Chromecast

[Glade]

I've been following this very closely... now available in the UK, but the price is > 2x the price in the US!

Think I'm going to have a punt, easy way to stream Chris Harris to my TV!

Anyone had a dabble??

http://mobile.pcadvisor.co.uk/features/digital-hom...

[Glade]

mmm now not on amazon

[130R]

Google killed support for streaming local content (see the Fling application), until that works again I won't be buying one.

[edeath]

I would be having a dabble at £25 but probably not at £50+! They need to add more app support really

Its back up on Amazon now.

[DervVW]

Its cheaper than a smart tv I guess if you want to upgrade your 'dumb' tv?

[Tycho]

I'd love them to do an audio only version as a rival for the airport express' similar to the nexus q but without an amp. I'd be all over that. As it is in going to keep my roku lt as I can stream my local TV and movie content.

[ajprice]

At the American price, it was interesting. At £60, they're having a laugh.

http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/features/digital-home/3...

Maybe it will be cheaper when it gets to the Google Play Store.

[FourWheelDrift]

ajprice said:

At the American price, it was interesting. At £60, they're having a laugh.

http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/features/digital-home/3...

Maybe it will be cheaper when it gets to the Google Play Store.

$35 on Amazon.com with free shipping, buy it on there and ship to the UK?

Or would the power/plug be an issue?

[ajprice]

FourWheelDrift said:

$35 on Amazon.com with free shipping, buy it on there and ship to the UK?

Or would the power/plug be an issue?

It was available internationally from Amazon.com, now it isn't. http://www.engadget.com/2013/10/08/amazon-opens-in...

Edit: Is the UK Chromecast likely to turn up at the Play Store when Android KitKat and the Nexus 5 appear? KitKat and N5 seem to be the big thing coming up, they could slot it into the same announcement.

Edited by ajprice on Tuesday 15th October 17:02

[Glade]

Looks like the papers and gadget blogs all jumped on the bandwagon and reported it was officially available on Amazon.co.uk

Actually there ae a few people selling imported ones in the marketplace but no official release date yet.

Hope it's 30 quid on release!

[130R]

After saying I wouldn't buy one I did at the weekend because I had some amazon vouchers to use up.

Initially I had an audio issue with some youtube videos but google released a fix yesterday and it works perfectly now (casting from iPad app). Also I tested casting an mp4 file from chrome in fullscreen and that works fine too. For file types that chrome does not support (avi being the main one) one way around it is to use handbrake to convert the file to mp4, I think there is probably a better way though (need to do some investigation with chrome extensions). I have not tried Google Play or Netflix because I don't use them at the moment.

[wiggy001]

130R said:

Google killed support for streaming local content (see the Fling application), until that works again I won't be buying one.

I'm probably missing something here, but could you not open your local content in Chrome, then cast it?

[130R]

wiggy001 said:

I'm probably missing something here, but could you not open your local content in Chrome, then cast it?

Yes but as above chrome will not play all file types. For example if you drag an avi file into chrome it will ask where you want to save the file rather than play it.

Also something else I forgot to mention - if you buy from amazon (or anywhere at the moment I believe) it will be imported from the US. You need to power the device either from USB or from a power socket, so if you do not have a USB port on the back of your TV you will need to use the power socket and it comes with a US plug.

[130R]

Update on playing file types that Chrome does not support - If you install http://www.plexapp.com/ to run your own Plex Media Server then you just need to open the Plex Web Client in Chrome and you can cast that tab to your Chromecast device. Seems to work great.

[mids]

This is probably a stupid question but... if you have a soundbar connected to a TV and plug a chromecast into an HDMI slot in the TV you can stream music but does the TV need to be turned on for it to work ? (the soundbar does not have an HDMI slot to plug the chromecast into).

The TV is CEC enabled (Viera link) if that makes any difference.

[130R]

mids said:

This is probably a stupid question but... if you have a soundbar connected to a TV and plug a chromecast into an HDMI slot in the TV you can stream music but does the TV need to be turned on for it to work ? (the soundbar does not have an HDMI slot to plug the chromecast into).

The TV is CEC enabled (Viera link) if that makes any difference.

You can't power Chromecast via HDMI AFAIK you need to also plug it into your TV's USB port or into a power socket. If you are using the USB port (the way I am) I imagine your TV will cut power to the port when you turn it off, so it wouldn't work.

[richatnort]

I bought one off Amazon for £35. Best gadget I've bought this year. Streaming Google play is seamless and so is the YouTube function. Occasionally it will freeze but if you restart the video it will be fine! Great for parties. Would recommend it!

[mids]

130R said:

ou can't power Chromecast via HDMI AFAIK you need to also plug it into your TV's USB port or into a power socket. If you are using the USB port (the way I am) I imagine your TV will cut power to the port when you turn it off, so it wouldn't work.

Thanks, I figured I'd use a USB plug to power it if it was possible to stream the music via the TV whilst it is off. Just seems a bit naff to have to turn the TV on when I just want to listen to music.

The actual reason I'm asking is I'm looking to buy a soundbar and just trying to figure out if I need to get one with a HDMI slot or not (most don't seem to have one).

[mids]

Now launched in the UK

https://play.google.com/store/devices/details/Chro...

[boxst]

I don't use mine as I can't find anything to do with it really. I don't want to stream from my laptop to the TV and that's about all it is good for.

I bought it as I happened to be in America when it was launched and I thought it would be hacked to have XBMC or other useful application on there.