They actually have a great product, and they’re canceling it? The new ones were kind of expensive already, but every app supported it and it was very nice
Maybe they’re coming out with something new and more expensive, or they’ve entered a licensing deal with another -cast-able company so they can charge you or get licensing fees without the manufacturing overhead.
Or maybe they’re just being Google and cancelling yet another thing that people like to use.
They are, I saw an article for it the other day. Some compact set top box running Android TV that costs way more than any Chromecast ever did.
Casting is nice but I’m thinking now is a good time to consider switching to something like Apple TV if you need a dedicated streaming device since there’s basically no price difference anymore.
I’ve had good luck with Roku so far, I know they’re questionable but short of building a system to handle casting/streaming for me they seem to be the best bet right now
Its #1, its in the article. Has some forgettable name, haha
1 and a little of 2. New device and a new way to charge you.
This is why they have no great products, they kill all the ones that are
How can it be a great product if the screen doesn’t have more ads than a '90s geocities page?
Get a pi, people. There are very few reasons you would want Chromecast.
Curious, how does a pi replace Chromecast functionality?
Very few reasons for people with technical ability, which the Fediverse overrepresents. It’s easy to get the idea that anyone can pick up something like a Pi and install and configure an OS image on it. It seems simple to us, but 95% of people will not/cannot do this. They have better things to do than learn IT skills.
Size and portability.? Ease of use?
I know haha google graveyard funny, but over a decade of production only to be replaced by a similar product is a financial success.
Everyone knows after any commercial success the best thing you can do is rebrand by announcing the death of the successful product \s
Google is just doing Google things. It seems that over the years, Google has been doing things to destroy whatever is left of their reputation.
I look at Android for example. Even though I still use Android, I used to look forward to the next Android update. Not anymore!
… Does this mean that the chromecast with google tv that is pictured, and that i just bought, will soon stop working?
What’s “soon”? Should be good for a couple of years
Gone the Google way. One more for the Google Graveyard.
My 10-year-old Nexus (original Android TV that is a direct ancestor of the Google TV device you’re talking about) still works.
Of course they are.
I just came to comment this exact string.
🙄 it’s as dead as the Nexus. Try to keep up.
Google’s gonna Google
Add another casualty to the list:
Lol I said these exact words a second before I read this. Google is such a fucking awful company.
They aren’t really, they are just upgrading it to a full set top box and rebranding it.
But it went from a dongle to a set top box for more than 3 times the price. It’s not really the same device, just similar functionality.
Yeah, I don’t see myself carrying this thing to every hotel I stay at… Even less because I am not buying it lol.
Will existing devices continue to work “forever” or must we add them to the graveyard?
“okay, what successful product are we going to kill next?”
In place of the Chromecast, the company will offer the newly announced $99.99 Google TV Streamer,
They’re replacing it with a very similar product. Nothing to see here.
Similar product that costs 4 times as much and has AI features…
The low-power streaming box is dying. It’s not completely without reason, 4k playback is actually a bit demanding.
We are in a place where the 2017 nVidia Shield is beginning to show its age and that leaves the AppleTV as the only powerful and capable consumer set top box on the market. This new option from Google will at least provide some competition and an option outside of Apple’s ecosystem.
I cannot believe NVIDIA has essentially abandoned its SHIELD micro console line. My Shield Pro has been an amazing sideloading fiend.
I absolutely love mine, but I’d be lying if I said it didn’t stutter sometimes when asked to perform more demanding tasks. The chip is also going to start having issues with formats in the coming years. I’d love for nVidia to put out something that used a rival to the A15 in Apple’s box. Native AV1 decoding and just raw speed is really needed to catch up to use cases in 2024 compared to 7 years earlier.
We’ll have to see if the processor is better than the shield. Google’s spec page shows it has 1 GB of RAM more than the shield but conveniently does not say what processor is in it
This $100 box from Google runs on the same SoC as the $50 streaming box from Onn (Walmart). The only major differences are the Google box as 4GB of RAM vs 3GB, a 1Gb Ethernet port instead of 100Mb (both have WiFi 6), and the Google box has a USB Type C port for power/data and would need an OTG adapter/hub while the Onn box has a Type A and a barrel plug for power.
They’re replacing it with a very similar product. Nothing to see here.
Like they do with messengers every couple of years.
Or music streaming apps.
