Chromecast Is Google's $35 answer to AppleTV.

[Duane 3NE 2NR]

^ very cool

How is the video and audio quality?
HD video and sound?

[wheelbarrow]

^ very cool

How is the video and audio quality?
HD video and sound?

It sounds great!

[Duane 3NE 2NR]

^ very cool

How is the video and audio quality?
HD video and sound?

It sounds great!

ok I got my answer from another site. It can stream 5.1 audio but only as Dolby Digital Plus - so no true 5.1 and definitely no HD audio like Dolby TrueHD or dtsHD Master Audio.

see here

Just got done setting up my Chromecast and can answer some "connecting to a receiver" questions. I have a Pioneer VSX-1020 that's only a year old which I have the Chromecast hooked up to directly. Works fine when you switch to the proper HDMI. I have a Logitech Harmony so I just created an Activity to automatically switch to the proper HDMI with a button click. Volume controls still work from phone/tablet/PC which control the Chromecast output not the receiver volume. Most Netflix movies are encoded in 5.1 which the receiver sees as Dolby Digital Plus. Think of it like virtual 5.1 surround which is OK but no where near as good as a Blu-ray disc. Some movies are still encoded in stereo such as Avengers which I was surprised by. During movie playback you can press an icon from the Netflix app to select the audio format being pushed. YouTube and Google Music will decode as stereo only, if you want 5.1 you need to switch the receiver to Dolby Pro Logic or Circle Surround depending on your receiver or preference. Google Play Movies was the biggest disappointment. The two movies I tried (Transformers and Tron: Legacy) both played naitively in 2-channel stereo not 5.1. Had to force virtual 5.1 through receiver to get all my speakers going. Hopefully this is addressed very soon. I also had some experimentation with wi-fi bands. I run everything in my apartment on the 5 GHz spectrum so I had to drop my phone and tablet down to the 2.4 GHz to set up the Chromecast initially. I was bummed out by this at first but then realized that after your setup is complete you can go back onto your 5 GHz band and still control the Chromecast just fine. My 2.4 and 5 GHz channels have different SSID names which didn't seem to matter. (Chromecast is a 2.4 GHz only device, FYI)

Some other tidbits:
- I'm not able to listen to Google Music while having the TV screen off. Once the TV is turned off the audio cuts out immediately even though the Chromecast is plugged directly into my receiver.
- The rumors about HDMI 1.4 being able to power the Chromecast are false. As soon as I unplugged the USB cable from the Chromecast itself it powered off. My receiver has 1.4a ports.

http://forums.androidcentral.com/google-chromecast/299870-connecting-chromecast-v-receiver.html

[CBharath]

Anyone sells chromecast locally?

[warrenc_alexis]

I've owned a Chromecast for about two months now and I love it. I bought it mainly for Google Play Music and Netflix and both work great. The video playback is very high quality, YouTube seems to look and stream better that it does on my tablet or computers. The problem I had with it is that it did not allow my to use unblock-us service so I was forced to only use see our local Netflix content. I've since bought a new router, flash it with DD-WRT and added the IP forwards as instructed on the web and not my Hulu plus works find on it also. What I'm most looking forward to is buying my first AV receiver by this year's end and using it along with the Chromecast for Google Play Music All Access. It comes in great when we have friends over and we pass around a tablet and queue up random Youtube videos, mostly music videos and what not.
If there is one thing I would say it needs is better app support, all I need to be complete is to be able to cast video from the Revision3 and Twit.tv android apps.... well Plex support would be great too for local media playback but I won't hold me breathe!

[pete]

I bought a western digital play for 40us instead. Havent taken it out of the box yet but it at least has USB support. Really just got it to replace a ps3 by my parents thats just used to watch movies occasionally.

[wheelbarrow]

Songza, Vevo, Revision3 and More Come to Chromecast

[RIPEBREDFRUIT]

APTV has been having BAD quality streaming to Netflix since their last update, its plaguing many many users all over the world, who previously got prioper HD streaming now get terrible picture quality, some even complaining it is like watching vhs

[S_2NR]

To get your chromecast fully functional with Unblock US check the link.
Apparently Google's DNS is hardcoded into the Chromecast, you will have to set up static routing to get access to Hulu Plus/Different regions of Netflix in Trinidad

Unblock US support for Chromecast

you have a dd-wrt router?
i have a linksys e1200 stock.
also, u bought that tv in pricesmart?
thinking about buying one, how is it?

