Chromecast
Chromecast is a line of digital media players that were developed by Google from 2013 to 2024. The devices, designed as small dongles, can play Internet-streamed audio-visual content on a high-definition television or home audio system. The user can control playback with a mobile device or personal computer through mobile and web apps that can use the Google Cast protocol, or by issuing commands via Google Assistant; later models introduced a navigable user interface and remote control. Content can be mirrored to video models from the Google Chrome web browser on a personal computer or from the screen of some Android devices.
The first-generation Chromecast, a video streaming device, was announced on July 24, 2013, and made available for purchase on the same day in the United States for. The second-generation Chromecast and an audio-only model called Chromecast Audio were released in September 2015. A model called Chromecast Ultra that can display 4K resolution and high dynamic range was released in November 2016. A third generation of the HD video Chromecast was released in October 2018. The final models, called Chromecast with Google TV, were the first in the product line to feature an interactive user interface and remote control; a 4K version was released in September 2020, followed by a 1080p version in September 2022.
Critics praised the first-generation Chromecast's simplicity and potential for future app support. The Google Cast SDK was released on February 3, 2014, allowing third parties to modify their software to work with Chromecast and other Cast receivers. By May 2015, more than 1.5 billion stream requests had been initiated and over 20,000 Cast-ready apps had been made available, according to Google. Chromecast was the best-selling streaming device in the United States in 2014, according to NPD Group. Over 100 million Chromecast devices were sold over 11 years, according to Google. Many technology publications included Chromecast on their lists of popular and influential products of the 2010s. In 2024, the Chromecast product line was discontinued and replaced with the Google TV Streamer.
Development
The Chromecast was originally conceived by engineer Majd Bakar. His inspiration for the product came around 2008 after noticing the film-viewing tendencies of his wife Carla Hindie. Using her laptop, she would search for a film to watch on a streaming service and add it to her queue, before closing her laptop and using a gaming device to play the film on a television. She took these steps because she found television interfaces difficult to use when searching for content. Rishi Chandra, who previously headed up development of the Google TV operating system, had similar experiences at home, as his wife watched YouTube videos in their living room on a laptop rather than on a television because she found it "too much of a pain" to play videos on their television. Bakar found the whole process inefficient and wanted to build a phone-based interface that would allow video to play on a large display through a small hardware device.After joining Google in 2011 to work on products that "would change how people used their TVs", Bakar pitched the idea for the Chromecast. In 2012, a small team split off from the Google TV team to begin development of the Chromecast; Chandra described it as a "true kind of little mini startup inside of Google". At the time, Google had limited experience manufacturing its own devices and was partnering with other companies for its Google Nexus line of devices. The Chromecast team subsequently enlisted an employee from Motorola, which Google had just acquired at the time, to coordinate manufacturing as a "20% time" side project. Google originally targeted an introductory price of US$25 for the Chromecast but had not accounted for factors such as certification testing and retailers' profit margins; the company ultimately settled on a US$35 price point for the first model. Late in 2012, Bakar brought home a beta version of the product for Hindie to test. The device was launched in July 2013.
According to a complaint filed against Google as part of a patent lawsuit, Google employees reportedly held several meetings with the company Touchstream in December 2011 to discuss its casting technology. However, Google later conveyed that it was not interested in Touchstream's technology. About 18 months later, Google introduced its Chromecast media-streaming devices, which were allegedly based on the technology demonstrated during those earlier meetings.
Features and operation
All Chromecast devices offer at least two methods to stream content: the first employs mobile and web apps that include the Google Cast technology; the second, which applies to video models, allows mirroring of content from the web browser Google Chrome running on a personal computer, as well as content displayed on some Android devices. In both cases, playback is initiated through the "cast" button on the sender device.When no content is streamed, video-capable Chromecasts display a user-personalizable content feed called "Backdrop" that can include featured and personal photos, artwork, weather, satellite images, weather forecasts, and news.
If a television's HDMI ports implement the Consumer Electronics Control feature, pressing the cast button will also result in the video-capable Chromecast automatically turning on the TV and switching the television's active audio/video input using the CEC command "One Touch Playback".
Hardware and design
Chromecast devices are dongles that are powered by connecting the device to an external power adapter or USB port using a USB cable. Video-capable Chromecasts plug into the HDMI port of a high-definition television or monitor, while the audio-only model outputs sound through its integrated 3.5 millimeter audio jack/mini-TOSLINK socket. By default, Chromecasts connect to the Internet through a Wi-Fi connection to the user's local network. A standalone USB power supply with an Ethernet port allows for a wired Internet connection; the power adapter for early Chromecast models was first introduced in July 2015 for US$15, while the adapter for Chromecast with Google TV was released in October 2020 for US$20.First generation
The original Chromecast measures in length and has an HDMI plug built into the body. It contains the Marvell Armada 1500-mini 88DE3005 system on a chip running an ARM Cortex-A9 processor. The SoC includes codecs for hardware decoding of the VP8 and H.264 video compression formats. Radio communication is handled by AzureWave NH–387 Wi-Fi which implements 802.11 b/g/n. The device has 512 MB of Micron DDR3L RAM and 2 GB of flash storage.The model number H2G2-42 is likely a reference to The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy abbreviation "H2G2"—in the novel, the number 42 is the "Answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything." The bundled power adapter bears the model number MST3K-US, a reference to the television series Mystery Science Theater 3000.
Second generation
The second-generation Chromecast has a disc-shaped body with a short length of HDMI cable attached. The cable is flexible and the plug can magnetically attach to the device body for more positioning options behind a television. The second-generation model uses a Marvell Armada 1500 Mini Plus 88DE3006 SoC, which has dual ARM Cortex-A7 processors running at 1.2 GHz. The unit contains an Avastar 88W8887 radio chip, which has improved Wi-Fi performance and supports the 802.11 ac wireless protocol and 5 GHz band, while containing three adaptive antennas for better connections to home routers. The device contains 512 MB of Samsung DDR3L RAM and 256 MB of flash storage.The model number NC2-6A5 may be a reference to the registry number "NCC-1701" of the fictional starship USS Enterprise from the Star Trek franchise, the "saucer section" of which the device resembles: NC2 can be read as NCC, and 6A5 converted from hexadecimal is 1701.
Chromecast Audio
Chromecast Audio is a variation of the second-generation Chromecast designed for use with audio streaming apps. Chromecast Audio features a audio jack/mini-TOSLINK socket, allowing the device to be attached to speakers and home audio systems. One side of the device is inscribed with circular grooves, resembling those of a vinyl record. A December 2015 update introduced support for high-resolution audio and multi-room playback; users can simultaneously play audio across multiple Chromecast Audio devices in different locations by grouping them together using the Google Home mobile app. The feature made Chromecast Audio a low-cost alternative to Sonos' multiple-room music systems.The model number RUX-J42 may have been a reference to the Jimi Hendrix albums Are You Experienced and Midnight Lightning, which had the internal code J-42. Chromecast Audio was also developed with the internal codename Hendrix.