The Nest Hub, and larger Nest Hub Max, smart displays from Google are the first of their kind to receive official support for Netflix streaming. Despite entering the smart display market over a year after Amazon, Google has beat out all of Amazon’s Echo Show models in supporting the largest streaming service. To watch Netflix on a Nest Hub, just say “Hey Google, open Netflix.” Read more ›
Back when Amazon and Google announced that an official YouTube app would finally come to Fire TV devices, they also said a YouTube Kids app would arrive as well. That day has come because a YouTube Kids app has just arrived for Amazon Fire TV and Fire TV Edition devices. The app appears to be compatible with all Fire TV models, all the way back to the first 2014 Fire TV and Fire TV Stick. Google says YouTube Kids is “a safer online experience for kids.” The app limits access to YouTUbe videos to those that “a mix of automated filters built by our engineering teams, human review, and feedback from parents” have deemed to be family-friendly. Read more ›
Amazon and Google have just jointly announced that an official YouTube and YouTube TV app will be coming to Amazon Fire TV devices and Fire TV Edition televisions later this year. Additionally, Amazon Prime Video will be coming to Android TV devices and Chromecasts. The long disagreement between the two companies that has kept their services apart seems to finally be coming to an end. Read more ›
Televisions and streaming media players running Android TV have begun displaying sponsored ads on their home screens. The ads were spotted by Zatz Not Funny, among many others, and first reported on by XDA Developers. The ads have been seen on the NVIDIA Shield TV, Mi Box, and Sony televisions. Google has confirmed that this is a “pilot program” that they themselves are running. Unlike the Apps Spotlight row that began appearing on devices a little while ago, this new sponsored ad row cannot be turned off unless you lock the device down by creating a restricted profile.
Amazon is finally actually selling Google’s Chromecasts, as first spotted by Android Police. Both the regular 3rd-gen Chromecast and the Chromecast Ultra are now listed as in-stock and available to purchase directly from Amazon. Read more ›
Google held a big hardware event today where they announced their new Pixel 3 phones. While it wasn’t part of the mentioned during the main presentation itself, Google also announced a refreshed version of the Chromecast. The new 3rd generation model now bumps up 60 fps video playback from 720p on the previous generation to 1080p. Also being added is support for Chromecast Audio which allows the device to be included in multi-room audio groups. Read more ›
Google has announced that YouTube Red, their $9.99 per month subscription service for YouTube which also comes with access to Google Play Music, is breaking up into two new services: YouTube Music and YouTube Premium. YouTube Music is a music streaming service that will be available for free with ads or for $9.99 per month without ads. YouTube Premium will be $11.99 and includes YouTube Music plus the same perks of YouTube Red. Read more ›
It turned out that the new Android TV pendant that leaked last month is only going to be available to developers, but all is not lost for those eager to see new consumer hardware running Android TV. JBL has announced the JBL Link Bar which is a mishmash of several home entertainment devices in one. At its core, it’s a soundbar that connects to your television, but it is also a full-fledged Android TV set-top box. Additionally, thanks to its far-field microphones and its Google Assistant capabilities, it’s essentially a smart speaker as well that closely mimics the functionality of a Google Home. Read more ›
The Google I/O developer conference is going on this week. This is when Google shares some of the new features coming to Android. As is usually the case, phones are getting the most attention, but Google has shared a few new features coming to Android TV with the P updated later this year. The changes include better performance for low-end devices, an easier initial setup process, and improved settings. Read more ›
At Google’s big I/O developer conference this week, the company announced new Android TV hardware. The ADT-2 is a streaming device that is being given away to developers to replace the discontinued Nexus Player. There are no plans to offer the new device to consumers. This is the same device that leaked last month through the FCC and it shares many similarities with the current 3rd-generation Amazon Fire TV. Read more ›
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