Dec 18
While it’d be easier to think that the world was moving towards an all-mobile environment for consuming media, Hulu suggests today that it’s slightly more complicated than that. Statistics shown … Continue reading
Dec 16
The original founders of TiVo are starting a new business venture called QPlay. It’s an adapter for streaming TV reminiscent of the plug-and-play ease of Google’s Chromecast dongle and app set, but with the all-under-one-roof simplicity of a set-top box. Plug the QPlay box into your HDTV, plug the USB-connected power cord into a wall […]
Dec 15
It appears that there are big things in store for Google’s $35 media streaming dongle in 2014. Launched earlier this year, Chromecast proved to be a hit, with Google itself acknowledging that it had underestimated demand for the dongle. Vice President of Product Management at Google, Mario Queiroz, has said that Chromecast is going to be launched in a “number of international markets” next year and that fans of the dongle will be “pleasantly surprised” by the expansion’s scope.
The prime aim here is to get more apps on Chromecast, which only supports a limited number of apps right now, majority of which are provided by content partners such as Vevo and Netflix. Speaking with GigaOm, Queiroz said that there is going to be an “expectation” from consumers that any and every app is going to be able to work with the dongle. According to the VP, “hundreds of developers” have signed up to bring their apps to Chromecast, however they are only able to build them right now, they can’t distribute them as Google hasn’t finalized the SDK or software development kit yet. It plans to release the SDK next year, thus providing the ability to make apps for Chromecast to anyone who wishes to. He also confirmed that additional waves of apps for the dongle are going to be released in the near future.
Chromecast Aims To Go International In 2014 original content from Ubergizmo. 
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Dec 13
Google Turns On Desktop-Based Web Streaming Of Google Play Content For Chromecast
Posted in: Today's Chili
Google Chromecast owners can now stream Google Play music and movie content direct from the web, as well as from smartphones and tablets, thanks to the Google Cast extension for the Chrome desktop browser. Oddly, Google’s own media store isn’t the first to do this, as Netflix on the web can play nice with the Chromecast extension, as can YouTube. But Play media access means Google’s $35 wonder device is everything the Nexus Q was not, and a device only limited by software and time.
When the Chromecast first launched, it was sort of like a knock-off designer handbag: Not the thing you really want, but close enough and so cheap it didn’t matter. Slowly but surely, however, Google has been improving its streaming dongle to the point where it’s quickly becoming a true competitor for Apple’s AirPlay and Apple TV devices, which is a much-needed ingredient currently missing from Google’s ecosystem.
Web-based streaming is also something that AirPlay can handle, thanks to the ability to connect an AirPlay display in the latest version of OS X. Chromecast also still can’t mirror a display entirely, which is something AirPlay can handle that’s incredibly useful for presenters, educators and many others. AirPlay has also been used by many developers as a way to program experiences designed to take advantage of using both a small and a big screen at one time, which is likewise something Google hasn’t really implemented with Chromecast just yet.
Earlier this week, Google added a good list of new content partners to Chromecast’s stable of supported software, and each drove up the value of owning one considerably in my opinion. In the same way that Apple keeps improving the Apple TV via content partnerships and service improvements, Google keeps doing the same with Chromecast, but the short-term potential here is even greater, I think, at least in terms of immediate impact for a huge group of Chrome and Android users.
Dec 12
Google Play Movies and Music score Chromecast optimization for playback via the Web
Posted in: Today's ChiliGoogle has announced a tweak for Chromecast users concerning casting from the Web: Google Play Movies and Music optimization. With this change, those who don’t have their smartphone or tablet available can cast their preferred content from either Music or Movies straight from the Web, no issues or hassles to trifle with. One only needs […]
Dec 12
The CyanogenMod team recently released a new app called Screencast that lets Android users record the display of the device with audio. You can then retrieve the saved video from your device and play it on anything you want. Though wouldn’t it be nice to be able to mirror your Android device’s display in real time to an Apple TV? That’s where the new Mirror app comes in, it has been released today in beta version and CyanogenMod’s well known developer Koushik Dutta invites people to give the app a shot and report if they find any bugs.
The Mirror app actually offers the best of both worlds, not only does it let users mirror the screen to an Apple TV, but it also lets them create a video recording of their device. Those of you who are willing to try out the app need to keep in mind that your device must be rooted on Android 4.4.2, there’s no need to install a custom ROM though. Then, you must join the ClockworkMod community as well as the beta program prior to downloading the app from the Google Play Store. As always, these apps and communities are absolutely free, you won’t have to pay anything to gain access. You’ll obviously need to have an Apple TV, if you don’t have Cupertino’s set-top box, you might as well wait for Chromecast to receive Android mirroring support.
Mirror Android Display On Apple TV Using Mirror App original content from Ubergizmo. 
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Dec 11
Demand for Google’s $35 HDMI dongle was certainly underestimated, the company itself said that. Launched earlier this year, Chromecast lets users stream content from their mobile devices or PCs to the TV. The dongle is plugged into a HDMI port and powered through an external source, it connects to the Wi-Fi network and is then ready to display content that is streamed through it on the TV. Yesterday we reported that the dongle had received ten new content partners, out of ten content partners added yesterday VEVO stands out, its endless library of music videos is likely to put a smile on many Chromecast users’ faces. That’s not the only Chromecast update that has recently been rolled out. A firmware update build 14651 has also been released which brings a number of bug fixes and improvements.
The update also brings support for new Chromecast V2 API. It comes with new refreshed home screen with various new images that are displayed when Chromecast is all prepped up to work its magic. In the code of the update, independent developers have discovered initial support for a screen sharing protocol. It is likely that references to Android screen sharing exist in the update, recently it was rumored that Google might add Android screen mirroring feature to its HDMI dongle.
Chromecast Update Build 14651 Released original content from Ubergizmo. 
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Dec 10
Aereo is testing a Chromecast app, CEO Chet Kanojia said today. The app would effectively bring the company’s streaming broadcast TV service full circle in a historical sense, returning broadcast TV to the TV. From locally installed antennas on Aereo property to mobile devices and browsers around the United States to the Google streaming media […]
Dec 10
Google wants to give you another reason, in fact, ten reasons to buy its $35 HDMI dongle. Chromecast was launched earlier this year, its a simple HDMI dongle that can be attached to the back of a display. Once connected to a Wi-Fi network, users can stream a wide variety of content to the display through the nifty little device. Ten new content partners for Chromecast have been announced today, which greatly improve the content offering, given the fact that the device launched with only a couple of partners. Netflix was actually its biggest launch partner.
The new content partners include PostTV, Discovery Communications’ Revision 3, Red Bull.TV, Songze, BeyondPod, Avia, Plex, RealPlayer Cloud and popular music video streaming service VEVO. They join the existing partners Pandora, Hulu Plus, HBO Go and Netflix. Streaming from Google’s very own YouTube has already been supported from the get go. Apart from all of these partners, the Chromecast is also able to stream content purchased from the Google Play Store and the Google Play Music store. The dongle got off to a good start when it was released earlier this year, it actually sold out within 24 hours. While the company hasn’t said how many units it has managed to sell since then, it has acknowledged that demand for the dongle had been underestimated.
Chromecast Gets Ten New Content Partners original content from Ubergizmo. 
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Dec 10
There’s a whole lot of Chromecast going on in the development department this holiday season, with Google pushing forth word of an extra 10 apps coming to the device by the end of this year. Users will be able to take advantage of music videos with VEVO, sports and oddities with Red Bull.TV, music with […]
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