Remember the Nexus Q or Chromecast? Me neither. Meet Google's Nexus Player

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Inspect Your Gadgets > Remember the Nexus Q or Chromecast? Me neither. Meet Google's Nexus Player

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FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

teagone posted:

Theoretically, it should. Won't really know until someone tries it Basically anything you can view/stream in a Chrome tab, you should be able to view on your TV via Chromecast.

But not Silverlight or Quicktime.

# ¿ Jul 25, 2013 21:27

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# ¿ Apr 25, 2024 02:22

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

Do you think this will have OTG support to mount a usb flash drive?

# ¿ Jul 25, 2013 21:49

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

hotsauce posted:

They are in-store now.

***
So I returned the first Chromecast I got from BB. Thought it was defective because the hotel TV wouldn't display an image. I held down the reset button on the stick for 26 seconds, it rebooted. The Chrome "restoring to factory defaults" appeared. Then, nothing.

Got another one. Same exact thing, so it's the terrible hotel TV I guess. Strange as the reset dialogue shows fine, then the screen flashes green and ... nothing. "No Signal" floats around the screen. I've tried every goddamn thing and it simply will not work.

Ah well, at least I got $47.94 applied to my Netflix account. Good by me. Guess it will work when I get home in August.

So if I went to Best Buy and bought like 8 of these, and returned them, I'd get 2 years of free Netflix?

# ¿ Jul 26, 2013 02:39

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

While I'm waiting for mine to arrive later today, here's some good news:

http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2013/07/one-night-with-chromecast/ posted:

Google�s Chromecast, a little gadget that plugs into an HDMI port on the back of your TV to let you watch Internet or browser-based video, just launched yesterday. We haven�t had time to fully process it for a review yet, but after spending a day with it, we do have some initial thoughts and answers.

The main thing to understand is that this is not an Apple TV or TiVo like thing. It�s fundamentally different. Think of it like this: If there are things on the web that you would like to see on your television, this is an extremely easy, portable, and inexpensive way to do that. It will also run smartphone apps that use the Googlecast API, but for now there are only three Android apps that support that�Netflix, YouTube, and Google Play.

Throughput matters. You�re going to need a solid Wi-Fi signal, and if you want to watch something that�s online, a good Internet connection. We tried to get the Chromecast running at Wired yesterday, but the only networks available from our test TVs had terrible Wi-Fi reception. That meant we failed miserably. The audio and video sputtered, then ultimately halted. It was frustrating.

But with a solid connection, setup is a breeze. After failing to get it going at work, we took it home. Because we wanted an out-of-the-box experience, we started over from scratch. In about three minutes from the time we moved our TV in order to reach behind it and jack the thing in, we were watching an episode of Sesame Street from YouTube. It was equally easy again at work this morning using a 4G MiFi hotspot.

This is going to be great to travel with. It�s so small, and so easy to set up on a new Wi-Fi network that it�s truly portable. (It will literally fit in your coin pocket.) It�s also inexpensive enough that it would not be a disaster if you accidentally left it plugged into the back of your hotel room television set.

Yes, you can play local video. At least some of it. A not-strictly-speaking legitimate copy of Black Mirror in MKV file format played magnificently on our
television when we dropped it in a Chrome browser window.

Likewise, if you�re running it in a browser, Amazon Instant video, Hulu, Rdio, and HBO Go all just work. As did video from Wired, Gawker media, and Flickr slideshows. We ran photos from Facebook fullscreen. We watched a live Flash stream of a Braves game on an extremely shady bootleg site that spawned approximately a gazillion Chrome windows in the background.

One thing that didn�t work? Quicktime. (Surprise!) We could see the video, but couldn�t hear any sound. This was true of both local .mov files and movie trailers we tried to stream from Apple�s site. Google has said Quicktime and Silverlight won�t work.

iOS setup isn�t available yet. For now you�ll have to use an Android phone or Chrome web browser. As of this morning, the Chromecast setup page still says iOS is �coming soon.� Boo. A lot of people are buying this based on Google�s promised support for iOS. This needs to be remedied quickly, or made exceptionally clear at the time of purchase that it�s not implemented yet.

