Walmart is prepping for the launch of a new streaming device that will most likely replace its entry-level Onn set-top box, and it looks like a decent upgrade.
9to5Google has spotted a number of reviews of the new device, which is known as the Walmart Onn 4K Plus. The reviews, posted on the Home Tester Club website along with an image of the device’s packaging, appear to be from users who snapped it up as some sort of limited test rollout, for the device has not yet been officially announced.
Despite the lack of an official unveiling, the early reviews are pretty solid overall, with 73% of the 70 reviews thus far giving it a full five stars out of five, praising the device for both its simplicity and its low price tag.
According to a review from “Daniel”, the Walmart Onn 4K Plus was snapped up for an “insanely cheap” $20 from Walmart’s official website:
_“Absolute best streaming device I've ever used. Not only was it insanely cheap at $20 via walmart.com, but it does everything I need it to plus more. Easily cast from your phone or tablet to your TV with perfect resolution. Lightning fast. Runs Android so you can sideload other apps you wouldn't normally be able to find on the app store. If you know what you're doing, it's pretty much infinitely customizable. I've been recommending this product to everyone lol.” _
If the device really does launch for just $20, that would make it less than half the price of the retailer’s highly-rated Walmart Onn 4K Pro, which costs $49.88 on the official site and is widely-regarded as a fantastic alternative to Google’s TV Streamer device and any number of more expensive Roku streaming sticks and set-top boxes.
By piecing together several of the reviews, we have a pretty clear picture of the specifications of the new gadget. Not only does it support 4K video output, it also has Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos on board. There’s 16 gigabytes of built-in storage available, and 2GB of RAM on the device.
With regards to the processor, this is apparently a quad-core chipset featuring a G310 V2 GPU, according to the reviews. 9to5Google’s experts suggest it could well be an Amlogic S905X5M processor, which is newer than the one found in the existing Onn 4K Pro that launched last year.
Still, it must be said that the Onn 4K Pro is still the premium device here, coming with 32GB of storage and 3GB of RAM, which means more room for apps and personal files and a slicker overall viewing experience.
Given that the original Walmart Onn streamer is presently priced at $19.88 on Walmart’s site, it seems that the Onn 4K Plus is a direct replacement for that device, which marked the retail giant’s debut on the video streaming scene when it launched in late 2023. It’s a tad outdated nowadays, with just 8GB of storage and 2GB of RAM, so it makes sense for Walmart to want to refresh things.
Besides the newer chip and additional storage space, the Walmart Onn 4K Plus also has a new USB-C power cable instead of a microUSB, and the remote gets an additional “Free TV” button not found on the original.
Walmart is likely planning to launch the device officially soon, but be aware that it is only likely to go on sale in the U.S. In some of the photos posted by reviews, it clearly states that the device is “U.S. compatible only”.
While some people from outside the U.S. did get ahold of the original Walmart Onn and Onn 4K Pro devices and were using them, the company put a stop to that with its “region lock”, introduced through a firmware update, which made them unusable outside of approved regions.
If you don’t live in the U.S., you may instead be interested in the new Thomson Streaming Box Plus 270, which debuted in March and is said to be the European version of the Onn 4K Pro device.
