Easy methods to stream by way of a VPN on Roku

The Roku sensible TV platform is an accessible approach to watch your favourite streaming content material in a centralized location – both built-in to TVs, or by including reasonably priced dongles or mini bins, just like the new-for-2024 Roku Ultra, to older televisions. (Search for an Engadget evaluate of that mannequin quickly.) One huge benefit of the Roku platform is that it is at all times getting free software program updates to maintain it present — just like the cool new characteristic that turns your TV right into a kind of digital artwork museum by displaying famous paintings as a screensaver. Nonetheless, Roku is much less adept in relation to fixing one frequent frustration of the streaming age: The shortcoming to entry standard exhibits, motion pictures and sporting occasions due to geographic restrictions.

Utilizing a VPN is a typical approach to deal with this concern, however not like Hearth TV, Apple TV and different rivals, Roku methods don’t have native VPN assist. However that’s not the tip of the story: You’ll be able to nonetheless use a VPN to entry a wider vary of programming by way of a Roku — you simply want to make use of a workaround. We’ll present you ways.

The advantages of utilizing a VPN

Relating to streaming, a VPN has one most important profit: altering your IP deal with — the distinctive quantity that identifies the overall location of the machine and community you are utilizing to entry the online. A VPN tunnels your connection by way of its servers to obfuscate your IP, making it appear to be you’re watching from elsewhere. In consequence, a service like Netflix will see your location as, say, the UK versus the US. You’ll then have entry to a unique set of programming. For instance, you want Max to stream Buddies, The Massive Bang Principle or Rick and Morty within the US, however they’re all accessible on Netflix within the UK.

VPNs have a number of different advantages associated to privateness and safety. VPN servers have military-grade AES 256-bit encryption, that means they’re safer than connecting to the Web usually. So, because you’re searching the Web by tunneling by way of the VPN, your Web service supplier can’t see your entire searching locations (and promote your viewing habits to information brokers).

The simplest approach to make use of a VPN on Roku

Though Roku doesn’t natively assist VPNs, there are a couple of workarounds. You’ll be able to, as an illustration, set up a VPN on your home’s router. That lets you shield the entire community and each machine that connects to it, holding everybody in your family nameless on-line. However it might additionally trigger confusion whenever you wish to entry native companies — and it requires a really high-level of technical data, and solely works with sure routers.

As a substitute, we advocate a far simpler technique: connecting a VPN to your Roku by way of AirPlay or screencast. To do that, subscribe to a VPN and set up it in your smartphone or laptop computer. Then, stream content material on that machine and AirPlay or screencast it to your Roku TV. The icon to do that ought to appear like a TV with Wi-Fi rays.

We favor this technique as a result of it’s easier total. You’ll be able to entry any geo-blocked content material in your smartphone or laptop computer first after which forged it in your sensible TV.

You can also make certain your Roku mannequin is AirPlay-compatible by checking this resource on Roku’s site. If it isn’t, you possibly can at all times simply immediately patch your telephone or laptop computer to the TV utilizing an HDMI cable or an appropriate dongle.

Selecting the very best VPN

When you’ll be utilizing a telephone or laptop computer as the last word supply in your VPN-routed streams, that truly offers you a wider record of companies from which to decide on. Though every VPN has the identical primary functionalities, their value and additional options differ. Earlier than deciding which one is correct in your wants and the units you’ve got, take a while to take a look at what each provides and see what different customers should say. Begin by trying out our record of best VPNs — and completely satisfied streaming.

VPN choices for different streaming platforms

Do not have a Roku? Excellent news: Strong VPN choices (or options) exist for the opposite main streaming platforms, too.