[wheelbarrow]

you have a dd-wrt router?
i have a linksys e1200 stock.
also, u bought that tv in pricesmart?
thinking about buying one, how is it?

I'm using a Asus RT-N56U stock firmware
And that TV is from Courts, bought sum years ago. Wukking good so far.

[S_2NR]

nevermind, flashed dd-wrt on the router. linksys stock firmware ftl
whats the model no on the tv?

[Swisha]

about time!

Google finally opens Chromecast SDK, invites developers to get hackin'

The Chromecast is already a pretty easy sell: It's $35 and brings most of the biggest names in streaming media to your TV with minimal hassle. So, now that Google has opened the SDK to developers, it's pretty much a no-brainer. While there are no specific apps to announce at the moment, it's safe to assume the Play store will be flooded with updates soon enough. The SDK will allow coders to add a cast button to their app or site, be it on Android, iOS or in Chrome. The obvious use is for video apps, but there are plenty of other potential options here as well. If a developer decides to create a "custom receiver application" (rather than use the pre-built one provided by Google), they can put any standard web technologies on the big screen. So expect at least a few games and productivity apps to make the jump to Chromecast as well. Imagine firing up a presentation from Google Drive, displaying it on your 4K TV and controlling it with your phone. Or maybe Sony will build a version of Jeopardy where the board and clues are shown on the TV and your handset acts as the buzzer. Obviously, we're just speculating right now, but if we see those ideas come to fruition, we'll be expecting a nice royalty check. If you're more technically inclined, check out the video overview of the Chromecast SDK after the break.

[RASC]

Finally.
Really good for productivity.

I always welcome less devices to lug around.

[M_2NR]

NICE! Sad that i didn't get one for $25

[pete]

*waiting for MX player to be able to cast*

[S_2NR]

NICE! Sad that i didn't get one for $25

Bought one two weeks ago for 20$ after discounts on amazon

[sonygoup]

...hmm

[M_2NR]

NICE! Sad that i didn't get one for $25

Bought one two weeks ago for 20$ after discounts on amazon

:x lol

[S_2NR]

its $35 right now on amazon.
i think its well worth it for what it does and how well it works. never had a problem with mine. but the gf had a problem finding the chromecast on netflix on her iphone *insert iphone joke here*
even if you just use it for youtube, hulu, netflix and plex this device is a boss in this price range!

[Swisha]

Roku's new Streaming Stick is Roku's $50 answer to Google's Chromecast

Roku takes on Chromecast with $49.99 Streaming Stick



Roku's streaming TV stick is becoming a lot more competitive with the Chromecast. Beginning today, Roku is selling a new version of the Roku Streaming Stick that costs only $49.99, down from an initial selling price of $99.99 for the original model in 2012. While that's still more expensive than the $35 Chromecast, it'll include access to a robust lineup of channels and apps, all while Google is still just beginning to build out the Chromecast's offerings. The Streaming Stick supports 1080p and now also comes with a remote — though the remote's inclusion of shortcuts to the Blockbuster and M-Go apps is fairly strange beside its Netflix and Amazon buttons.

The Streaming Stick is also taking one other page out of the Chromecast's book: rather than only needing to be plugged into a TV's HDMI port, the new stick will also need to be plugged into a TV's USB port for power. That'll make for a slightly messier setup behind your TV, but the result seems to be that the new streaming stick can work on most TV sets, unlike the original model. The Roku 1 streaming box now sells for $49.99 as well, so today's update will give viewers an options between two ways to stream over Roku at the same price. While they're both still more expensive than Google's bargain-priced Chromecast, Roku's streaming options have been some of our favorites, and they're certainly even more compelling now.

The Verge

Roku

[speedaholic]

ill take two!

[fouljuice]

What major advantages these chromecast and roku stick etc have, over the traditional method of just connecting a dvi/hdmi cable from your computer to tv and selecting the proper input?

(excluding people with no computer or laptop)

[pete]

Well you don't have to have your laptop sitting by the tv the whole time and you could actually use it to do something else while watching a video or someone else watches a movie.