Amy Skorheim has an English degree from UCLA and has been a commerce writer for six years, covering tech, men’s gear and outdoor paraphernalia. Her work has appeared in publications that include Futurism, Digg and Huckberry. After four years as the managing editor of GearMoose, she joined the commerce team at Engadget in 2022.
Engadget has been testing and reviewing consumer tech since 2004. Our stories may include affiliate links; if you buy something through a link, we may earn a commission., but at least this one makes a bit of sense. Casting content from elsewhere used to be a big reason TV dongles existed. Today,primarily provide the brains required to watch content from Netflix, Disney+ and other streaming services on almost any screen, and casting is a bit of an afterthought.
Inside, there’s a processor that Google will only say is “22 percent faster” than the previous generation, along with 32GB of storage and double the memory at 4GB. It supports up to 4K/60fps video with HDR, HDR10, HDR10+ and Dolby Vision. Audio formats include Dolby Digital and Dolby Atmos along with spatial audio if you’re wearing the Pixel Buds Pro. It only supports Wi-Fi 5, which seems like a miss — a bump up to the Wi-Fi 6E standard would be more futureproof.
The remote still doesn’t have a dedicated play/pause button and instead relies on the button in the center of the D-pad as the main control. When I tested the Chromecast with Google TV, that led to frustration when the center button kept performing actions other than pause, but this seems to be something Google has addressed as I had no issues this time. The controller is small and hefty, yet it’s so smooth it would pop out of my hand when typing a longer search entry.
If you’re not familiar, I’ll just say that of all the smart TV interfaces I've tested, Google TV does the best job of integrating content from all the different streaming apps into one useful and intuitive hub. And, whatever otherissues the company may have, it’s the most egalitarian when it comes to recommendations versus, say, Apple, Amazon or Roku, all of which favor their own content .
To control those functions with your voice, you’ll need to hold down the Assistant button. Some sets with Google TV built in let you access the Assistant with “Hey Google,” but not here. That’s likely because the only mic is on the remote, which doesn’t have the battery power to support an always-listening mode. But you can use the Assistant button to make your smart-home request from any screen, including when the TV is off .
Google Google Apple TV 4K HD TV Amazon
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Google TV Streamer review: The best Google TV can getThe Google TV Streamer supercharges Google TV software while adding helpful smart home features in a sleek design.
Read more »
Midwest's first-ever physical Google Store to open at suburban Chicago mallGoogle Store Oakbrook will be the Midwest's first-ever physical retail Google Store.
Read more »
Midwest's first-ever physical Google Store to open at suburban Chicago mallGoogle Store Oakbrook will be the Midwest's first-ever physical retail Google Store.
Read more »
Midwest's first-ever physical Google Store to open at suburban Chicago mallGoogle Store Oakbrook will be the Midwest's first-ever physical retail Google Store.
Read more »
Midwest's first-ever physical Google Store to open at suburban Chicago mallGoogle Store Oakbrook will be the Midwest's first-ever physical retail Google Store.
Read more »
Midwest's first-ever physical Google Store to open at suburban Chicago mallGoogle Store Oakbrook will be the Midwest's first-ever physical retail Google Store.
Read more »