Seemed monthly at one point 🤣
Swallowed the clickbait, hook, line and sinker.
and before that they already replaced it with google tv with chromecast
A more expensive, clunkier product, with a bunch of needless fluff in it.
You mean twice the ram (1 gig more than the shield), 4 times the storage (32 gigs), and a better remote (chirping find my remote feature, programmable button, and less shitty volume buttons)?
Yep. Sure sounds worse considering it also supports all the same features of the chromecast 4k and AV1 decoding.
It’s also twice the price of the Onn 4k Pro (Walmart house brand) that’s built on the same chip and has the same features running the stock Google TV experience.
None of which changes the fact that it’s more expensive and clunkier, and none of which feels necessary.
I don’t need any of that. I just need a cheap dongle that can run one app
The dongle still works. They reached market saturation with people who just want a dongle. They can’t realistically be expected to produce these forever.
Your existing chromecast dongle will continue to connect
Will it, though?
“Sorry this device is too old to support the newest software update. For your convenience we have bricked it. Please see your authorized dealer to purchase an upgraded device”
Sure, give me a single example where a chromecast device was taken off the chromecast protocol. Even their original Chromecast Audio device which was discontinued and taken out of production over 5 years ago still functions to this day.
Cast protocol is only one of the many many things that you can stream through a chromecast device.
I mean I’d hope so because eventually this one I have won’t work like the previous one so I’d like a similar product when that happens not this 99 dollar box thing. I guess I hope someone else will continue making cheap dongles I think walmart has their own thing
Facebook marketplace is absolutely loaded with these for less than $20. Let’s recycle the existing stock.
Because that’ll last
So when the current dongle breaks and you just want another, what do you buy?
Facebook market place in my small town has dozens of these for less than $20. Why don’t you pick up a few of these and recycle our current supply instead of asking companies to produce more e waste incase we someday want to buy it.
The large used market exists because Google has been producing them. When Google stops producing them, that supply will dry up.
And ethernet port!
Yes! I hadn’t seen that highlighted anywhere in articles really, only saw it on the damn Google Store after looking just now.
Seems an all around solid update on the previous device.
Just gotta stick FLauncher, SmartTube, Jellyfin, and Stremio on it and it seems solid.
I just hope this is still possible on the new one, I can see a future where they make it impossible but hopefully not yet.
I agree that it’s a good upgrade too, the only dowside is that it’s not portable anymore, I used to take it with me on any travel to have my own home theater set up like I like it with me when I was living in Hotels and AirBnB’s for a year on business travel. Especially in Asia the TVs are in the local language and I never have any idea how to change the language from Korean or Japanese to English so I can use the TV. But putting in the dongle and turning on the TV was always possible.
I changed from FLauncher to Projectivity Launcher a little while ago and definitely recommend it
My wife is used to FLauncher and will probably get annoyed if I change the Shield’s interface (again…) but maybe I’ll try it out on the Google TV Chromecast I have for holiday trips.
You can get an Ethernet adapter for the Chromecast
Yeah, exactly. You needed to buy an extra adapter before. Now you don’t.
Regular Chromecast work perfectly as YouTube jukebox.
What do you mean regular Chromecast?
What do you mean regular Chromecast?
Just regular Chromecast, not that Google TV stuff. That round dongle that does nothing but accept casting streams via that cast button in many Android apps.
So the one from 2013? Sure. It was fine for that. This is a different thing, as not every device, service, or whatever supports casting. I wish they did, but they don’t.
Secondarily, I don’t want to use a screen to control a screen. I prefer a physical remote that I can have muscle memory for.
But I get why people liked the device. I did too. But fortunately or unfortunately, it’s been 10 years and technology has moved. Which is probably why they are giving this a new name being an generally good upgrade on the last Chromecast 4K.
Christ, this one even has a built in Ethernet port and doesn’t put strain on my HDMI port by just dangling there.
So the one from 2013? Sure. It was fine for that. This is a different thing, as not every device, service, or whatever supports casting. I wish they did, but they don’t.
Well, the story is about Google ending that line of products.
Yeah, I have a smart TV and would appreciate some faster processing in there. Or if I can flash a simplified ROM, but dunno if those exist. As long as I get control over what it does, I’d take it. Can just Velcro it on the back of the TV so it’s invisible.
