Roku UK Channel Store - Weekly RoundUp #89

Hi, everyone !!

At some point during the past 24 hours... pretty much everyone that owns a Roku player, no matter which "region" they are in, will have noticed a change to the backdrop (i.e. "theme") on the Home Screen of their streaming media player(s). If you're a big fan of Autumn (i.e. 'Fall', for the benefit of our Trans-Atlantic cousins) then you will no doubt have welcomed this change to a more "seasonal" look. However, there will be others who were less appreciative of the enforced change of scenery thrust upon your television screen(s) as a result of this back-door "update", ahem !! Anyway... if you didn't like the new theme, and haven't already discovered yourself, it's possible to switch back to your previous theme (or select another, from the choices available) via the 'Settings' menu on your Roku. All you need do is navigate to "Settings > Themes > My themes" from the Home Screen & highlight your choice of "theme". This gives you a thumbnail screenshot of what you can expect as your backdrop (if selected) and it's then just a matter of pressing the "OK" button to confirm your choice and save the change.

If, in future, you'd rather not take advantage of (or, be subjected to) these seasonal themes, then you can SIMPLY SWITCH THEM OFF, which is (again) easily achieved VIA THE CUSTOM SETTINGS in your Roku 'Settings' menu. Simply navigate to "Settings > Themes > Custom settings", from the Home Screen of your Roku, and you will see the option to have "Seasonal themes: On", or else "Seasonal themes: Off". It's then just a matter of deciding what's best for you and highlighting your choice before pressing the "OK" button to confirm it and save the change. Those choosing to leave "Seasonal themes: On" will find that their Roku player(s) will automatically switch to a "Seasonal theme" whenever one is available, and then automatically switch back to their previous choice of "Theme" when it expires. Anyone opting for "Seasonal themes: Off" will find that their Roku player(s) DOES NOT automatically switch to a "Seasonal theme", BUT... for the period of time that a "Seasonal theme" IS AVAILABLE, you can still switch to it (manually) as and when you like. In other words, IF YOU DO NOT WANT to have your Roku switch to a "Seasonal theme", without your actively choosing to do so, then all you need do is deactivate SEASONAL THEMES by choosing "Seasonal themes: Off", which will leave your Roku player "Theme" set just as you like it, with no danger of any unexpected changes in the future, unless you choose otherwise !!

Personally I like the "surprise" element of these "Seasonal themes" which can often appear for just a day, or sometimes (perhaps) for a weekend, and (occasionally) for a whole week or even longer, and I was rather thrilled to discover the 'Fall' theme on my Roku this morning, so (unsurprisingly) I (for one) will be leaving my "Seasonal themes On" for the foreseeable future to see what excitement lies in store as the days, weeks, months and years unfold. That said, I couldn't help but notice how the overall look of the (current) 'Fall' theme is rather "orange" and that got me thinking about some of the Roku channels (or "apps", if you prefer) whose icons have been "Tango'ed" during the last year or so. There's 'Viewster', 'DailyBurn' and 'Crunchyroll' (to name but a few) plus, let's not forget the "other" channel which, despite having been non-functional in the UK since April 2014, also insisted on drawing attention to itself by going "Dutch" with it's icon... and, if you're in need of an additional clue as to the specific identity for this "channel which shall not be named", those of you familiar with the 'Rice Krispie' breakfast cereal can decipher it by removing both 'Snap' and 'Pop' from the equation !!


Before I proceed any further with this 'Weekly RoundUp'... a quick reminder that, whilst I had hoped that I'd be able to catch-up on the missing Roku-related news from this blog in the coming weeks, with all the extra work I've been burdened with of late, it remains unlikely that I'll be fully caught-up anytime soon. Until I do find the time... my one saving grace is that (as mentioned previously) I have somehow managed to remain up-to-date with all of the latest additions to the "New" category of the "Official" Roku UK Channel Store and will endeavour to flesh-out what's missing ASAP! Admittedly, there are quite a few articles that I need to catch up on but, rather than post links for individual weeks, I'll simply refer you back to my "Roku UK Channel Store - Weekly RoundUp #78", which contains all of the pertinent information you might need when researching back over the items in question. Again, I'm sorry this has dragged-on (far) longer than anticipated, and apologise for any inconvenience this may have caused you in the meantime, but (all being well) things will be back to speed before too long!

