2nd generation Google Chromecast sells in Australia

A new version of Google’s Chromecast that turns an ordinary TV into a smart one, will sell in Australia for $59.

Google Chromecast 2nd generation

A new version of Google’s brilliant Chromecast that turns an ordinary TV into a smart one, will sell in Australia from today for $59.

Since its launch in 2013, Chromecast has been staggeringly successful, with Google selling more than 20 million units globally, and the device initiating streams of 1.5 billion media.

The threat posed by Chromecast and Apple TV saw Amazon ban their sales from its marketplace in October last year.

The secret of Chromecast is simplicity. Slot it into a spare HDMI port on your TV, and suddenly it is capable of streaming movies and other media created by dozens of smartphone apps.

Two new forms of Chromecast that were on sale in the US before Christmas are available from today locally.

The new standard Chromecast is a circular shaped device and replaces the current oblong one. It has an HDMI connector and a microUSB slot for power.

You run the Chromecast app available for iOS and Android, choose media and the Chromecast device, and it will display on the TV connected to that HDMI.

The cleverness of Chromecast is that it doesn’t stream media through your phone to a TV. This would quickly deplete phone battery, and result in lower resolution video. Instead, says Google, the Chromecast app communicates with media servers to start streaming straight from the cloud to the TV. The phone is free for other activity.

The original Google Chromecast

This second generation of Chromecast promises better Wi-Fi conductivity. It is dual channel and capable of connecting to either the 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz home Wi-Fi band. The previous version connected only to 2.4 GHz. Google says the result is better quality video and audio. Chromecast handles up to 1080p full HD but not 4K at this stage.

Chromecast comes in black, red (coral) and green (lemonade). Colours matter only if you care about the look of your array of cords behind your TV. Frankly, I seek only to make these as inconspicuous as possible.

Chromecast is capable of some gaming. Google Australia yesterday demonstrated using Chromecast to play Angry Birds on a large TV. A player used their iPhone as a gaming console. In this case, Angry Birds streamed from cloud to the TV, while the console commands were transmitted via Wi-Fi from the phone to Chromecast and the TV. Google says this can work with faster interactive games without latency issues, once developers upgrade their code.

Google Australia yesterday also announced a second Chromecast device, a smaller disk shaped more like a vinyl record, known as Chromecast Audio. It also will cost $59. Instead of an HDMI cable, Chromecast Audio connects to the speaker via a stereo plug. It changes a normal speaker into a wireless one.

It too is dual band, and can also support optical fibre audio and RCA. Google’s Chromecast app ecosphere includes Spotify, Pandora, and Google play Music, all of which can be streamed to speakers through Chromecast Audio.

The most significant change is to the Chromecast app, available for iOS and Android. It is now a one-stop shop for all apps that can stream to a Chromecast device. It displays video available for each of these apps line by line. You can pause and play back from a smartphone.

Chromecast is available today from Harvey Norman, JB Hi-Fi, Bing Lee and The Good Guys, and online from Google Play store from tomorrow. Colour versions are available only through Google. Chromecast Audio is available only from JB Hi-Fi, Harvey Norman and Google Play store.