Most of the appeal of the Chromecast is that it’s a dongle you plug in once and never have to see again. It doesn’t need high performance and 32 gigs of RAM. It needs to play video. That’s its entire purpose. It’s controlled by any phone on your wifi, it doesn’t need a remote.
For most users, this is an expensive downgrade.
The remote was the biggest upgrade for me on the Ultra though. I always struggled to find my phone and do stuff on it just to watch some YouTube or Netflix videos. And the Kids don’t even have a phone and they want to watch on the TV in the livingroom too sometimes. With the remote it’s easy for everyone to use it without fiddling with the Phone.
My parents have the one without the remote and they basically never use it because my mom doesn’t have a mobile phone and my dad newer has it with him, it’s always not charged or in some other room.
It’s controlled by any phone on your wifi, it doesn’t need a remote.
Or you can use it’s remote and not need to use your phone for absolutely every little thing.
My Chromecast has no storage and no remote. It’s fine.
Cool. Keep using it.
until they decide that their new device needs more sales, so they depricate the protocol and you can’t use it anymore
Deprecate the casting protocol? Sure Jan. The new device still supports casting.
They killed support for the first gen Chromecast and the YouTube “app” has been broken for 3+ years. They’ll just stop supporting it one day and you’ll have to buy a new one.
You haven’t been paying attention to Google in the last few years, have you?
That’s the only reason I had to replace my previous 2 steaming devices.
The streaming backend got updated and the app in my device no longer supported it. And there was no updated app made available for that device.
Chromecast ultras are already broken if you try to use your own DNS.
Until services stop supporting it.
They’re supposedly using pretty much the same chipset. So the most important part is still underpowered, these Android boxes generally work fine even with 2-3GBs of RAM.
From OP article
such as a processor that’s 22 percent faster
It’s supposed to use S905X3 with ARM Cortex-A55.
There’s already plenty of devices on the market with this chip, and it’s fine, but in real world as a user you won’t really see any improvement over something like a nearly 10 year old Nvidia Shield that’s still using a more powerful chipset.
Which is sad for a new device…
Does Nvidia even make new mobile chipsets still? At least… Relatively cheaply? I know there’s something of an Nvidia tax.
I don’t think so. Maybe they’ll have something new for the next Nintendo Switch?
In fact, the Shield is using the same chip as the Switch (same for the newer revisions).
For which they will be able to offer subscriptions in a year or 2.
Enshitification 101
Now with AI!
I’m not sure why they didn’t just call it the chrome cast gen whatever though.
So you could just ask it for anything and it could make it up?
“Google, show ‘Ow! My Balls!’”
I wonder how far away we are from AI being able to create video on demand like that?
I think overall it’ll never be able to create quality entertainment.
But Ow! My Balls! isn’t quality entertainment. I’m sure it can create all kinds of clips of things smashing into groins for ultra low-brow entertainment. Probably today.
Shitposting is one area where I have no issues using AI.
Or literally just reuse the Android TV name
“Yes I know the customer learned that product name and has a good connotation with it, but how about we change the name to something completely different?”
“Our current product offering is less than $50. We were thinking the next iteration should be $300”
It’s also built with the same SoC as Walmart’s Google TV box that sells for $50.
Be nice to have something to replace my Nvidia shield pro with that’s not an apple tv. Looking forward to seeing how the new streaming device compares
A new entry to https://killedbygoogle.com/?
Eh, not really. This product had a full run, will continue to work and the features are all still available in their newer products. Killed by Google usually implies they have a service that just ceases to exist.
Literally all my friends know the name “Chromecast”, why would you rename it
and then add TV to it, is this now advertised to seniors?
It seems so, some people in the thread complained their parents don’t use ChromeCast because it needed the phone to use. Apparently seniors are also better if you want to sell an expensive subscription when the opportunity arises.
Chromecast naming scheme did get weird - it’s difficult for someone who doesn’t follow these things to know if they want the chromecast ultra or chromecast with google tv. I agree though they should have just called the new product something like “Chromecast Box 2025”.
Why does Google do any of the dumb shit they do?
To justify the salaries of their product managers
Hopefully people will reverse engineer the firmware and protocol so that the old devices aren’t total landfill.
Google have lost their mind…
I think it just means google would stop selling it as the new google TV streamer is up for sale. My Chromecast from 2015 is still working till this day.
Eh as long as the protocol stays the same who cares? Everything has it built in nowadays, and even if it doesn’t, I bet China won’t stop making Chromecast dongles