Much has been written in the press about Google’s new $35 gizmo called ChromeCast. So being the geek that I am, I had to buy it and try it. So buy it I did, then waited a really long time for it to arrive (ordered July 29 w/ 2-day shipping, and received Sept. 9). Apparently, this item is VERY popular, is well priced, and will be in short supply for a while.
ChromeCast is worth the wait! Especially if you get sticker-shock when looking at Roku and Apple TV prices. [By the way, I’m still buying Roku 2 XS boxes for $55, which I consider a really good value for what you get.] So what’s so special about ChromeCast?
Well, for one thing, ChromeCast does something that I like about the Apple TV but is still a challenge for Roku, and that’s streaming Internet content. Basically, if you can view or play web content in a browser, you can stream it to your HDMI-capable TV via ChromeCast. For me (and maybe for you), that’s very useful! Apple AirPlay and Twonky do a similar thing on Apple TV and Roku respectively, with Twonky being the least functional/most temperamental of the three. And did I mention that ChromeCast is only $35. Yeah, I think I did…
What’s even more interesting is the fit between ChromeCast and the Samsung ChromeBook (see my report here). Since the ChromeBook, by definition, is a Chrome browser-based platform, it fits all the criteria to interact well with the ChromeCast device, and it does. This means that ANY content you can access on your ChromeBook can be ‘cast’ to your TV via ChromeCast. Granted, network speeds, etc. will factor into the quality of your viewing experience, but it can be done. There’s only one weird gotcha that I’m still trying to figure out, and that’s the inability to set up ChromeCast initially from a ChromeBook. I had to resort to a Windows laptop (though Mac, iOS and Android platforms might have worked just as well) for set-up. The set-up process is quick and easy, as advertised.
My overall impression of ChromeCast is that it will be a pretty useful device, mostly when traveling, and when there’s a need to ‘cast’ content from a tablet, Windows laptop or ChromeBook (which is my preferred traveling companion, technologically speaking, at the moment) to an HDMI-capable TV. But at home, the Roku 2 XS still rules for everything EXCEPT web content streaming.
ChromeCast system requirements:
A particularly good article about the limitations of ChromeCast:
And Google’s support page:
Note: I had an opportunity to test the ChromeCast (and ChromeBook) on the ComCast network while in Pennsylvania last week, and for reasons unknown, neither worked. The only wireless devices that seemed to have no issues whatever were Apple iPads and iPhones, and my Roku 2 XS. My son’s Windows 7 laptop kept falling off the network as well, so something was going on, but the experience left me with the sense that ChromeCast might not ‘just work’ everywhere. Here on Lopez, with our slow CenturyLink DSL service, ChromeCast is very happy. Go figure…