It has to draw power from a cable. This has led to a debate over whether or not it�s a true dongle. It is, but who cares; call it whatever you want. Here�s what you need to know: It�s powered via USB. So, if your television has a USB port, you just connect the cable to that and it runs. On three of the four televisions we have tried, the cable was not visible from the front side. If your television does not have a USB port, you will need to plug this into an outlet.

The bottom line is that so far we�ve been pretty blown away by how easy, versatile, and inexpensive this is. Given the low, low price ~~(even before the three-month free Netflix credit)~~ it�s really hard not to like.

As far as the local MKV's, I'm curious about the audio encoding in the file they used. As I understand it, the regular Chrome desktop browser wont play AC3 audio. Or maybe the Chromecast can handle that?

Amazon Instant Video is a huge plus. I don't even know what's in there or how it compares to Netflix, but I'm paying for Prime and I don't want to pay for multiple video streaming services.

And honestly? Internet doesn't work well if you don't have a good connection? No poo poo.

# ¿ Jul 26, 2013 14:01

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

I have an old G router. Amazon Instant over the browser is not working at all.

Also I cannot see my Chromecast from a wired computer on my router. Is Chromecast some kind of retarded WiFi only, ignore the rest of the network kind of thing?

# ¿ Jul 27, 2013 00:37

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

Is there anything on Netflix that is 5.1? I've tried like 10 movies, all stereo.

edit - Someone on XDA fixed my networked PC problem. It's my Verizon router. It has a hidden IGMP settings page, I had to turn that off.

FogHelmut fucked around with this message at 02:30 on Jul 27, 2013

# ¿ Jul 27, 2013 02:20

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

Don Lapre posted:

Lots of the TV shows list as 5.1 on my ps3

I don't know if Netflix considers a cell phone not needing 5.1 so it just doesn't send it? Additionally, I've been streaming Netflix from my phone/Chromcast all night, but I signed into the Netflix website and they don't seem to know who I am.

Now that I have a solid network connection through my wired PC:

-Local video in my browser tab casting is working, but if it doesn't have audio in the Chrome browser, it doesn't have audio when it's cast. Couldn't get WMV to cast at all even though it played in Chrome browser.
-Playing these through Plex in the browser works perfectly.
-Amazon instant is poo poo. Anything you'd want to watch is full of Silverlight and doesn't work. Certain things that are not Silverlight work well, however.
-Porncasting works.

edit - Going full-screen with Plex browser player makes 2.35:1 movies distort to 16:9. This might be a function of the Plex browser player, or the fact that I'm still using a 4:3 monitor.

FogHelmut fucked around with this message at 03:07 on Jul 27, 2013

# ¿ Jul 27, 2013 02:52

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

Casting Netflix from the PC works, but certain things use Silverlight in some capacity. On the PC, you get a message that Silverlight has crashed, and it sits on the loading screen on the TV. Casting the same video from the phone app works perfectly.

Also, my receiver only does HDMI pass through. I don't know why it has HDMI slots. So I can only do stereo audio.

Trap Star posted:

Anybody willing to buy one locally and ship to Canada?

The instruction manual has specific Canada disclaimers and legal such and such, so it can't be far out.

FogHelmut fucked around with this message at 03:42 on Jul 28, 2013

# ¿ Jul 28, 2013 03:40

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

Trap Star posted:

You mean "can't be far out" from a Canadian release? Or does it actually say it won't work in Canada?

It's certified as an electronic device in Canada, so it's probably not far out from a Canadian release.

# ¿ Jul 28, 2013 14:09

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

Mister Fister posted:

The one thing i hope google or someone else does is make a chromecast launcher app with all the compatible chromecast apps.

This? https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.google.android.apps.chromecast.app

# ¿ Jul 29, 2013 15:48

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

Athenry posted:

It'll have a list of chromecast compatible apps down at the bottom. I'm not sure its really intended as a launcher, as it doesn't have all the compatible apps listed when I open it.

