Roku Streaming Stick 4K Review: Dolby Vision and Long-Range Wi-Fi

The Roku Streaming Stick 4K is a compact streaming device offering 4K/60fps, Dolby Vision, HDR10+, long-range Wi-Fi and a simple Roku interface at an affordable price.

Although some listings call it the 2022 model, the current Roku Streaming Stick 4K model 3820 was originally introduced in late 2021 and remains available from Roku in 2026.

Roku Streaming Stick 4K Specs

Roku officially supports 4K HDR at up to 60fps with Dolby Vision, HDR10, HDR10+ and HLG.

4K Picture Quality

The Streaming Stick 4K supports 3840 × 2160 resolution at up to 60fps.

It also supports:

Dolby Vision
HDR10+
HDR10
HLG

Dolby Vision is one of its biggest advantages over cheaper streaming players, particularly when paired with compatible OLED or Mini LED TVs.

Dolby Vision

Dolby Vision uses dynamic HDR metadata to optimize brightness and contrast throughout compatible movies and shows.

The Streaming Stick 4K is therefore a good match for TVs from brands such as:

• LG
• Sony
• TCL
• Hisense

provided the television supports Dolby Vision.

Independent testing found excellent 4K HDR playback quality from the Roku Stick.

HDR10+

The Roku Streaming Stick 4K also supports HDR10+.

Having both Dolby Vision and HDR10+ gives the Roku broad compatibility with HDR content across different streaming platforms.

Long-Range Wi-Fi

One of the Stick’s signature features is its long-range Wi-Fi receiver, which is built into the USB power cable.

Roku says its redesigned receiver can provide up to twice the Wi-Fi speed of the previous Streaming Stick+ generation.

This can be useful if your television is located farther from your router.

Wi-Fi 5

The Streaming Stick 4K uses 802.11ac dual-band MIMO Wi-Fi, commonly known as Wi-Fi 5.

It supports both:

2.4GHz
5GHz

There is no Wi-Fi 6 or Wi-Fi 6E support, which is one area where newer premium streaming devices have an advantage.

Performance

The Streaming Stick 4K uses a quad-core processor.

When it launched, Roku claimed up to 30% faster startup performance compared with the previous Streaming Stick+.

Independent testing found navigation responsive and general streaming performance good for its price, although premium devices such as Roku Ultra and Apple TV 4K are faster.

Roku Interface

Roku’s interface remains one of the device’s biggest strengths.

Instead of heavily focusing on one company’s streaming ecosystem, the home screen primarily presents your installed apps in a simple grid.

This makes it easy to access services such as Netflix, Prime Video, Disney+, Apple TV and YouTube.

The Roku Channel also offers free ad-supported movies, shows and live TV.

Roku Voice Remote

The included Roku Voice Remote can control both the streaming stick and compatible televisions.

It includes:

• Voice search
• TV power
• Volume control
• Mute
• Playback controls

Unlike Roku Ultra’s premium remote, however, this standard remote uses AAA batteries rather than a rechargeable battery.

Apple AirPlay & HomeKit

The Streaming Stick 4K works with:

Apple AirPlay
Apple HomeKit
Google Home
Amazon Alexa

AirPlay is particularly useful for streaming photos, music and videos from an iPhone, iPad or Mac.

Compact Design

The Streaming Stick 4K plugs directly into your television’s HDMI port.

It measures approximately 3.7 × 0.8 × 0.45 inches and weighs only 26g.

Its compact design makes it particularly useful for:

• Wall-mounted TVs
• Bedrooms
• Travel
• Projectors
• Secondary TVs

Audio

The Roku supports digital stereo, DTS Digital Surround passthrough and passthrough of Dolby-encoded audio through HDMI.

However, Dolby Atmos is not one of the model’s headline supported audio formats, which is a disadvantage compared with devices such as the Fire TV Stick 4K Max. Independent testing also identified the lack of Dolby Atmos as a drawback.

Pros

✓ 4K streaming up to 60fps
✓ Dolby Vision
✓ HDR10+ support
✓ Long-range Wi-Fi receiver
✓ Simple Roku interface
✓ Roku Voice Remote included
✓ Apple AirPlay and HomeKit
✓ Alexa and Google Home support
✓ Extremely compact design
✓ Still officially supported and sold by Roku

Cons

✗ Wi-Fi 5 instead of Wi-Fi 6
✗ No Wi-Fi 6E
✗ No Ethernet port
✗ No premium rechargeable remote
✗ No headline Dolby Atmos support
✗ Older hardware platform

Roku Streaming Stick 4K Rating

Picture Quality: 9.4/10
HDR Support: 9.6/10
Performance: 8.7/10
Wi-Fi: 8.7/10
Remote: 8.8/10
Ease of Use: 9.5/10
Value: 9.2/10

Overall: 9.1/10

Verdict

The Roku Streaming Stick 4K remains a very good compact streaming device for users who want a simple interface and broad HDR support without buying a premium streaming box.

Its biggest strengths are Dolby Vision, HDR10+, 4K/60 streaming, long-range Wi-Fi and Roku’s easy-to-use interface.

Its biggest weakness is aging connectivity. It still uses Wi-Fi 5 and lacks features such as the Wi-Fi 6, Ethernet, Bluetooth and premium rechargeable remote available on Roku Ultra.

For an affordable and portable Dolby Vision 4K streamer, however, the Roku Streaming Stick 4K remains a strong option in 2026.