This year, Google made a major change to its streaming device business. We’ve all been used to Google’s Chromecast dongles since they first showed up over 10 years ago. The most popular choice, the Chromecast with Google TV (4K), came out all the way in 2020.
However, it seems like the tech giant felt like it was time to put its dongle to rest, replacing it with a set-top box model called the Google TV Streamer. However, just because the Chromecast has been succeeded doesn’t mean Google has abandoned its Chromecast. Quite pleasantly, we’ve found out it’ll be getting an update to Android TV 14.
Google’s Chromecast With Google TV Dongles Will Be Getting The Android TV 14 Update
It’s hard to hate Google’s Chromecast. It’s one of the smaller streaming devices that you can get — its dongle form plugs directly into the back of your TV and stays well out of sight. For Android users, it also makes it very easy to cast content from your smartphone to your TV, since that was what the original Chromecast was made for, and the “with Google TV” suffix is what makes it a full-blown streaming device.
As much as the Google Chromecast might have been a big thing to you, it has now been discontinued and replaced by the company’s new Google TV Streamer. Considering that these devices have found themselves stagnant on Android TV 12 for a very long time, that seemed like a notification to all interested parties not to wait up for any more major updates to the device.
However, it seems things aren’t quite as hopeless. Google has confirmed via Android Authority that the Chromecast with Google TV devices will indeed be getting what seems to be one last major OS update, to Android TV 14, before the end of the year. That’s massive and should put one last big smile on the faces of Chromecast adherents.
The Google TV Streamer Is A Worthy Successor, Though It’ll Set You Back By Double
Taking the place of the Chromecast with Google TV is the Google TV Streamer. It’s a very basic name but it does the job and gets the device’s purpose across pretty quickly. Besides its price, it is hard to hate what the Google TV Streamer brings to the table since it is very clearly an upgrade over its dongle predecessor.
The Google TV Streamer is a set-top box instead of a dongle, so while it won’t be out of sight, it uses its extra volume for more hardware and connectivity. You get 32GB of storage (4x the 4K Chromecast), 4GB of RAM (2x the 4K Chromecast), an ethernet port, a Thread radio for your smart home devices to tap into, and Dolby Atmos. Plus, the new remote even has a Find My Remote feature.
Of course, apart from a bigger footprint, the one major downside of the Google TV Streamer is its price. The Chromecast with Google TV (4K) costs $49.99, but to get the Google TV Streamer, you’re going to need to pay exactly double — $99.99. However, the improved hardware specs and Thread radio make it hard to say it’s not worth the price.
