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Chromecast |OT|
- Thread starter ThatObviousUser
- Start date
Yup, sundar touched on it during an interview, they're in talks with hardware manufactures to include it.
It's not just pushed from the phone if it's an app that has been updated to support Chromecast natively.
Phone would only be communicating content location and controls to the receiver, content itself would be served at higher resolution to the Chromecast receiver itself, they demoed the same with live Netflix I think.
catashtrophe
Member
Best news i've heard today, trying to play google play music from tablet to wifi speaker is a disgrace
They're not being pushed from the phone, the chromecast is pulling it from the net.
Dog food is delicious
Banned
My understanding of the dongle is that it has no real UI and the tablet/phone/browser is the actual UI for it. Is this correct?
Well as far as you UI I think it would depend on the app being served, the app could be designed to have a visible UI on the receiver side, something that is obviously not happening at this time for things like video services, which don't really need it.
You need phone or tablet (or computer, etc) for controls because you need to interact with it the receiver side app "resides" afaik wherever you want as long as it's accessible via Web protocols. So in examples show, it resides in a cloud not on the phone, etc.
Phone ----- Control commands, content/app location -----> Cast device <--------Get content/app from location ---- Web Sever.
Not 100% sure about anything, so don't "quote me" on it.
edit: sdk diagram:
I canceled my Amazon order since the expected delivery was listed as "Delivery Estimate: Wednesday, August 21, 2013 - Thursday, August 22, 2013 by 8:00pm". I don't need it right now, but that wasn't going to work for me. I'd rather pay a couple more bucks and get it today.
Anyway, I just got back from picking mine up at Best Buy. I first just walked around trying to find them, but they were nowhere to be seen. I checked the website before going so I knew they were available to be picked up right away, so I knew they were there somewhere. I finally gave in and asked CSR where they were, she had no clue what it was and the girl told me they should be in home theater so I went there, still no luck. I had the girl there check, she also hadn't heard of it before, but she did find it in the system. They got ten in stock and they are listed in the Best Buy inventory system to be displayed in computers, or more specifically to be displayed with the flash drives and that sort of thing.
I went back there, still didn't see them, then I randomly found them sitting on the checkout counter in the computer section waiting to actually be displayed on the floor. I picked one up and asked the guy working back there if I could buy one and he had no clue what it was or if I could buy it. He asked someone else, and finally I was able to purchase it.
I would say I was shocked that no one in Best Buy had ever heard of it before, much less know what it is, but I'm not. It's Best Buy. They SHOULD have been made aware of this by the manager before even opening, but whatever.
Oh, also, yes the Netflix code is printed on the receipt, but it is also emailed to you if you have an email address on file, so heads up on that. I just went ahead and added it to my account, and once you submit it a screen pops up that says "A 100% Off Discount for Three Months Has Been Applied To Your Account!" I love that it works like that for those of us who are already paying members. Awesome!
I hope this information helps some of you find it in store. Good luck. Here are a couple of pictures I took on my iPhone of mine from here at work...
Anyway, I just got back from picking mine up at Best Buy. I first just walked around trying to find them, but they were nowhere to be seen. I checked the website before going so I knew they were available to be picked up right away, so I knew they were there somewhere. I finally gave in and asked CSR where they were, she had no clue what it was and the girl told me they should be in home theater so I went there, still no luck. I had the girl there check, she also hadn't heard of it before, but she did find it in the system. They got ten in stock and they are listed in the Best Buy inventory system to be displayed in computers, or more specifically to be displayed with the flash drives and that sort of thing.
I went back there, still didn't see them, then I randomly found them sitting on the checkout counter in the computer section waiting to actually be displayed on the floor. I picked one up and asked the guy working back there if I could buy one and he had no clue what it was or if I could buy it. He asked someone else, and finally I was able to purchase it.
I would say I was shocked that no one in Best Buy had ever heard of it before, much less know what it is, but I'm not. It's Best Buy. They SHOULD have been made aware of this by the manager before even opening, but whatever.
