The new Roku remote has an Apple TV+ button on it

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Roku Voice Remote Pro
Roku Voice Remote Pro (Image credit: Roku)

What you need to know

  • Roku today announced a new voice Remote Pro with a dedicated Apple TV+ button.
  • Roku OS 10 brings AirPlay 2 and HomeKit to some Roku devices.

Roku today announced a new remote control that has a few funky new features, not least the addition of a button that's dedicated to launching the Apple TV app for Apple TV+ viewing. The button is a simple black affair with the familiar Apple TV+ logo on it and it now has pride of place beside similar buttons for Netflix, Disney+, and Hulu.

The new remote will retail for $29.99 and it comes with some other notable features, not least the fact that you can ask "hey Roku, where's my remote?" and have the thing play a chime so you can find it. There's also a new hands-free control feature that lets you control everything without picking the remote up, not to mention a rechargeable battery that should last for a few months before needing any attention.

Alongside the new remote Roku also announced the Roku OS 10 software that is available for select new devices. Most notable here is the addition of both AirPlay 2 and HomeKit support for Apple users.

In addition to select 4K Roku devices, Apple AirPlay 2 and HomeKit will now also be available on HD Roku streaming devices, like the Roku Express and select HD Roku TV models. With AirPlay 2, you can stream, control and share your favorite content directly from your iPhone, iPad or Mac to compatible Roku devices, bringing the experience to the big screen. Compatible Roku devices also support HomeKit, which allows you to easily and securely control Roku devices using Siri or the Home app on your Apple devices.

The Roku OS 10 update is already rolling out to some devices now including the new Roku Express 4K+ and Roku Streambar Pro. It'll be coming to all Roky TV models in due course, too.

Now that Roku offers a remote with an Apple TV+ button, maybe it's time to get yourself the best TV for Apple TV+, too?

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Oliver Haslam
Oliver Haslam
Contributor

Oliver Haslam has written about Apple and the wider technology business for more than a decade with bylines on How-To Geek, PC Mag, iDownloadBlog, and many more. He has also been published in print for Macworld, including cover stories. At iMore, Oliver is involved in daily news coverage and, not being short of opinions, has been known to 'explain' those thoughts in more detail, too. Having grown up using PCs and spending far too much money on graphics card and flashy RAM, Oliver switched to the Mac with a G5 iMac and hasn't looked back. Since then he's seen the growth of the smartphone world, backed by iPhone, and new product categories come and go. Current expertise includes iOS, macOS, streaming services, and pretty much anything that has a battery or plugs into a wall. Oliver also covers mobile gaming for iMore, with Apple Arcade a particular focus. He's been gaming since the Atari 2600 days and still struggles to comprehend the fact he can play console quality titles on his pocket computer.