku's Smart Home lineup with affordable, simple ways to secure the safety of any home."
The Roku Home Monitoring System SE offers guided videos and clear illustrations so users can set up their system quickly and easily, with no tools required. With Home, Away, and Off modes and customizable monitoring rules through the system keypad or the Roku Smart Home mobile app, users can be in control wherever they are. Users can configure settings to be notified when sensors detect a door is opened or closed or an alarm goes off, as well as arm or disarm the system from home with the system keypad or on the go from the mobile app.
Developed in partnership with Wyze labs, the five-piece Roku Home Monitoring System SE is the most affordable home monitoring solution, priced at $99, and includes:
- Two entry sensors: Get notified on your phone when a door or window is open, closed, or left open.
- Motion sensor: Get notified – or automatically turn on a light – when motion is detected and got a dog or cat? Ignore pets with an adjustable setting.
- Hub with a built-in siren: Notify the house – and the neighborhood – if an emergency is detected.
- Keypad: Easily arm or disarm your home, change modes, or manually sound your alarm.
The system is easily expandable with additional entry sensors, motion sensors, and keypads.
Buy on Walmart
Users can self-monitor their homes for free or subscribe to affordable 24/7 professional monitoring powered by Noonlight, a competent, professional monitoring leader. Roku Smart Home Professional Monitoring offers an immediate response from live U.S.-based agents when an alarm is triggered. And subscribers can request emergency assistance with one tap in the Roku Smart Home mobile app or on the keypad. Professional Monitoring is available for $9.99 a month or $99.99 a year, and subscribers who choose annual billing receive 50% off their first year.
Additional Roku Smart Home products new to the portfolio include an advanced Roku Smart Light Strip+ SE that allows users to show up to 16 different colors at once and a Roku Solar Panel that powers the wire-free Roku Outdoor Camera SE.
Enhanced Roku OS integration
Roku Smart Home customers who also use a Roku player or TV powered by the Roku Operating System, the #1 smart TV OS sold in the U.S (According to Circana Q1 2023), will be able to access the following new features as the latest Roku TV OS rolls out automatically in the coming weeks:
- Monitor your home from your TV – See an on-TV notification and alarm countdown when your Roku Home Monitoring System SE is armed and a sensor is triggered.
- Access your camera event history on your TV – Experience seamless integration between your connected camera and doorbell smart home devices with the Roku Cameras app, which downloads automatically to your Roku player or TV powered by the Roku OS. View live camera footage easily; now, click "Events" to see previous recordings' history filtered by preference.
- Control Roku Smart Home devices with just your voice – Speak into your Roku remote or mobile app to control Roku lights or smart plugs, show live camera feeds on your Roku-powered TV screen, and more. Roku Voice integration now allows you to turn Roku lights on or off and change their brightness and color hands-free or at the click of a button.
Availability
The Roku Home Monitoring System SE, additional keypads, motion sensors, entry sensors, and the Roku Smart Light Strip+ SE are available online at Walmart.com and Roku.com beginning today and exclusively in U.S. Walmart stores (excluding U.S. territories) beginning May 15. The Roku Solar Panel will be available this June. For more information on Roku Smart Home products, please visit www.Roku.com/products/smart-home.
Buy on Walmart
All Roku Smart Home devices are certified by ioXt Alliance, the global standard for IoT security.
GearBrain hopes to test the new Roku Smart Home system in an average home in the coming weeks. We do all our testing in someone's home with average connectivity. We want to see how well it performs in delivering its promises. We will report back to you on how it performed. With the launch of this new smart home security system, it looks like Roku is ready to take on some of the big DIY smart home security titans like SimpliSafe and ADT+, and Ring Alarm. One of the exciting features we see that their competitors don't necessarily have simplified for the consumer is monitoring your system from your smart TV. Many of the competitors have this functionality, but you need a voice assistant built-in to your smart TV. Roku makes TVs and is already installed in many smart televisions. This is a nice feature to have if you want your TV to be the controller for your smart home. More to come.
And to help you determine if your smart devices are compatible with the Roku Smart Home system and new smart devices, use The GearBrain, our smart home compatibility find engine for smart devices. It can help you find, buy and connect any smart device for your smart home.
