Anyone get a Chromecast yet?

[Maximus]

Mine just shipped today, looking forward to having a play with it, was wondering if anyone here has one and has been using it?

[jdbailey1206]

Not to be a downer but this was a quote from my brother on the Chromecast.  "One other thing to note, the streaming from Chrome feature is choppy. The audio always seems just a little off."

[Maximus]

Interesting, I'll have to run it through it's paces and see if I have the same issues

[Hoopz]

I got one the day they were announced via Amazon.  My thoughts:

Only connects via 2.4 GHz and not 5 GHz.  I have an S4 and connect via WiFi over 5 GHz.  Not a big deal but it switches my phone to my other network which is frustrating.   New device like this should. Go over 5Ghz too.  Won't affect performance but I want to control my phone, not the Chromecast app.

I have streamed via the S4, a Nexus 7 and Chrome book.  The phone and tablet were fine.  The chromebook stuttered but that's a little normal for the chrome book so I think it was that and not the Chromecast.  A Macbook was connected too without issues.

Still waiting on more apps.

Video quality is excellent.  Can't emphasize that enough.

On the Chrome book, an extension needs installed to use the chrome cast.  Can only display whats in the current tab in Chrome, YouTube or Netflix.  If you switch tabs in Chrome, it doesn't automatically change it on the Chromecast. Not a big deal.  Just an observation.

Can't think of much more.  If you have specific questions, just holler.

For $35, its a steal.  For $11 since I was lucky and got the three months of Netflix free, its a great value.

[CoryBee]

Only thing I know about the Chromecast is through this tear-down\review

http://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/Chromecast+Teardown/16069/1



My only issue with it is that it seems to only have a relatively finite amount of uses. It runs hot (which google says is normal), so for a small piece of hardware like this that has no cooling that basically makes it a throw away.

Best hope for this little guy: after a long, fulfilling life of streaming kitten videos, the Chromecast is recycled responsibly. -iFixit

[kahlid74]

It only does 2.4 Ghz?  That's a deal breaker when it comes to streaming video for me personally.  There's so much saturation in that band already.

Make sure to post what your experience is like Maximus.  I'd be interested to hear how it works for you.

[Hoopz]

It only does 2.4 Ghz?  That's a deal breaker when it comes to streaming video for me personally.  There's so much saturation in that band already.

Make sure to post what your experience is like Maximus.  I'd be interested to hear how it works for you.

Yes.  I was very much surprised that it didn't do 5Ghz.  Considering everything Google has put out for at least the last 18 months has been 5GHz, it shocked me.  And there really isn't any documentation that came with it so I didn't realize it until I Googled it.  I kept seeing my phone switching networks at home and couldnt figure it out.  I just assumed so we know what that means. 

As you said, saturation.  Between the kids' gear in my house, I reserve the 5Ghz network for my stuff.  It's the benefit of being the person who pays for it.   

[ark_ader]

What is the difference between this and a Mk808n?

[Maximus]

What is the difference between this and a Mk808n?

Software and price really, wouldn't be surprised if someone rips a chromecast rom and makes it flashable to other HDMI sticks

[Howard_Casto]

What is the difference between this and a Mk808n?

One is made by google and therefore better???

Sorry guys I'm not going to be impressed by an android on a stick until it has an impressively low price to go with the lack of functionality. 

[wp34]

Best Buy had the same Netflix offer today but they were sold out before I got a chance to order one.

For $35, its a steal.  For $11 since I was lucky and got the three months of Netflix free, its a great value.

[Maximus]

Mine is in the mail as of yesterday although looks like they are shipping super snail mail so isn't expected until Monday next week.

Unlike many I am not expecting this thing to change my life in any fundamental way, certainly not for $35, but as a Sonos user I am a fan of the satellite streaming device model so I'm interested to see how well it will play.

We already use a Nexus 7 as our living room remote for Roku, Sonos and Plex etc so the ability to throw things from the tablet to the TV will be beneficial, and Plex have announced upcoming Chromecast support so that keeps me happy.

Add on a home automation app and some WiFi-IR control for my TV and HT equipment and that little Nexus tablet will be earning it's place in the home.

[Maximus]

Just arrived at my desk. Looks like I have some playing to do

[Maximus]

Well I'm very happy from what I am seeing here, video quality is high, no problem with 1080p content. I am seeing a little frame rate/sync stagger on my 1080p monitor here at work, but very very minor, it's certainly good enough for general convenient viewing and throwing content quickly to the TV.

Using chrome I easily streamed HD content using the tab stream feature from

Hulu.com
Youtube.com
Vimeo.com
ESPN3.com

As others have posted, Silverlight and Quicktime sites don't work with full screen video

Tried the apps that support Chromecast on my phone, namely YouTube and Netflix. They worked well, especially Netflix who's interface is quite nice.

So, for an out of the gate new product I think it's very impressive at the price point. I wouldn't use it to replace my hard-lined Roku box as it doesn't have the full support yet, but hopefully devs will continue to build it into their media offerings. Looking forward to seeing it included in Plex as I use that a lot both at home and on the road to play my local content/movie archive.

[Maximus]

Small update: When using the apps I don't see any video sync issues it's buttery smooth  . But when casting a tab from Chrome on my PC you do see a little bit of sync jitter, very minor though.

[ark_ader]

I have one on order.

Thanks for the review.

[Edgedamage]

Got mine yesterday, I can finally get rid of the boxee. I only kept the boxee for Netflix. The chromecast plays Netflix better than the boxee. As for streaming local content my Raspberry Pi does that job well, from a NFS share it even plays 33GB blu ray rips no problem.

[Maximus]

It still has a long way to go to topple my Roku which gets used daily in our house.

[knave]

I will pick one up once they get an official App for HBO-GO. Untill then like many have stated on here Roku is king of the hill at my house.

I think it's a steal of a device for $35, but for $20 more you can get a ROKU...

[ChadTower]

Or a WDTV...

[Turvey]

About £50/$80 over here just now!!! 

Think I'll leave it just now.

[Hoopz]

My biggest issue right now is that the Chromecast doesn't support purchases made in Google Play (movies and TV shows).  That's idiotic.

[knave]

Has anyone updated their thoughts on these?

I did end up picking one up when they were on sale for $29. (I had a $10 gift card I got with another purchase so for $20 out of pocket I thought I'd risk it.)

I've only used it enough to set it up and test video in youtube, Netflix and HBO. I think it works well enough for what it is...I wish I could use my older tablet instead of my phone but its on Android 2.2 which is not compatible. I agree that it's not a replacement for a roku or other "real" media player. But It does have some promising uses. I seems easily portable but we'll see if that proves to be true.

[Malenko]

I barely ever use mine. I mean I can use my Tab 3 to push netflix to the TV but the TV has netflix built in.  Apparently theres a program called allcast I found out about last night that lets you push local content. If I get that up and running that'll be a help.   I also dont quite understand having to push from a laptop if my desktop is hardwired to the same AP.