For now... all I can offer you (once more) is a brief summary of the latest channel additions to the "Official" Roku UK Channel Store from the past seven days. As with my other recent posts, you can expect all the Roku-related news from this past week, along with details of any changes to the channel selection found on NowTV Boxes, to be added at some point in the near future. As for "mending" all of the "broken" links from previous 'Weekly RoundUp' posts, I still can't put a time-scale on how long that is going to take but (like I said before) if you "copy" the existing link(s) and change the "http" prefix to "https", as well as removing the "forward slash" between 'channels' and '#!details', so that "channels#/!details" becomes "channels#!details" in each weblink, you should find that they will all work for you and redirect to the new-look version of each individual channel description. As with the last couple of 'Weekly RoundUp' posts, every link from this week (as well as all future posts) will make use of the new format, so it's only those from 'Weekly RoundUp #1' up as far as 'Weekly RoundUp #86' which you'll have to amend... at least, until I can edit/repair the links for you !!

Anyway, with all the "missing" Roku-related news (and links) still to follow, let's now press on with the current 'Weekly RoundUp' of NEW ADDITIONS to the "Official" Roku UK Channel Store. This time, there are TWENTY-SEVEN NEW CHANNELS which have been added during the past seven days. These latest additions to the channel line-up provided FRESH CONTENT in each of the Film & TV, Games, News, Weather, Sport, Music, Photos & Video, Food, Special Interest, plus Religion & Spirituality genres (i.e. categories). Specifically, this means there's EIGHT NEW "Special Interest" CHANNELS in addition to SIX NEW "Film & TV" CHANNELS and FOUR NEW "Religion & Spirituality" CHANNELS, as well as TWO MORE OPTIONS in each of the "News, Weather, Sport", "Music", "Photos & Video" and  "Food" categories plus ONE EXTRA CHANNEL in the "Games" genre, among the selection of new channels that have been added to the channel store on all Roku streaming media players in the UK, during the last week. 

In keeping with previous installments from the 'Weekly RoundUp' series, details of these new channels have all been listed below, together with links to obtain further information {by clicking on the channel name(s) beneath the respective channel icon(s) as pictured} and to read a 'Roku Guide' review with an independent (slightly more expansive) assessment of each one:-

METALMUSIC.FM.................................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

PLEASE NOTE:- That, because the 'MetalMusic.FM' channel for Roku players was first added to the "Official" Roku USA Channel Store in mid-September 2014, you will not find it listed in the "New" category of the "Official" Roku UK Channel Store as that section only features channels released within the last month or so. Instead, those of you in the UK wishing to add 'MetalMusic.FM' to your Roku streaming media player(s) will need to do so from the "Music" category of the "Official" Roku UK Channel Store. Once installed, you will find one sub-channel with a 24/7 LIVE STREAMING audio simulcast of the 'MetalMusic.FM' radio station PLUS various other sub-channels allowing you to stream on-demand video(s) from the likes of classic "metal" acts such as Metallica, Slayer, Pantera, Megadeth and Anthrax... as well as a few (slightly) more modern exponents of the genre like Lacuna Coil and Lamb of God. In addition to those, you'll find various other documentaries and interviews featuring more big names like Iron Maiden and Mötley Crüe as well as Lemmy (from Motörhead) along with some general video overviews of the "metal" genre as a whole, all collected within another sub-channel of 'MetalMusic.FM' for Roku. You will also see one sub-channel of "New Stuff" which, like the "New" category of the "Official" Roku UK Channel Store, only includes the very latest content "Added This Month" by the content providers. However, if you really can't wait for a fresh dose of  "metal" music on your Roku, there is always the option to "Get notified when new content is added" by following the 'MetalMusic.FM' Twitter Feed: @metalmusic_fm for all the latest updates.

ALHIKMAT TV......................................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

CHRIST FAMILY NETWORK.............................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

ALIENS and COWBOYS..............COST: £0.69 (ONE-OFF PAYMENT) [Roku Guide Review]

VEGAS SPORTS ADVISORS...............................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

BIZARRE [by Fawesome.TV].................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

MOVIES [by Fawesome.TV]...................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

ZOOMIN.TV CULTURE........................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

ZOOMIN.TV MOVIES...........................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

ZOOMIN.TV SCIENCE and TECH.......................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

ZOOMIN.TV CARS................................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

ZOOMIN.TV TRAVEL..........................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

ZOOMIN.TV SPORTS...........................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

SIMPLE DAILY RECIPES.....................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

FILMS and STARS..................................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

THIS IS TV..............................................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

COPYKAT RECIPES.............................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

SMART MED PLUS NETWORKS.......................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

SOON TV...........COST: FREE (Limited Access) + $5.99 (MONTHLY) [Roku Guide Review]

