Update: Plex Live TV now available on Roku

Update (10/12/17): Plex is now rolling out the Live TV to Roku users. Previously, the service had only been available for Android, Android TV, iOS, Apple TV, Fire TV, and on the Plex web app. Now Roku users with software version v5.0.4 or newer and access to the Roku Preview Channel can get in on the action too.

Almost all the features you’d see on other devices are here too. You can watch live TV, play, pause, and skip around, and watch recordings from supported platforms. You cannot set up new recordings through Roku or Plex DVR, however. The app is still in beta, but Plex plans to release it to all Plex Pass members in a week.

To begin watching live TV on your Roku right now, you’ll need access to the Roku Preview Channel, a Plex Pass, an antenna, and a tuner to make it all work. You can read more on Plex’s blog.

Original article (6/1/17): People aren’t really watching TV anymore, at least in the way they used to. Cable and satellite subscriptions cost too much nowadays, which is why many media companies have been jumping on the live TV train. Sling TV, YouTube TV, Hulu with Live TV, and DirecTV Now are some of the more popular streaming services out there, and today another major player is being added to that list. Plex is launching support for Live TV!

Plex Live TV allows you to watch and record live television right on your Plex Media Server. As long as you have access to a compatible tuner and are a Plex Pass subscriber, you can stream your favorite free HDTV broadcast channels to your Plex-compatible devices, anywhere in the world.

The best part? There are no extra fees or hoops to jump through to get access to Plex Live TV as long as you have a Plex Pass. You can get a Plex Pass for $4.99 per month, $39.99 per year, or for $119.99 for a lifetime subscription.

On top of live TV support, Plex is also rolling out a bunch of updates to its DVR service. In the Live TV application on your OS of choice, you’ll now be able to browse the program guide and manage recordings. The DVR scheduler can now also handle overlapping recordings on the same channel as well as give users the ability to watch live and record shows at the same time.

Plex is widely expanding its support for more tuners, now including models from Hauppauge, AVerMedia, DVBLogic, and a whole lot more (full list can be found here).

Of course, one of the most popular Plex Media Servers out there is the NVIDIA Shield Android TV, which is getting an updated Plex app with Live TV support starting today. On the Shield Android TV, network television shows can be watched at up to 1080p resolution with 5.1 surround sound. Plus, this new Plex app also brings along with it the ability to set up recordings remotely, so you’ll be able to schedule your set-top box to record programs from any web browser.

Right now, Plex Live TV is only launching for Android TV and iOS devices, though Android mobile devices, Apple TV, and web support is coming in the very near future. Plex also plans to add support for Amazon Fire TV devices, Xbox One, and anywhere else Plex is available.

Even though it’s a slight bummer that Live TV isn’t available on Android devices yet, it’s worth noting that DVR recordings can be run on any device that can run Plex. So, if your Android TV set-top box is recording your favorite TV show through Plex Live TV, once that’s uploaded to your library, you can stream it remotely from your Android phone. Not a bad setup, if you ask me.

All in all, the way Plex is handling live TV support sounds like a pretty good deal. Considering the fact that TV tuners can be pretty inexpensive, this certainly sounds like one of the better live TV options out there.

To learn more about Plex Live TV and DVR, head on over to this link. So, who’s signing up?