YouMap Cast Receiver is a new Amazon Fire TV and Fire TV Stick app that adds Google Cast support to your device, which essentially turns your Fire TV into a Chromecast. The app is priced a bit high at $7.99, but may be worth it to some if it can live upto it’s promise of replacing the functionality of the $35 Chromecast. The good news is, you don’t have to take the developer’s word on the app’s abilities before shelling over the dough. The developers are letting anyone try the app for free until the end of August. Just sideload this APK file, which will stop working on August 31st, to give the app a try.
Adding Chromecast receiver capabilities to your Fire TV means you’ll be able to use any number of Chromecast enabled Android apps to wirelessly send audio and video from your Android smartphone or tablet to your Fire TV device. Amazon’s new Fling protocol, added to Fire TV devices last month, performs the same functionality but is not yet supported on anywhere near as many apps as those that support Google’s Cast protocal.
YouMap supports many Google Cast compatible apps, but it does not fully replace the functionality of a Chromecast. While the app supports streaming Google Play Music and trailers from Google Play, it does not work with media containing DRM copy protection, like Google Play Movies and TV show episodes. It does however support Chrome browser tab mirroring, which allows you to stream any webpage, including its audio, to your Fire TV using the Chrome browser on a computer and the YouMap app.
The same way the numerous AirPlay apps that exist for the Fire TV don’t replace the rock solid Airplay capabilities of an Apple TV, YouMap is not going to make Chromecasts obsolete. The app is great when it works, which is most of the time, but comes with issues you would expect from an unorthodox implementation of a proprietary protocol. YouMap is great to use with the odd service that’s unavailable on the Fire TV, or for an easy way to put what’s in your Chrome browser onto your TV, but expect to run into occasional lag and connection issues.
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Doesn’t work for me. Only cast option I see is my actual Chromecast.
Reboot Fire TV after install. There might be a slight quirk or failure to stream something initially, so try again. Rdio, YouTube, SlingPlayer and Sermon Audio works. Plex works, but videos must be restarted from the beginning and cannot be controlled at all during playback, without the video going black and audio-only being heard. Plex Music works fine. Chromecast screen-casting/mirroring with audio from my Nexus 5, works. I don’t mind that DRM content doesn’t work because there are apps actual apps for that, but am hoping for devs to adopt “Amazon Fling”.
It should be noted that you don’t need to sideload apps onto Fire TV. There is an installer built in and as long as you can browse to the APK file and “open” it, you can install it just like any other Android device. If you have a NAS or USB storage device and sideload ES File Explorer, you’re set.
Insalled APK but don’t know how to cast webbroswer. Do we need to download extension just like we do chromecast?
Yes, to cast a Chrome browser tab, you need to install Google’s Cast extension.
WOW!
best news ever. always wanted this to happen.
the app is working great. I wish the price was a bit better, since the chromecast is cheap anyway. I would love to see it sold for around 5 bucks.
Used the trial version for a day and everything worked great. So I uninstalled and bought the app, with the paid app my video keeps getting killed but the audio continues after a couple minutes of TAB mirroring.
Uninstalled paid app and re-sideloaded the trial and it works great again
WTF
Using Google’s Tabcast Chrome app and YouMap, I tested streaming NFL Game Pass (free trial!) to my FireTV. I was initially getting a pretty annoying audio lag, generally poor audio quality and a fair amount of picture stutter but after about a quarter of play, it stabilized for the most part. Very cool to finally cast to FireTV! App is too expensive though. That’s 1/4 the price of a Chromecast (retail) for a Chromecast client. Seriously?
This app has been removed from Amazon. Just a heads up.
Hi,
We are the developer for this app, thanks for the write up.
The app is right there, not removed from Amazon, http://www.amazon.com/VMLite-Corporation-YouMap-Cast-Receiver/dp/B013KQ9FYM/?tag=aftvn-20
About the price, come on, guys, it’s just a McDonalds. If I like an app, it does not make difference whether it’s $1 or $10. More than $10, I may think a bit.
For me it’s a question of how much I’d use the app. Because it can’t handle DRM and many of the sites I’d cast use DRM (e.g. iPlayer), I can’t see spending the $8. If it were $4.99 or lower I’d probably get it for the few times I wanted to broadcast non-DRM content that’s not from Youtube.
Then again I have a long HDMI cable I got from Amazon for $9 that connects my Chromebook to an HDMI switch when I want to watch stuff (e.g. iPlayer) on the big screen.
I know the difference is only $3 but for that same $3 you could get a double cheeseburger and small fry with change to spare at McDonald’s.
Link is currently dead.
To watch DRM-ed movies, you can use screen mirroring first, then go to play the movie, it will show up on TV, don’t cast directly from the app. For example, Google Play Movie works this way, try it for yourself.
Chromecast mirroring protocol is much more stable than miracast, much fewer frame drops.
CBS All-Access works pretty well. Lots of stuttering at first, but that’s during the commercial that plays before the show starts. Seems to straighten up and fly right by the time the show begins.
Epix is horrible. Tried a movie, horrible sync issues. Rebooted the Fire TV and tried another movie. Same horrible sync. Not usable.
But this will work at least until Fire TV adds CBS All-Access on its own.