PLEASE NOTE:- That, although the 'SOON TV' channel is FREE-TO-ADD to your Roku player(s), the channel description from the "Official" Roku UK Channel Store states that this particular channel "May require addditional fees" in order to view it's content. What this means is that, whilst some of the content of the 'SOON TV' channel is FREE-TO-VIEW (incl. a dozen or so videos of Christian-based programming PLUS several classic movies & TV series) courtesy of a 'Free Preview' category in the channel sub-menu, there is ALSO A (MONTHLY) SUBSCRIPTION OPTION through which you can watch the entire library of content for a fee of $5.99 PER MONTH which gives access to far more content. For further details, I suggest you first read the 'Roku Guide' review for this channel (see link above) and then visit the 'SOON TV' website, FOUND HERE, or (if you prefer) you can submit any questions you may have via their Facebook Page: SOON TV (Facebook) or Twitter Feed: @SoonTV. In the meantime, anyone who'd like to register for a monthly subscription, can do so VIA THIS LINK.

ZOOMIN.TV FASHION.........................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

TETRIS [Roku 3 & Roku Stick ONLY]...........COST: FREE + $4.99 (UPGRADE) [Roku Guide Review]

PLEASE NOTE:- That, whilst 'Tetris' is FREE-TO-ADD to both 'Roku Stick (HDMI Version)' and 'Roku 3' player(s) on which it offers access to ONE FREE-TO-PLAY MODE of gameplay in the shape of their "Marathon" gaming mode, you will need to PURCHASE the $4.99 UPGRADE if you'd like TO UNLOCK 2 EXTRA GAME MODES, namely "Sprint" and "Ultra", to take advantage of further 'Tetris' block-building challenges with which to test your skills.

ALSO: Since this 'Tetris' game is (currently) AVAILABLE ON 'Roku 3' AND 'Roku Stick' ONLY owners of the former flagship model, i.e. 'Roku 2 XS', will have to "do an Asquith"... in other words, "wait-and-see" if the folks at 'Tetris' extend this Roku gaming channel to their streaming media player(s). That said, the channel description does state that "This game supports the Roku Game Remote" so, as far as I can tell, there is no reason why 'Tetris' could not be made available on 'Roku 2 XS' models as well. So, let's just hope that the developer (Tetris Online, Inc.) can perform the necessary edit(s) to their gaming channel soon and extend this classic game to even more Roku owners (in all regions) whilst, at the same time, opening-up a new revenue (ahem!) "stream" (if you'll pardon the pun) for this product on the Roku platform - COME ON 'TETRIS'... YOU KNOW IT MAKES SENSE !!

MARTUS MINISTRY.............................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

DEAD SHOWS........................................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

TOONTIME CHRISTMAS.....................................................COST: FREE [Roku Guide Review]

TOONTIME CHRISTMAS - AD FREE.......COST: £0.69 (ANNUALLY) [Roku Guide Review]

PICTA FOR DROPBOX................COST: £1.99 (ONE-OFF PAYMENT) [Roku Guide Review]

PICTA FOR ONEDRIVE...............COST: £1.99 (ONE-OFF PAYMENT) [Roku Guide Review]

*********************************************

Anyhow, like it or not, that is your lot for this week and, whilst it doesn't quite match-up to the twenty-nine channels which made it into the "Official" Roku USA Channel Store during the same time-frame, I always think it's better to have SOME NEW CHOICES than none at all, don't you ?!!

Still, hopefully everyone in the UK with a Roku player managed to find something they like within the twenty-seven channels outlined above. If not, then you'll just have to pay us a visit another time when, with any luck, there will be something more to your liking. Afterall, there's no point installing every channel because, as I've said before, when it comes to adding new channels to your Roku player, IT'S YOUR CHOICE and, as with all things Roku... THE CHOICE IS ALWAYS YOURS !!

*********************************************

As mentioned earlier in this post, you can expect my usual summary of all the goings-on (or not) in the (severely restricted) Roku Channel Store that features on NowTV Boxes to follow in the near future. Meanwhile, whether you happen to own a Roku player, a NowTV Box, OR BOTH, as I do... be sure to check my previous posts (as mentioned above) for all the new additions to the "Official" Roku UK Channel Store in each of the sixteen preceding weeks and then come back again in seven days' time for my next 'Weekly RoundUp'. However, if you can't wait that long, remember you can always keep up with all the UK Roku action (as it happens) throughout the coming week, by following the companion Twitter Feed: @ukrokuchannels where up-to-the-minute info on all things Roku-related (here in the UK) is posted on a daily basis (well, almost).

Until the next time, then...

That's all folks !!