
Explorer for Internet attempts to do what a handful of previous apps have tried to do: Provide a web browser for Roku devices. Like the previous apps, Explorer for Internet provides an interesting demonstration of Roku programming abilities, but does a mediocre (or worse) browsing experience. It's worth noting, however, that Roku, Inc. has always designed its devices for streaming media, not for general Internet browsing. Also keep in mind that this is a 3rd-party app that was not developed by Roku, Inc.. Despite the name and the app's logo, Explorer for Internet is not an app from Microsoft (which owns the Internet Explorer browser) or Google (which owns the Chrome browser logo).
Using the browser is straightforward - you can type in a search request or use your Roku remote's microphone if so equipped. Once you enter your search request, you'll be presented with five results, each showing the web page title, URL, and a brief page description. You can scroll down to load more results if you so desire. Select the search result you want to view and click on it to (hopefully) load the web page.
Web pages appear to be delivered as static images, but are rendered as text only with limited images and interactivity. Links on the page available in a menu on the right-hand side of the screen (use the [LEFT] directional button on your remote to access it). You can select any link to open that page.
The app comes with one free search, after which you can make in-app purchases for credits for additional searches (see fees below). We used our one free credit to search the word "moon" and came up with the following results: A Wikipedia page that loaded only a blank screen the first several tries, then finally loaded only the "above the fold" portion of the page; Earth's Moon from NASA, which never loaded a page at all, but did provide the menu of internal links from that page; a page for the movie Moon (2009) on IMDB, which delivered a "404 Forbidden" error; the moon phase for today and tonight from Moongiant, which loaded properly; and the website for Abraham Moon, a British cloth provider, which displayed only a blank page and the internal links menu. All sites were excruciatingly slow to load.
Roku users have been clamoring for a web browser for years, and they still are. But as Roku's forum moderator states in the preceding link, "Roku is fundamentally designed as a streaming platform, focused on delivering a seamless experience for watching your favorite shows and movies." If you really must view websites through your Roku, you can use Roku's screen mirroring feature.
-- Information is current as of January 17, 2025
CHANNEL STORE DESCRIPTION: Transform your Roku TV into a powerful search engine with Explorer for Internet! Enjoy voice and text searches, quick results, and a user-friendly interface—all ad-free. Experience seamless browsing and unlock a world of information, entertainment, and learning from your couch. Discover more here!
CHANNEL STORE CATEGORY: Apps
DEVELOPER: Dope Games
FEES: None for initial search; additional searches are $2.99/50 credits to $9.99/200 credits (1 credit = 1 search)