Chromecast Discussion Thread

[tnt118]

so now that I'm on Android for the next year (on a nexus 5 until new Nokias come out) what does chromecast do for me that my xbox doesnt. from what I understand it does stuff like netflix etc, but I have that stuff on my xbox/surface. maybe I'm just a little confused as to why this is so fantastic.

 

Apart from tab sharing and screen sharing from a PC, it's not doing anything terribly unique.  But it does what it does at a fantastic price point ($35, was effectively $14 for folks who jumped on them the first day) which is why people can be pretty fanatic about the Chromecast.  If you are in the Google music & video ecosystem, I'm not aware of any other box (roku, wd live, xbox, etc) that can play that content.

 

For any serious or extended use, I'm more likely to switch to the Roku.  But what I use this a TON for is when I come across something I want to show someone else, a couple of seconds later it's pushed to the TV and I don't have to gather anyone around a computer screen.  I'd bought the parts (somewhere around $350 worth) for an HTPC but then the Chromecast came out and 100% replaced the functionality that the HTPC would have given me.

 

The other thing I'm really looking forward to is when my podcast player adds support.  I look forward to being able to push the audio to the TV, like when I come home from a run or move in between rooms and I can transfer the audio to where ever I am at the time.

[AJerman]

so now that I'm on Android for the next year (on a nexus 5 until new Nokias come out) what does chromecast do for me that my xbox doesnt. from what I understand it does stuff like netflix etc, but I have that stuff on my xbox/surface. maybe I'm just a little confused as to why this is so fantastic.

Well, unless you can start Plex, Netflix, Youtube, etc on your phone, click a button and choose any TV in the house (with a Chromecast) to play it on, and sit back and enjoy, then there's one big thing.

 

As said above, it's not overly unique. There are a hundred different ways to watch any type of media, this is just another and happens to be about the cheapest. I don't understand how people can stand to use their Xboxes for media, personally. Just having to find the controller, turn it on, wait for it to sign on, find the app, launch the app, browse the app, then launch your media. I could have something playing on Chromecast before an Xbox even booted. So speed an ease of use are it's advantages, but it's not like you can't go without. I have an entire computer plugged into both of my TVs at my house, but once they get the Plex app's implementation of casting running smooth, I may disconnect the computers and just go Chromecast since all I'd need is my phone and any TV.

 

It's nice, and for $35 it's hard to beat. It gets nicer when all your TVs have one and you can play any media to any TV with the click of a button. The closest competitor would be AirPlay, but then say you have 2 TVs, you need what, 2 Apple TVs at minimum? So about $200 for 2 TVs? You could have almost 6 Chromecasts for the price.

 

Honestly, I'd grab one. For $35, why not? Play around, see if you like it, if not then not much was lost. There's nothing really fantastic about it, it's just a nice addition, and gets nicer as more app support is added.

[bcetindra]

it very good device for audio