By the way, I just installed today, so if Amazon had pulled it, it’s back.
Hi Robert, can you tell how to use Epic to play a movie? I will try to test and fix the bugs. Thanks
I use the Epix app on my Galaxy S4 phone, enable the Chromecast on it, pick a movie, and start playing. Picture quality is fine, but sound is not only out of sync, it plaaaaaaaaays verrrrrrrrrry slooooooooow. Tried this on both “10 to Midnight” and “48HRS.” Thanks!
Can you do a test for me? Do screen cast first, then open Epix app to play a movie, how is the audio performing? I am suspecting Epix uses an audio codec that fire TV lacks hardware decoder
Sorry it took so long to reply, busy with other stuff, including getting a new phone.
So I used the “cast screen” option on my new Nexus 6 instead of hitting the cast button from within Epix. Then I started up a movie (Star Trek Into Darkness).
When doing the screen cast first, the sound was fine, in stereo, and in sync. Too bad the picture was in SD and the three Android buttons at the bottom of the phone were also visible on the TV screen and never went away.
But to answer your question, when I do a screen cast first, THEN open Epix and start a movie, the sound is fine and dandy, and in sync.
By the way, casting from actual Chromecast apps Watch ABC and FoxNow works GREAT.
Epix seems to be the only Chromecast-compatible app that has this sound issue.
First I’ll need to figure out how to do a screencast, never done one before. May take me a while.
Take your time. You can install google chromecast app, the from left side, choose Cast Screen
It works well with phone, but doesn’t work with browser — doesn’t appear in target list.
Did you try to exit chrome browser? and open again it again. You may also want to check if your antivirus software has firewall protection.
Works great with my laptops chrome browser…however I cannot use it with the YouTube app on my Iphone 6
Interesting, it works very well on my iPhone 6. Try to reboot your router, and on your iPhone 6, close youtube, turn off and on WIFI.
It works for other apps on my Iphone just not YouTube. I have tried rebooting everything.
Can you make sure you have the latest YouTube version?
I updated my youtube and still no luck if I use the you tube app. If I go to the chrome browser on my iphone and go to youtube.com…then I see the cast button. But I cannot see it in the app itself.
Also when I open chromecast app I cannot find a device.
Other than this small hiccup everything else works great!
Hi Anar,
Very weird, seems to do with network setup.
For Chromecast app, you need to use Cast Screen from left panel, then it will find the YouMap receiver. The main app won’t find it.
Hi Anar,
Seems you are right, iOS YouTube app has trouble finding YouMap on Fire TV. If YouMap is running on other devices, then works OK. The only difference is the port number. Fire TV will have to use 8010, whereas on other devices, port 8008 is used. It seems iOS YouTube use hard coded 8008 port, while Android version of YouTube and browser YouTube work fine with non standard port.
We can file a bug to iOS YouTube for this. Hopefully they will fix this bug.
I spent the money and bought the app with the intention of mainly using it for Casting YouTube from my Andrioid (Lollipop) phone to the FTV. I wish I had just spent the little bit of extra money on a Chromecast. I like to support developers but I feel like $3-4 would have been more appropriate.
So many problems.
Once YouTube is playing if I return to the video on my phone I get a ‘network connection error’
Phone randomly drops the ability to cast from YouTube restart of FTV required
Videos stop randomly
In short way too buggy to use and definitely not worth the $8 USD I paid for it. Save your money and buy a chromecast, or wait for an update.
Great article. For those who live outside US like me, you can access Netflix, Hulu and similar media stations on your Chromecast by using UnoTelly or similar tools.
Does anyone know how to change the Port number for Youmap? Im using it on a Fire TV Stick, and I keep getting notifications saying I need to change to port 8010. I heard somewhere there is something called Netstat, but I cannot find any info on it. Any information would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
Hello again. Seeing that Amazon took this app off their App Store, is there any way possible to get the paid version APK from somewhere else? It is still listed in the Play Store, but for Android. If I downloaded the paid version from here, would it work if I side loaded it to the Fire TV stick?
If not, does anyone know how I could obtain the paid Youmap APK for Fire TV/stick? I really want to get this working. I installed the trial and it worked great, all other options are bogus using in app web browsers to cast. PLEASE HELP!!!
@Mike:
I’m geting this message too and am not able to deal with it too.
My feeling is that YouMap doesn’t work any länger. Red in the XDA forum that Google urged to stop offering the app.
@Mike:
Direkt-Link to APK:
http://www.youmap.com/YouMapCastReceiver.apk
YouMap cann’t see it but you get it. I got it and it works with SOME Apps. At least still.
Sorry: YOU changed by automatic corrector to ‘YouMap’
I have installed the chromecast app on my xperia z3 but it can’t find you map running on my ftv … Any help would be appreciated!
There are only reviews now listed, the app is not accessible through the Amazon Store
http://www.amazon.com/VMLite-Corporation-YouMap-Cast-Receiver/product-reviews/B013KQ9FYM
We will republish this app, it may split into a few pieces.
The first piece is out:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01MQXKTYX
It’s primary for casting youtube videos to Fire TV. Tap the Cast icon from iOS and Android YouTube apps to play the video on Fire TV, definitely the easiest way of doing YouTube.