Yeah it just takes you to the Playstore page for the app, even if you have it installed. But listing them is a start, then you can probably make an app group or something.

# ¿ Jul 29, 2013 16:26

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

Coach Sport posted:

Man, I am flat out unable to get this working with my router. It keeps telling me to turn on UPnP, but its already turned on. The android app is kind of unreliable and crashy too, or at least the setup part is because that's all I've been able to see so far. I guess I'm just tossing it in a drawer until Google figures out a way to patch it.

How is Google going to patch your router?

# ¿ Jul 30, 2013 12:28

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

Coach Sport posted:

I mean the chrome cast app or the dongle itself. My router is pretty modern and from a pretty mainstream ISP. It has upnp enabled but chromecast says it isn't, so at least they could patch in more descriptive error messages.

Have you tried any of this

quote:

You will need to disable AP/Client isolation, also known as client isolation, on your router. Please refer to your router documentation to learn how to disable AP isolation.

If you do not have access to your router settings, or if you are attempting to connect through a guest, hotel or public network with AP/client isolation, you will be unable to set up your Chromecast.

If you are attempting to connect through a Wi-Fi extender, please check your extender settings. You will need to disable AP isolation on your Wi-Fi extender before setting up Chromecast to work with your Wi-Fi network.

Also if your router has any IGMP settings, those should be disabled. Also it only supports 2.4 ghz wifi, and does not work with 5 ghz wifi.

# ¿ Jul 30, 2013 14:35

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

quote:

Dear Amazon.com Customer,

Thank you for your recent Chromecast purchase. Your purchase has qualified you to receive a 3-month Netflix gift code. Your code will be emailed to you 5 days after your Chromecast ships.

Uhhh, my Chromecast shipped last Wednesday?

# ¿ Jul 30, 2013 18:17

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

alg posted:

They just sent me that, then sent me my code.

I just got my code, 4 minutes after receiving the first email.

# ¿ Jul 30, 2013 18:22

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

5TonsOfFlax posted:

I got mine this afternoon, plugged it in and set it up no problem. Except that there's no sound. At all. I've got an older Element brand plasma tv, but I'm already using HDMI inputs on it for both tivo and a popcorn hour without issue. Is there a way to configure the audio output of the chromecast?

In everything? Youtube and Netflix?

Evil Mastermind posted:

Has anyone else's Chromecast been running hot? I just used mine for 2 hours of Netflix and it got pretty warm. I've been unplugging it when I'm not using it just to be on the safe side.

Even the manual states that it gets pretty hot. Maybe try the extender plug and have it hanging a few inches away from your TV?

tyang209 posted:

None of my MKV seem to be stream with audio. They look beautiful but the volume is muted and it doesn't seem to be an issue with chromcast but jsut chrome in general can't play the MKVs with audio. Anyone know of a fix?

It's something about lack of audio codecs. I don't know of any efforts to put them into Chrome, but they may exist.

# ¿ Jul 31, 2013 14:46

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

When are all of these additional apps coming out? Google said adding support could be done in less than 200 lines of code. I'm impatient.

# ¿ Aug 5, 2013 17:22

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

I don't run Cyanogenmod, but hopefully this will work its way into something you can install on anything

http://www.androidpolice.com/2013/08/09/koush-demonstrates-streaming-to-chromecast-with-any-media-app-on-cyanogenmod/

quote:

Ever since Jelly Bean, the reasons to switch to a custom ROM (as opposed to a stock, rooted build) have been slowly shrinking. But today ClockworkMod Recovery developer Koushik "Koush" Dutta gave us a reason to be incredibly excited for upcoming builds of CyanogenMod. With a little tweaking of the famous ROM family, he's managed to integrate Chromecast streaming across the system, making any video or audio app compatible.
Koush's demonstration video is convincing. Start an applicable audio or video player, and a "Play on Chromecast" notification will pop into the tray. Tap it, and the file will play on your Chromecast TV dongle, no muss and no fuss. And more importantly, there's no need for developers to update their apps with the Chromecast API. Presumably this addition to the CyanogenMod ROM includes the ability to stream local files and cloud files, as Koush demonstrated previously.
This method seems to work so seamlessly between Android, Chromecast, and any apps that use media APIs, that you have to wonder why Google didn't try to do something similar by baking in some of this functionality into Android 4.3. As usual with CyanogenMod, there's no word on when end users will see this added functionality, but I'd expect it to pop up in CyanogenMod 10.2 builds (Android 4.3) before too long.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTWHL30gyg4

# ¿ Aug 9, 2013 16:12

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

404notfound posted:

Are there any new supported apps? Mostly I'm just waiting for Plex so I can stop using my Roku for good (I said the same thing when I got my Samsung smart TV, but the smart TV app is kind of rear end), but I'd be interesting in trying out other apps too.

Nope. Its still Netflix/YouTube. Chrome browser kinda works if you have some kind of grand level WiFi.

# ¿ Aug 14, 2013 01:47

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

michael knight posted:

Yeah, I wouldn't put it past Google to have a master plan for licensing out the technology for tvs running chromeos with apps, browsing and chromecast built in. It'd make roku a pretty hard sell for people in the market for a new set.

It'd be a nice one-up on Apple and all the bluray players and hdmi av receivers capable of AirPlay

I wouldn't put it past Google to stick this somewhere on a back burner and we never see an update.

# ¿ Aug 14, 2013 18:55

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

They should rename it to ClosedCast. I would have expected support for things beyond YouTube and Netflix by now, but we may not get it.

https://plus.google.com/110558071969009568835/posts/ZeHgRXS6AZs

I can't copy the text from my phone, but the latest Chromecast update destroyed Koush's AirCast. Basically they've completely disabled being able to play media from external sources. You'll only get Big Media approved content.

# ¿ Aug 25, 2013 17:08

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

gggiiimmmppp posted:

I wasn't sure about that. In any case, I've rebooted and restarted chrome, I can see the chromecast on the Win7 network screen and I can ping it, but the chrome plugin still says no devices found. The help page doesn't help and some random google results suggested that wifi was required for initial setup no matter what. I'll fiddle with it some more

Your router needs to be configured to do wired PC to WiFi Chromecast:

quote:

You will need to disable AP/Client isolation, also known as client isolation, on your router. Please refer to your router documentation to learn how to disable AP isolation.

If you do not have access to your router settings, or if you are attempting to connect through a guest, hotel or public network with AP/client isolation, you will be unable to set up your Chromecast.

If you are attempting to connect through a Wi-Fi extender, please check your extender settings. You will need to disable AP isolation on your Wi-Fi extender before setting up Chromecast to work with your Wi-Fi network.

Also if your router has any IGMP settings, those should be disabled. Also it only supports 2.4 ghz wifi, and does not work with 5 ghz wifi.

# ¿ Sep 10, 2013 21:53

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

I've had mine since the day it was released and it's been plugged in to the wall the whole time. One time it was unresponsive, and I had to unplug it and plug it back in, but I'd hardly call that a problem.

# ¿ Sep 23, 2013 18:33

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

numbs posted:

Thinking about getting one of these too. Could this plug into a computer and work that way?

Why would you plug it into a computer when all of these services are already available via the internet, which can be found on computers?

# ¿ Oct 4, 2013 14:09

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

withak posted:

No one knows why google isn't whitelisting more stuff. Maybe they want to keep the testing pool small so there isn't quite so much chaos if they have to change the API and break everything for some reason. Or maybe there is some other technical reason that devs can't get an official app out.

Or maybe they have secret contracts with media providers to not allow other services that could compete. :tinfoil:

FogHelmut fucked around with this message at 22:58 on Nov 17, 2013

# ¿ Nov 17, 2013 20:20

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

If your browser is on a computer that is wired to the network, and your Chromecast has a really good wifi connection, it's not bad. If both devices are on a wifi G connection, then good luck.

