Google TV Streamer Announced as Chromecast Replacement and Rival to Apple TV 4K

Google has announced the Google TV Streamer, a new device that replaces the Chromecast and directly rivals the Apple TV 4K.

google tv
The discontinuation of the Chromecast marks the end of an era for Google's original streaming dongle, which has been a staple in the market since its launch in 2013. Over 100 million Chromecast devices were sold during its 11-year run. The Google TV Streamer is positioned as a high-end replacement for the Chromecast, promising to deliver a next-generation, AI-powered streaming experience while also functioning as a central hub for smart home devices.

The Google TV Streamer provides access to over 700,000 movies and shows through popular streaming apps like YouTube TV, Netflix, Disney+, and ‌Apple TV‌, as well as live TV with over 800 free channels. One of the standout features is the AI-powered content recommendation system, which uses Google's Gemini technology to curate personalized watchlists and provide detailed summaries, reviews, and season-by-season breakdowns of content.

The Google TV Streamer features a faster processor, double the memory, and 32GB of storage. It supports 4K HDR with Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos.

The Google TV Streamer is available in two colors: Porcelain and Hazel, with the latter being exclusive to the U.S. Google Store. The device is intended to sit in front of the TV, rather than behind it, to improve connectivity with smart home devices. The Google TV Streamer supports Matter and includes a built-in Thread border router, which enhances the connectivity and response times of smart home devices like locks and motion sensors.

The redesigned voice remote features improved ergonomics with a textured back for better grip and an optimized button layout. It includes a customizable button that can be programmed to open a favorite app, switch inputs, or launch the Google Home panel. The remote also has a built-in "find my remote" feature, allowing users to locate it by voice command or by pressing a button on the back of the device.

The Google TV Streamer is positioned to rival high-end streaming devices such as the ‌Apple TV‌ 4K. While the ‌Apple TV‌ 4K offers similar features like 4K HDR and Dolby Vision support, the Google TV Streamer is priced more competitively at $99.99 compared to the ‌Apple TV‌ 4K's starting price of $129. The Google TV Streamer includes Ethernet connectivity as standard, but it lacks the additional storage options that the ‌Apple TV‌ 4K provides, with Apple offering both 64GB and 128GB models.

The Google TV Streamer is now available for pre-order, with shipping set to begin on September 24, 2024.

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro 34ths Perspective

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 10 New Features

Sunday March 23, 2025 10:00 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
iOS 18

iOS 18.4 Expected Next Week - Here Are the Release Notes

Friday March 28, 2025 2:01 pm PDT by
With the second release candidate of iOS 18.4 that Apple seeded out today, the company finally provided us with release notes that give a full rundown on what to expect. There's an Apple Vision Pro app, new Apple Intelligence features for notifications and additional language support, plus an Apple News Food feature for Apple News+ subscribers, and several updates that should improve the...
macbook pro blue green

When Will Apple Release the M5 MacBook Pro?

Wednesday March 26, 2025 4:53 pm PDT by
Apple regularly refreshes the MacBook Pro models, and a new version that uses M5 series chips is in the works. Apple just finished refreshing most of the Mac lineup with M4 chips, and now it's time for the M5. Rumors suggest that we could see the first M5 MacBook Pro models this fall. Design There have been no rumors of a design update for the M5 MacBook Pro models that are coming this...
Facebook Feature

Facebook's New iPhone App Feature Turns the Clock Back to 2007

Thursday March 27, 2025 1:59 pm PDT by
In the mid-to-late 2000s, Facebook was all about staying connected with friends and family. However, as the social media platform added new features and grew over time, that core experience began to get drowned out. That changes starting now, according to Meta, which today introduced a new feature that will "bring back the joy" of classic Facebook. Specifically, Meta has redesigned the...
Magic Mouse Green