Oh, also, yes the Netflix code is printed on the receipt, but it is also emailed to you if you have an email address on file, so heads up on that. I just went ahead and added it to my account, and once you submit it a screen pops up that says "A 100% Off Discount for Three Months Has Been Applied To Your Account!" I love that it works like that for those of us who are already paying members. Awesome!
I hope this information helps some of you find it in store. Good luck. Here are a couple of pictures I took on my iPhone of mine from here at work...
Oh, it seems like it would be more convenient to just have a Chromecast remote to navigate the interface and pull up whatever app you want instead of launching separate apps on your phone, tablet, or computer.
Don't know if this works in Sweden, but I'll ask my friend to biy it for me in a couple of months anyway. For that price even without Netflix it's a great deal. Now I only wish you could stream from the TV to your tablet/phone. Imagine being able to watch games/races outside when it's nice weather instead of being stuck indoors.
That's google tv. There really aren't any "apps" per se on the chromecast. It's just a receiver for content.
I read elsewhere (and I'm sure this has been discussed frequently in the thread) that this comes with 3 months of Netflix. Do I have to buy it from a specific retailer to get the 3 months? And is it just a code that I could apply and not pay for 3 months or is it limited to new memberships?
If the Netflix deal is open to everyone, I'm definitely buying.
A review I read on Amazon said that if your HDMI port was 1.4 or higher, it did not need external power. Not certain the validity of that yet though.
Edit: Looks like Downhome answered my Netflix question. Neat!
If the Netflix deal is open to everyone, I'm definitely buying.
A review I read on Amazon said that if your HDMI port was 1.4 or higher, it did not need external power. Not certain the validity of that yet though.
Edit: Looks like Downhome answered my Netflix question. Neat!
Running Android or WebOS?
The ads are deceiving. It must be plugged into USB also.
If the touchpad runs the non-mobile version of Chrome, yes. To check, install chrome then try to install an extension. Specifically, the one mentioned in this thread for Chromecast. If you can install, you're good. If not, you're boned (unless you're running Android OS that will have apps that support this).
USB power is needed.
Whoops, yeah, still on WebOS. I never really "needed" to change it over, and I totally lost track if it's more stable or not anyway.
EsotericManiac
Banned
will this allow me to watch twitch on my TV?
I have no idea if major companies themselves still have app support on WebOS. I guess it is possible someone does use the API anyway. I don't see an official push on a platform like that though.
Yes. If you have Chrome installed with the extension you can stream from the browser to TV. This won't work for the mobile version of Chrome.
It comes with a wall plug to USB adapter, and USB cable.
EsotericManiac
Banned
I'm alright with that...
but if my TV doesn't have USB, I'm screwed right? (no way to power it)
Do you own a computer with an OS capable of running the latest version of Chrome? Then probably yes.
I think it comes with a USB to wall socket adapter.
I hope that's true. I have a Panasonic 3DTV so I assme that it has HDMI 1.4 or higher.
Here is more information from an Amazon review that also mentions the HDMI 1.4 thing...
It also looks like Amazon has totally removed the option to buy it from them for the time being.
You can't buy it at Best Buy either now, you can't even order and do in store pickup. This is odd. You can still check your local store here... http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olstemp...contract_desc=2+YEARS+NEW&pageMode=searchmode
Now watch the flippers list them on the Amazon Marketplace and eBay...
As someone who is on business trips year round, I don't see how this is particularly helpful. First, you have to be in a room that doesn't have the TV inputs blocked off (or better yet has an input board) which is hit or miss. Assuming you're all set there, then you're still hit with the same problem that has always limited the utility of streaming services on the road -- shitty hotel internet connections. I'm never without my laptop and tablet on the road,so simply finding a device capable of streaming has never been the issue. This just means carrying around an HDMI dongle instead of an HDMI cable.
That does remind me though -- does anyone know if the wifi setup supports having to log in through a browser?
