Tired of searching through multiple Roku channels for a specific movie or TV show? Looking for work by a particular actor or director? For those with a Roku 2, Roku LT, or Roku HD player, or the Roku Streaming Stick, the new Roku Search feature will let you search across Netflix, Amazon Instant Video, Hulu Plus, Crackle, VUDU and HBO GO.
When you search from within Roku Search, auto-complete provides suggestions based on the letters you're typing. Select a movie or TV title, and you'll be presented with a list of channels that offer the selected title. Pick the channel you want and you'll be taken to title on that channel. Don't worry, you won't be charged if you select a movie from the search screen - if there is a fee, you will still need to select the purchase or rent option from within the channel.
If you select the name of an actor or director, you'll be shown a list of all the movies and TV shows that that person acted in or directed, and which are available on one of the Roku channels listed above. (Planning a Tom Hanks marathon? There are 37 Tom Hanks movies and 1 TV show on the Roku.) Select one of those titles and you'll be shown the channels that carry that video.
The Roku Search feature requires the latest firmware upgrade, which is being pushed out to Roku users over the next few days. If you want to use Roku Search now, go to the Roku Player Settings option on your Roku home screen, scroll down to "Software update", and see if your software version is 4.8, build 3520 or higher. If not, click on "Software update" and then on "Check now". Download the update and give your Roku player a few minutes update and restart itself.
Next, you'll need to add the Roku Search feature as you would add a channel through the Roku website. You can click here (you may be prompted to login with your Roku username and password), or go to www.roku.com, log into your Roku account, click on "Add a Private Channel", then enter the code YN3G6N. Go back to your Roku player, enter and exit the channel store, and the Roku Search feature should be available as the second option from the left.
Roku reports that nearly 130,000 movies and TV episodes and almost 100,000 actors and directors are available through the search feature. This is a great addition for those who are looking for modern-era mainstream films and TV shows. Don't forget, though, that there are over 500 Roku channels besides the six included in Roku search. And that doesn't include channels in the Games or Screensavers & Apps categories.
For more information on the Roku Search feature, visit the official Roku Blog. You can see the Roku Search feature in action in the following Roku-produced video:
