Despite its immense popularity, Chromecast has remained one of the most frustrating brands in Google’s portfolio. What started as a daring project that broke the rules of TV slowly descended into a bland, neglected mess. Google now says that the era of Chromecast is over, but early adopters know that Chromecast has been dead for years.
More importantly, Chromecast didn’t use a remote control. This streaming device relied entirely on Google’s"Cast" protocol. If you wanted to watch a show or movie, you had to beam it to your Chromecast from your phone, tablet, or laptop. Customers who were lucky enough to grab the short-lived Chromecast Audio, a cheap streaming with a 3.5mm output, enjoyed a similar experience for music. (Naturally, these devices could also be controlled through Google Assistant voice commands and routines.)
Streaming services were happy to build Google Cast support into their respective apps, as it eliminated the need to build new, TV-specific apps. And if a platform refused to join the bandwagon (Prime Video being the most notable example), it didn’t really matter. You could Castanythingfrom the Chrome browser on your phone or laptop, be it Prime Video, a legally-questionable sports streaming website, or a static blog.
But Google failed to properly support its original collection of Chromecast streamers, which slowly grewmore and more unusable. And, in 2020, we saw the launch ofChromecast with Google TV. This product supported the Google Cast protocol (most modern streaming hardware does), but it pivoted into the realm of the milquetoast; it came with a remote control, a home screen, apps, and plenty ofadvertising opportunities.
Now, Google is saying goodbye to the Chromecast brand. The company’s newGoogle TV Streameris basically just an upgraded Chromecast with Google TV, but the name change makes sense, as Chromecast has been dead for a long time. And, to Google’s credit, the new streaming device looks like it may avoid the pitfalls and glitches of its predecessor. It has an appropriate amount of storage and RAM, it features a built-in LAN port, and it can act as a Matter smart home hub.
Will the Google TV Streamer receive better software support than its predecessor? Uh, I don’t plan on being a guinea pig, but if you want to be first in like for the Google TV Streamer, you canpre-orderone for $100. For clarity’s sake, I should note that the Chromecast with Google TV will still work for some time, it’s just discontinued.
