Google Chromecast

Chrome logo on a simple yet elegant device

Transforming your TV into Smart TV 

         

Google Chromecast, latest addition in the Chrome hardware family ( Oh yes, we have Chrome smart PC) .

Putting aside the hypes, most people would ask ,

What exactly is that small little USB device?

It is just a simple media player aka media gateaway. However Chromecast is unique not because of the concept but because of it's cheap price and design. To sum this up, Google Chromecast is just a device that hits the price sweet point coupled with nice marketing. ( Microsoft needs to learn a thing or two from their marketing teeam)  It is designed is such a way that it is portable, light and supports multiple connectivity.

In summary, this is a universal media player that stereams onluine videos and movies from Youtube and Netflix to your device, more imprtantly your TV. You can use any device of your choice, such as Apple Ipad, Iphone or any Android devices. You can also plug it into your laptops too and stream videos using the Google Chromecast The extra perks for Android users is that they can access to Google Music and Google TV and Movies. On the size and weight, the device is pretty small and light. Just imagine your USB storage.

However there are some cons to this overhype product. From some of the reviews . it seems that beta screen-mirroring feature is not working that well therefore so you are largely limited to four apps with no support for several major ones, including Amazon Instant, HBO Go, MLB.TV, Spotify, and Rdio.

Besides that, there is no remote control for this device. Hence the lack of a dedicated controller also means you always need a smartphone or tablet nearby. Imagine hugging  your Ipad tightly while watching your movie instead of holding popcorns.

The Google Chromecast price is $35 which is certainly cheap, but it comes with only limited apps and you need to use other device to control Chromecast. Certainly way behind Apple TV and Roku.

Is this worth buying?

Yes and no.

Depending on your usages, if you are on the go person with high mobility then it is worth taking due to it's small size ( USB pen drive shape ?) It is cheap and highly portable due to it’s weight and size. Just plug it in into your device which has USB port  and get ready to stream via WIFI.

No, I would not recommend this in your living room because if you are thinking about upgrading your TV into smart TV then this is an overpriced device with limited fuctions and apps. Moreover, a smart TV by any big manufacturers, for example a Samsung with Samsung Smart Hub which is already embedded inside is a part of the TV packages. Samsung smart TV has one of the best user interfaces for users out there. Built in WIFI, Apps store , video and picture sharing, built in full web browser, some models even comes with motion and voice control. They even built interface around social media such as youtube, twitter , facebook , skype and  of course including Amazon Cloud Player and Netflix videos . Therefore if your smart TV has smart hub embeded inside, why do you need another device with lesser functions?

The only perks is that you can access to thousands of apps in Google Play Store.

Sold out? Can’t get one? Then is there anything similar in the market?

Yes of course. For example , there is TV live range from Western Digital which supports much more functions compared to Chromecast,the only thing that are different is the size and the price which is only about $25-$30 difference. You have also Apple TV if you can’t wait.

Detailed specifications below. 

Features	Specification
Model	Google Chromecast
Type of product	Media Player ( Media gateaway- Streamer adaptor)
Compatibility	Android phones and tablets, Iphone, ipad, Chrome (Macs and Win)
Dimensions (WxDxH)	0.5 in x 1.4 in x 2.83 in
Weight	1.2 oz
Network & Internet	USB, Wifi , DLNA
Content	Content streaming
	Web Browsing
	Netflix
	YouTube
	Google Play
	Chrome
	Amazon Instant Video
Apps	Auto update via Chrome/Google Play

Android 4.3 and we still playing catching up

There are plenty of features announce for the new +Android  Jelly Bean 4.3 but there were only several key features worth noting.

Great new features

One of the new features is called quick response that allows you to reject calls easier but I am not exactly sure how it works and how well it works in the practical world. You certainly do not want to reject the wrong calls by some very important people especially your bosses.

Basically, it works when a call comes in and you're too occupied to take the calls, you can reject the call and send a message to the caller by using  third party apps. However, currently, none of the third party apps supports that function that well. It really depends on the apps developers to embed that function inside their apps.

There are also rumors by some Android fan sites that +Google  Voice may be updated to work with the service, but one could never be too sure of this unconfirmed report.

The second new addition uncovered by the site is called notification listener. According to the specs, it's right in the code of the update and it is a feature developers can embed in their  apps which are currently using the accessibility service to access system notifications. Most important, it allows the apps to be updated easily  without accessing accessibility settings which in fact can increase the performance of your gadgets. Before this, if an app were to discover a new notification in +Google Play , it would need to communicate with the accessibility settings in your device via +Google Play Store  before displaying the notification. So now, your apps can read notifications when there any any updates by the system, read them and update the apps to the latest versions , saving one step of the process the update hasn't hit their devices yet.

 One of the issues that had been dogging Android user is the decreased performance of their gadgets over time. Sluggish keyboards, slow opening of apps, and hang phone when browsing the internet. Android 4.3 now comes with TRIM.

TRIM is supposed to get rid of the sluggish performance and possibly enhance the Project Butter that comes with the earlier versions of Jelly Bean. Google’s Android works by instructing the flash storage that are built in your gadgets ( I am not too sure about memory storage) when to collect and recycle and recycles unused data pages and blocks The hopeful net results  is that devices that runs on the Android 4.3 will perform better and no longer become laggy and non responsive. Nexus tablets and smartphones will certainly see the performance improvements after the new update kicks in. From the source, it seems that the newly updated Jelly Bean invokes TRIM maintaince once every da ( 24 hours) with conditions that there is one hour on inactivity and for the battery power, it should be 80% full or 30% when charging

New updates to old features

Android 4.3 was announced by Google earlier today with disappointment due to the lack of new features. From the snapshot above, we can see that there was only minor changes to the android system with additions of several main features namely Bluetooth support ( increased to more advance type of Bluetooth) , More language support ( do we even care and need to wait several donkey months for this? ) , improvement in the text input ( still haven't get this right even with 4.3? and most of the manufacturers will just apply their own predictive keyboard anyway ). There were literally no new innovations except for the ones above. This updates just some minor improvements and building some senseless hype across the net which can be easily done in a simply patch.

What the new android still lacking?

One of the biggest problems with the new android Jelly Bean 4.3 is the unproven suceess rate of the TRIM enhancements to the performance of the gadgets. Android is too fragmeneted , too many manufacturers lay their own customizations , until the suppsoed enhancements does not work well , like in the earlier versions of Jell bean.

Besides that, we still face the problems of the support of new android to older devices, this update was supposed to enable lower end phones to enjoy the new smooth Android too.

Probably done this way to build the "credibility" of the new Google android chief. Well, we will see about that.

Thank god for the new +ASUS  +Nexus 7 

Video of android 4.3. Bleh~