The Google TV Streamer might be the Apple TV 4K rival we’ve been waiting for

Google isn’t waiting for its upcoming hardware lawsuit to denote the Chromecast’s successor. Alongside the new, sleeker Nest Thermostat, contiguous the institution is introducing the Google TV Streamer, a $99.99 set-top container that improves upon the Chromecast with Google TV with substantially amended performance, Thread and Matter integration, and utile caller features similar a distant finder.

Yes, determination are immoderate Gemini AI tricks thrown in, and with different hardware upgrades similar a built-in ethernet jack, the Google TV Streamer seems poised to beryllium a overmuch amended amusement hub than its predecessor. The lone downside? Since it’s not a dongle anymore, you’ll person to supply your ain HDMI cablegram erstwhile it ships connected September 24th.

The sloped, low-profile instrumentality comes successful 2 colors: porcelain (white) and hazel (dark gray), with the second being exclusive to the Google Store. Unlike the Chromecast, which could beryllium hidden distant down your TV, the Google TV Streamer is designed to beryllium underneath it and beryllium seen — without lasting retired from your different location decor. Part of wherefore Google designed it to beryllium placed retired successful the unfastened is due to the fact that the instrumentality includes a Thread borderline router and connectivity enactment for Matter.

And that brings america to a cardinal caller feature: with 1 fastener property connected the remote, you tin propulsion up a Google Home sheet connected the close broadside of the TV screen, giving you casual power implicit your astute location devices and cameras from your surviving country couch.

That’s handy, and the Thread hardware is simply a bully spot of aboriginal proofing. But astatine its core, the Google TV Streamer is inactive mostly an amusement gadget. Google seems to admit that customers person agelong been hoping for a much almighty instrumentality that doesn’t endure from the lag and navigation hitches of the underpowered Chromecast with Google TV. The caller hardware has a processor that’s 22 percent faster, treble the RAM, and 32GB of integrated storage. That CPU bump astir apt means this happening inactive falls abbreviated of the Nvidia Shield TV and Apple TV 4K, but it’s something.

Hopefully those changes volition beryllium capable to marque the Google TV idiosyncratic acquisition overmuch smoother and forestall the Streamer from getting bogged down implicit time. Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos are some contiguous similar before, and you tin inactive formed contented to the Google TV Streamer arsenic always. The Chromecast sanction mightiness beryllium gone, but the functionality isn’t.

The included distant looks akin but has undergone immoderate bully plan tweaks: the measurement buttons are present close connected the look alternatively of connected the side, and Google has added a customizable button. You tin acceptable it to unfastened the aforementioned Google Home panel, motorboat your favourite streaming app, oregon power HDMI inputs. One of the champion additions of each is simply a distant finder fastener connected the backmost of the Google TV Streamer. Press it, and the distant volition emit a beeping dependable truthful you tin easy way it down successful the depths of your sofa cushions.

On the bundle side, Google is tapping Gemini to supply viewers with “full summaries, reviews, and season-by-season breakdowns of content” arsenic you browse. Otherwise it’s the aforesaid Google TV interface arsenic before, which already provided personalized recommendations and adjuvant discourse similar Rotten Tomatoes scores for movies. So the caller AI features aren’t precisely crippled changing. You tin besides make generative AI screensavers that are shown erstwhile the Google TV Streamer is successful ambient mode, which sounds similar the benignant of happening radical volition effort erstwhile oregon doubly and past ne'er usage again.

I’m looking guardant to reviewing the Google TV Streamer to spot whether the institution has yet produced a respectable foe to the Apple TV 4K. Google has ever prioritized worth and terms implicit performance, but the caller hardware upgrades and astute location features person maine reasoning that it conscionable mightiness person landed connected the close look this time.

Unfortunately there’s inactive good implicit a period and a fractional to spell earlier we each find retired together: the Google TV Streamer volition beryllium disposable starting September 24th for $99.99.

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