Hotel Wi-Fi? Unless you can password protect the receiver which doesn't seem like it right now, you'd need a private network, Wi-Fi 3G/LTE or something, else you'll be getting sent all sorts of crap.
Dog food is delicious
Banned
I really hope the local media works even halfway acceptable because it would finally remove the need for a PC in my living room.
I get the whole shitty connection and possible port block issues, which would still affect you even with an HDMI cable on your Laptop. But I would take this device over an HDMI cable (if we are talking about using a Tablet). Since the device doesn't have to be busy mirroring and can be used for other things at the same time.
That's why I mention YT/Netflix/AmazonVideo, as those are the services I use for entertainment when I'm on a trip.
Eeeeh, how so? All the Chromecast is doing is streaming from the services. As far as I can tell, all the connections between your phone and the dongle are handled via your Google account. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think there is a straight connection between the devices when using YT or Netflix.
So you can turn on Netflix on your tablet, have it stream to Chromecast to your TV, then run other apps/play games/browse the web/etc. on the tablet while the Netflix content is still streaming? Is that how this works? It seems like once you stream, you basically set the device down and just watch it on TV. Which is different from Chrome where it seems you'd be able to stream a specific tab.
Yes. You can continue to use your device (phone or tablet) while the dongle streams directly from supported services (YT, Netflix, etc). The apps on the device just become "remotes" for stop/play, and to browse media.
I'm not talking about the mirroring option or local media workaround recently discovered using Chrome.
Very interesting... Streamie needs this ASAP!
Battersea Power Station
Member
No, that's incorrect. Your device acts like a remote control, so you just need it to start, pause, change volume, queue, etc. But the app does not need to be running. In fact, the device that began streaming can completely leave the network.
It's a beaut.
I think receivers are available to anyone on the network, not tied to a Google Account, credentials are sent over at the same time content location is. Therefore if you are sending Youtube videos in the same network, so can I. As demonstrated by the "friends" add to queue thing. So other than Wi-Fi access I doubt there will be another barrier to "pair" with the receiver.
Marty Chinn
Member
Does anyone know if you get two Chromecasts, can you get six months worth of Netflix out of it? Google won't let me cancel, so that will be a big factor on if I keep two of them.
Dog food is delicious
Banned
Believe it's one code per account.
Junior Mint
Member
I'll buy it off you if you're willing to ship to Canada. You can even keep the Netflix code!
Marty Chinn
Member
Doh. Man it's so lame Google won't let me cancel when it's sold out everywhere and it's clearly in demand and they're not shipping mine anytime soon.
Well that's seems something they need to fix. I know they are going for "simplicity" , but I don't want just anyone that's even on my private network to send info to the dongle without my permission. There should be one admin account attached to the dongle.
This was the same issue with the Q, where people said "I don't want other people 'DJing' my music list", etc.
Battersea Power Station
Member
If you're game enough to bother with admin accounts and such, you can probably set up a second WiFi network/subnet.
cyberheater
PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 PS4 Xbone PS4 PS4
Just found out that my iPad 1 isn't supported. Ho hum...
molnizzle
Member
Less than 24 hours? Not bad. Internet.
Droid Life - Tip: You Can Play Local Video Files Through Chromecast
Pro tip from the comments:
Tab mirroring is a beta feature too. Performance will only improve.
Droid Life - Tip: You Can Play Local Video Files Through Chromecast
Outside of owning a Chromecast device (which is sold out everywhere), all you have to do is install the Chromecast extension on your PC, then find the file path of a local video file that youd like to play, paste that path into the address bar in a Chrome browser, and then press the Chromecast button to cast it on over. It really is that simple.
One of our readers said he noticed a slight frame rate drop, but its not all that noticeable. I tried it as well and thought video looked pretty damn good.
Pro tip from the comments:
Tab mirroring is a beta feature too. Performance will only improve.
Yeah someone posted reports of that already. Nice that it doesn't need any sort of web server setup after all.