A new design, new hardware, and all-new features in the Chromecast app.
Among the phones and tablets unveiled at Google's Fall 2015 event in San Francisco last night was the ever popular Chromecast device. Chromecast is, at it's core, a device that lets you stream video from your smartphone or tablet to your television over WiFi.
Chromecast has a new design, ostensibly to help it plug into TVs with crowded ports. It's more of a round disk now, with an integrated HDMI cable, so you don't have to worry about losing parts. It's also available in three colours; Black, Lemonade and Coral, despite the fact the it's supposed to sit behind your TV and ostensibly remain invisible. But, to each his own I suppose. There's also new hardware on board with the new 802.11ac 5GHz WiFi support with three efficient antennas that select the best radio frequency for optimal video streaming performance.
There's also been a few tweaks to the Chromecast app, making it more intuitive. A new "What's On" tab shows you what videos are trending on YouTube, as well as which apps on your phone are streaming content right now. There's also a new "Devices" tab, that lets you pick which which device you're streaming to and use your smartphone as the remote. But most important among the new features is Fast Play. It not only loads your streaming apps that much quicker on your large screen, but also pre-fetches content. Basically, when you're watching an episode of your favourite show on, say, Netflix, the app will buffer the next episode as you watch, letting you jump right in as soon as you're ready.
Gaming has also been revamped on the Chromecast, letting you play your Android and iOS games on the device, with multiplayer support. And it works as an extended screen, where you use your smartphone as the controller, even with it's motion and tilt controls. In addition, Google Photos has new compatibility as well. You can set Google Photos, Facebook, Flickr, for example, as screensaver photos for your television. You can also cast your vacation photos to the screen and, instead of mirroring your phone screen in real-time, pick and choose only the photos you want to cast.
Chromecast works with iPhone, iPad, Android phones and tablets, Mac and Windows laptops, and Chromebook.The new Chromecast app will roll out to Android and iOS in the next few weeks. The new Chromecast meanwhile, is already available for purchase in 17 countries for the same price as its predecessor, US $35 (Rs 2,300).
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
 "dnaTechAndroid, Google, Google Fall 2015 event, Chromecast, Android, iOS, Netflix")
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}