Watching The Roku Channel

As much of a Roku fan as I am -- I'm certain you can tell by my writing -- you may be surprised to learn that I don't use The Roku Channel. Well, not much.

My streaming habits may not be the same as yours. When I sit down to watch TV, I'll check Hulu for current season content, and watch it if there is something available.

Then, if I'm playing catchup on older TV series, I'll launch whatever app carries what I'm catching up on. For me, right now, it's Paramount+ and Blue Bloods. I never watched the show, but have seen that it's been on for over a decade, so I thought I'd give it a try. I like it and am working my way though the seasons.

Then, after catching up on current or older shows, I'll often switch to YouTube and watch shorter videos about whatever piques my interest at the time. Perhaps a history video, something about the space program, the two British chaps on Cracking The Cryptic solving Sudoku puzzles, a Dark Corners review of a really bad movie, or something that catches my eye.

Where would The Roku Channel fit in this? Well, that's kinda the point. There are some aspects of The Roku Channel that just don't appeal to me.

Sure, I get that I can subscribe to premium services such as Showtime, Starz, BET+, Acorn TV, and a whole lot more. Only, I won't. Not that I wouldn't subscribe to those services, but that I won't subscribe through The Roku Channel.

You see, a Roku subscription is only good on Roku. For instance, if I subscribed to Showtime on Roku, I could only watch it on Roku, or via The Roku Channel. If I had the Showtime app on my phone, I couldn't watch it with that subscription.

Now, to be fair to Roku, the same is true for Amazon, or any other service that offers subscriptions. When you subscribe that way, you can't use it on other platforms or services.

The other thing about The Roku Channel is that the live and on-demand content is similar to what I'll find on Pluto TV, on Tubi, or on Xumo. It's just another one of those type of services. 

At least, that's the impression I get. Maybe I'm wrong. So, I'll find out if I'm wrong.

I'm going to spend the next week or two focusing on watching The Roku Channel. I won't be doing subscriptions, but I will try the other content and see how it goes.

Maybe my Streaming Life has been missing something that would make it so much better. Maybe I'm missing a real gem. If so, I'll be sure to let you know.