Chrome Cast - opinions?

[frednoyb]

Is it worth getting?

I am in UK and at present its not on sale officially (you can get the US version but that's not really made for UK)

What are users opinions? Is it really worth getting? Does it work? Are there any what UK users would call 'gotchas' - caveats.

Great? or Binnable?

thanks

 

[Golfdriver97]

Personally, I like it. You can cast YouTube, Netflix, HBOGo, and Hulu. Now the free version of Hulu can be cast, but from a PC and the hardware has to be good enough. My laptop can't play it well at all.

 

[chrispher86]

I love mine. Got it for Christmas. I use my Nexus 5 as the WiFi signal and my wife's HTC One as the caster. Works pretty good except when casting YouTube, it doesn't handle the advertisements so well. Also apps are limited right now. Would love to be able to cast almost any app to the TV.

Sent from my Nexus 5 using AC Forums mobile app

 

[paulmike3]

My ChromeCast + unlimited VZW LTE + FoxFi hotspot + another casting device (tablet or laptop) = hours and hours of otherwise unavailable entertainment while sitting bored in hotel rooms on trips. Sure I could just use the tablet or laptop, but why waste a perfectly good 42" 1080p HDTV?

The 12GB of data I used this past Fri and Sat while visiting with the wife's fam can attest to my satisfaction with the Chromecast.

 

[Minkey1]

Is it worth getting?

I am in UK and at present its not on sale officially (you can get the US version but that's not really made for UK)

What are users opinions? Is it really worth getting? Does it work? Are there any what UK users would call 'gotchas' - caveats.

Great? or Binnable?

thanks

I'm a UK user. The device itself will be exactly the same when Google get around to releasing it here, and in other territories - see Chromecast in 2014: an open SDK, big international plans and maybe even new devices — Tech News and Analysis. The difference currently is in the services we can cast to it - and that's as much down to the service providers as to CC.

I got ours to add Netflix and GP movies to our existing smart line-up, and that it achieves brilliantly. If more UK services come on release, that's a plus.

Check out the reviews on Amazon UK, and note how most of the 1 and 2 stars are folks who didn't read the tin. Personally, I'm delighted with it.

 

[john6969]

I think it is OK.. most of the smartv have youtube netflix and even the ability to stream movies from a local drive.

It is missing some features to make this a the best on the market.

1. Miracast your phone or tablet screen.
2. Stream local movies .avi .mkv etc files without using PLEX or desktop share.
3. JUST more apps as of now very limited.

 

[baul0010]

My tv is only semi-smart. I can use the tv apps for Netflix and YouTube but they lag a lot and the quality is not good. At least with the chromecast I'm getting a decent picture quality. It's hard to beat at $35. If you don't like or use it your not out a small fortune. I've spent way more for disappointed before!

Posted via Android Central App

 

[shanghaichica]

I have one (from the UK), had it just over a week. I find it pretty useful. It was easy to set up and so far it has worked flawlessly. I've been able to cast YouTube, Netflix and Google play music/movies from all my Android and ios devices. I can also cast from tabs on my laptop/chrome book . I downloaded an app called avia, which enables me to stream my locally stored videos and pictures to my TV. I don't have a smart TV, just a regular full HD LCD one. I think for the ?35 I paid, it's a great device. Everything works as advertised. The quality of the streams is great and it doesn't buffer.

We got a lot of use out of it over Christmas. We bought some movies from Google play and were able to steam those in full HD to our TV. I also enjoyed making play lists on YouTube, which we listened to/ watched on Christmas day.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

 

[Shilohcane]

I have a 2007 Sharp 55" HDTV that Chromecast made into a smart HDTV. That $35 gave me another year or two of life out of replacing my 2007 Sharp that still is working great. Chromecast isn't a Roku due to the limited Apps Chromecast currently supports but that will change in 2014. I like using my Android and Laptop devices for controlling my Chromecast. For $35 this is a great product and why it won.



Digital Trends’ Best Product of 2013: Google Chromecast

 

[Minkey1]

Fred, PM'd you.

 

[smirnoff65]

Love this wee device, got one just before xmas and have just bought another one yesterday so I don't have to keep switching between rooms. My only gripe at the moment is that I cannot get Netflix USA that I have unblocked via Hola to cast on my Galaxy S4.

 

[AuburnGrad]

I am in the states, and just got mine for Christmas. I personally love it, and for the price it can't be beaten. I use it to put Netflix on the TV in the bedroom, that we did not have connected to previously. Its easy to use, and I just cast it from my Galaxy Note 3.

 

[hoosiermama2799]

I have three in my house (3 TV's), and for Christmas got one for my two sons for their homes. My youngest had already gotten one for Christmas, but will have one on each TV now. My older son just ordered more for his house.

A great, inexpensive device that when combined with Amazon Prime, Play Movies and/or Netflix really works well.

 

[JRDroid]

I use mine daily and plan on getting a second for my bedroom.

 

[GC736]

Agree completely. I was in KC for work after Christmas and had to go this route due to the 2 layer security on the hotel's wifi (which I really didn't want to stream over anyways).

I had recently received the 4.3 update for my VZW S3 which initially broke FoxFi, but as soon as it was resolved, I did the same setup with my tablet, and was quite impressed. Thank God for Grandfathered unlimited! Now I am set for all my upcoming business trips (which sounds like it will be a lot).

My ChromeCast + unlimited VZW LTE + FoxFi hotspot + another casting device (tablet or laptop) = hours and hours of otherwise unavailable entertainment while sitting bored in hotel rooms on trips. Sure I could just use the tablet or laptop, but why waste a perfectly good 42" 1080p HDTV?

The 12GB of data I used this past Fri and Sat while visiting with the wife's fam can attest to my satisfaction with the Chromecast.

 

[hoosiermama2799]

During the past few days, we were hit with 13" of snow and temps well below freezing. Yesterdays HIGH was -13 and that was better than the day before. We have satellite TV and the dish is on the roof. Needless to say, we lost signal for a couple of days and when it came back, we didn't have all channels because of the snow and ice on the dish. I was SO glad we had the Chromecast. DH was able to stream the BCS game, and we were able to stream other games, in addition to using Netflix. DH would have been awfully grumpy otherwise!

So it's well worth it!

 

[PCMol]

This device is certainly worth owning. Just two small problems.

It is taking way too long for Google to release the Chromecast SDK.
And second, Google has to change the forced Google DNS server to the posibility of selecting another DNS server.

Those two problems is certainly impacting the usefulness of the device. I'm waiting for Playon to support Chromecast, and i would like to be able to use my unblocked US Netflix account

 

[Ilya Baskakin]

In theory, it should be a great solution for non-smart-TVs. I hoped so much that I will be able to stream local content to an ordinary TV via Plex Media Server. In practice, the thing turned out to be useless. First, you can't stream photos or music using the android app, only videos. Therefore, there must be a laptop up and running next to the TV to stream a slide show or music (and there's hardly any sense at all in using chromecast like this). Second, video streaming, whether via the android app, or from Chrome for PC, happens to run smoothly only for the first five minutes or so (and this on an otherwise tested and reliable full 300 mbps wireless network!), and thereafter it would stop for buffering every half-minute (The same Plex server works wonderfully with a smart TV, both via DLNA and the "Media" Plex Client.) So far, the gadget only proved worthwhile in showing flashy background pictures.
To wind up, one big disappointment as a Plex client