Chromecast

Although Google Play Music and YouTube Music have existed side-by-side for a couple of years, the latter became rather controversial after Google decided to replace the former with it. Not everyone has been happy with the transition, with some missing core features available from Google Play Music. To its credit, YouTube Music is slowly adding those features and has today opened two more doors that could put it on par with Google's old music streaming service.

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Google did more than just announce a new Chromecast this week. It also muddled once again its narrative for one of its most confusing ecosystems next to messaging: entertainment. Both a platform on its own and a custom experience on top of Android TV, Google TV brings another name and brand to Google's already messy products and services lineup which is bound to become even more confusing soon. But as if to show that everything is really connected, Google is now offering a free Chromecast with Google TV for those signing up for a new YouTube TV account.

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This week Google held its annual big Fall event with devices like the Google Pixel 5 and the new Nest Audio. In this event they revealed the newest iteration of their smart TV platform, Google TV, built on Android TV. They also revealed that they have another Google Pixel 4a - this time with 5G and a surprisingly different bit of industrial design.

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Back in September, Microsoft launched Project xCloud game streaming as part of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. Project xCloud allows players to stream certain Xbox One games to their Android device, giving them a way to play console-quality games on mobile phone with no big downloads needed. It's a nice perk for Game Pass Ultimate subscribers, to be sure, and apparently it works on more than just Android phones.

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The new Chromecast is Google's most powerful media dongle and finally addresses the issue of the missing remote, but all I could think about when I first saw it was... why did they make it in three different colors? On sale from today, the $49.99 streaming adapter can be had in Snow, Sunrise, and Sky, which seems a weird decision when you consider you'll probably only get to enjoy those finishes for a couple of minutes before you plug it in behind the TV.

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Google has a new streaming gadget hoping to get one of your TV's coveted HDMI ports, and the Chromecast with Google TV promises smarter suggestions and less "ugh, what should we watch" confusion in return. Announced during Google's big Pixel 5 event today, 2020's revamped Chromecast also adds a voice-powered remote control and a new interface built on top of Android TV.

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Today we're taking a peek at Google's newest iteration of their smart TV experience. This new version is called Google TV, not to be confused with the old product (also called Google TV, defunct for quite a few years now), this new Google TV system is built on Android TV, making the best of the features that work, and modifying and improving those that have not worked to Google's satisfaction.

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If you thought Sony bungled up its PlayStation 5 pre-orders, then you might find yourself face-palming over this Google mess. To be fair, overeager retailers may have been the ones that jumped the gun with the PS5 brouhaha and they may be to blame yet again for pushing the "sell" button too early. It appears that both Home Depot and Walmart have already started selling the Chromecast with Google TV, a.k.a. "Sabrina", two days before Google even has the chance to fully reveal what it is.

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Google has scheduled an event at the end of the month but, by the time it rolls around, everyone may already know everything it has to say. From the Pixel 5 to the pillow-like new Nest speaker, Google's hardware line up has been leaking left and right. While there's still room for some of the finer details, these pair of leaks for a new Nest product and a new Chromecast pretty much confirm at least how Google's upcoming smart home devices will look on shelves or on your drawer.

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Google may have teased its own new Nest smart speaker back in July, but a new leak gives us a much better view of just what the unusually-shaped model will look like - and the new Google Chromecast launching alongside it. There were more than a few scratched-heads when Google responded to the leaks around what speaker codenamed "Prince" with an official image of it, not least because of the weirdly pillowy shape.

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Google sent invitations to an event that'll take place this month with several new device reveals promised. Google's invite suggested that we'll see a brand new Chromecast device. Google suggested we'll see a new smart speaker (unnamed as yet!) Now's also the time to see some new Google Pixel phones - of course!

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It is probably no secret by now how much Google wants its nascent Meet service to become the de facto solution not just for meetings but for any video communication, including personal ones. It has been aggressively pushing Meet everywhere, including in places you might not expect or want it to be seen. Its latest push is to allow you to Meet on your large TV, or any screen for that matter, as long as it supports Chromecast or Google Cast.

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