Roku Won't Play MP4? Here's the Workable Solution!

As you may know, Roku Media Player is able to directly play videos stored on a USB drive which is formatted with the FAT16, FAT32, NTFS, EXT2, EXT3, and HFS+ file systems. But oddly, many people complained that Roku could display the MP4 files but refused to play them. How come the problem happened?

In fact, although different Roku devices support different formats based on firmware updates, MP4 format is undoubtedly supported as stated on Roku official webpage. What you need to know is that MP4 is just a container format that can encapsulate data compressed by various video and audio codecs. Once the certain codec used within the MP4 container is not recognized by Roku, the MP4 file will fail to play. Fortunately, however, this issue can be simply fixed through a process of video transcoding.

Yep, HandBrake is another solution to Roku MP4 not working issue. The interface layout is a bit more complicated than HD Video Converter Factory Pro though, it's an acknowledged choice, I bet. If you are using an old version or have not installed this powerful open-source video transcoder yet, download/update it via the official website https://handbrake.fr/.

Run HandBrake, you're prompted to open a video file in either clicking buttons or dragging and dropping. HandBrake will read and list all video information subsequently.

If you're not tech-savvy enough to customize the video parameters, just navigate to "Presets" part on the right side. Unfold the "Devices" category and select Roku related options as you wish.

Head over to "Save As" section to set an output folder to store the converted file. Lastly, hit the "Start Encode" button to transcode the MP4 file to fix Roku MP4 playback failure issue. Besides, you can take full advantage of "Add to Queue" feature for HandBrake batch conversion.

Actually, Roku can play MP4 files in most cases unless a certain codec is unsupported, the MP4 is damaged or encrypted. Nevertheless, the two solutions above can help solve any format incompatibility problem that you could ever meet. If this post does work for you, don't forget to share it with those people in need.

A: If Roku Media Player plays the video but there's no sound, the problem lies with the audio codec. You might also need to check your TV's sound settings to ensure compatibility or convert the audio format of your MP4 file.

A: You can use media server software like Plex, Emby, or by setting up a DLNA server to stream MP4 files from your computer to your Roku over your home network.