# ¿ Nov 21, 2013 22:52

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

Plex requires a PlexPass subscription so it's really just bullshit.

edit- I don't even know what 90% of those other things are.

# ¿ Dec 10, 2013 17:36

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

I'm not sure if this even allows Plex to play from your local server, or if you must use their cloud options through PlexPass.

edit - Nevermind, read the above link. Runs off the latest version of your Plex server. They are alleging that this is through PlexPass because they get early access to new features. :tinfoil:

And has no mention of charging fees to pay off media conglomerates. :tinfoil:

FogHelmut fucked around with this message at 17:45 on Dec 10, 2013

# ¿ Dec 10, 2013 17:40

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

Plex is okay... Not great. Netflix looks better to be honest. And I have all of my transcoding and streaming settings turned all the way up.

# ¿ Jan 22, 2014 01:25

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

teagone posted:

When I stream from plex to my chromecast the quality is either on par with netflix or far exceeds it. Did you make sure whatever device you're casting from has the appropriate streaming settings? I had to set both my phone and tablet at 12Mbit each as they defaulted to 3Mbit 720p or whatever.

I have my phone turned all the way up. I have my PC server turned all the way up. Does the stream go from the server to the router to the phone to the router to the Chromecast? Or does the Chromecast pick it up right from the server, like it does with Netflix?

# ¿ Jan 22, 2014 13:08

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

Plex has issues casting things that are AC3 5.1 to my TV. I just get the side channels and no voice. It needs to do some kind of conversion to stereo.

# ¿ Feb 2, 2014 05:21

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

Can AllCast connect to shared network drives?

# ¿ Feb 4, 2014 20:00

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

Karthe posted:

If you want to upgrade to Google Play Services 4.2.39 right now, you can grab the APK from here: http://www.androidpolice.com/2014/0...h-enhancements/

I downloaded that on my Moto X. Play Services crashes when I try to AllCast a video.

# ¿ Feb 7, 2014 04:11

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

Also I was trying to cast a file from a network drive via ES File Explorer, rather than local media. Haven't actually tried it with a local file.

# ¿ Feb 7, 2014 16:04

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

This shows up sometimes. I don't know where it came from, but it doesn't work.

# ¿ Feb 22, 2014 03:17

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

feedmyleg posted:

I am very excited about this. What's your build?

Moto X 4.4.2
Chromecast 15250

# ¿ Feb 22, 2014 03:48

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

kri kri posted:

The UI for downloading the plexpass server is awful.

GO to plex.tv and sign in

then click on downloads
then click on "show plexpass downloads"

Install the plexpass server version

There is a different server for plexpass than regular plex?

# ¿ Mar 4, 2014 23:16

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

Besides games, what does it do beyond the Chromecast?

# ¿ Oct 15, 2014 17:24

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

Three Olives posted:

One surprise with the Nexus Player for me is no mention of USB camera/Hangout support. After a million false starts consumers are video chatting now and hangout support would get this in a lot of homes of grandparents.

https://www.google.com/chrome/business/solutions/for-meetings.html

# ¿ Oct 16, 2014 17:19

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# ¿ Apr 25, 2024 02:22

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

CrashCat posted:

Amazon is having a sale on their new Fire TV Stick they just announced, which is apparently a cut down version of the Fire TV. No idea what the app support is like, but if you have Prime and get it today it's $20. You also won't get the thing shipped to you until like December though. If you don't get it today it goes back up to $40. If you haven't done a Prime trial yet you can activate that and immediately go into the settings to tell it to not auto-renew. I'd link it but it's a huge loving banner that you can't miss on the Amazon front page that leads to an ugly url full of tracking cookies.

I ordered one, expected delivery is Jan 5, 2015. I don't know where the Chromecast is going really. It's good for watching YouTube on my TV.

# ¿ Oct 28, 2014 19:25

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Inspect Your Gadgets > Remember the Nexus Q or Chromecast? Me neither. Meet Google's Nexus Player

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