What to Expect From the Magic Mouse 3

Saturday March 29, 2025 10:15 am PDT by
Apple is reportedly working on a new Magic Mouse. Below, we recap what to expect. The two key rumors for the Magic Mouse 3 so far include a relocated charging port, along with a more ergonomic design. It was briefly rumored that the Magic Mouse 3 would also feature voice control, but that was misinterpreted information. Relocated Charging Port While the Magic Mouse switched from...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature Homescreen

Six Things to Know About Apple's Upcoming Foldable iPhone

Friday March 28, 2025 3:54 pm PDT by
We've been hearing rumors about a foldable iPhone for almost a decade now, but it looks like we might finally see the device come to fruition in 2026. We're going to be waiting many more months for the foldable iPhone, but so far we're hearing good things. Apple wants to make it creaseless. It's taken Apple multiple years to design a foldable iPhone that it's satisfied with because Apple ...
iOS 18 4 Ambient Music Control Center

How to Use iOS 18.4's New Ambient Music Feature in Control Center

Thursday March 27, 2025 7:45 am PDT by
The upcoming iOS 18.4 update for the iPhone adds an Ambient Music feature to Control Center. Below, we take a closer look at how it works. iOS 18.4 is currently in beta, so the Ambient Music feature is not widely available yet. The update will likely be released to the general public next week. To use the feature on iOS 18.4, open Control Center and tap on the plus sign in the top-left...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature 1

'iPhone Fold' to Feature Metallic Glass Hinge That Resists Deformation

Thursday March 27, 2025 4:21 am PDT by
Last week, we covered a report claiming that Apple's book-style foldable iPhone (or "iPhone Fold," as we are provisionally calling it here) will use liquid metal hinges to improve durability and help minimize screen creasing. Today, a Chinese leaker provided more details on the properties of this hinge material that help to clarify why Apple chose it for its first foldable device. According...
top stories 2025 03 29

Top Stories: WWDC 2025 Announced, iPhone 17 Pro and iOS 19 Rumors, and More

Saturday March 29, 2025 6:00 am PDT by
Apple's big developer event is a little over two months away, and rumors about what we can expect to see in Apple's next major operating system updates are becoming increasingly frequent. A public release of iOS 18.4 is also imminent with a number of updates and improvements, although we won't be getting the major Apple Intelligence Siri upgrades that had reportedly been planned for this...

Top Rated Comments

Skyscraperfan Avatar
9 months ago
I do not need AI to recommend me stuff. I prefer getting no recommendations at all and decide for myself what to watch.

All that AI hype starts to get annoying. If AI finds a way how to fight cancer, it becomes interesting.
Score: 28 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Lounge vibes 05 Avatar
9 months ago
Haven’t even used it and I can say that I still think the Apple TV is probably worth the extra $30.
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Graphikos Avatar
9 months ago
The "Google TV Streamer". They are really good at product names, eh?
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
CarAnalogy Avatar
9 months ago

I do not need AI to recommend me stuff. I prefer getting no recommendations at all and decide for myself what to watch.

All that AI hype starts to get annoying. If AI finds a way how to fight cancer, it becomes interesting.
Given that what AI is good at is ingesting a very large, specific data set and then clearly answering questions about that data, it may well help find out how to fight cancer. I sure hope so.

What's serving us ads isn't AI, it's the same old crap they've always used. "Recommendations" are recommended based on who paid for the ad, they don't care what we want. Maybe vague targeting by genre but that's about it.

That's why I don't understand how Google still makes billions out of this surveillance economy. They want to know everything about us, but the ads I see are all still for junk and scams or the obvious thing I was going to do without it being advertised at me in the first place. The ads are still bad after all these years.
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Mr_Ed Avatar
9 months ago

The "Google TV Streamer". They are really good at product names, eh?
True enough, but it’s not as if average consumers are not confused by names like “Apple TV” and “Apple TV+” ?
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
CarAnalogy Avatar
9 months ago

Haven’t even used it and I can say that I still think the Apple TV is probably worth the extra $30.
I can't safely make that assumption anymore. Apple TV used to have two advantages. It was clearly faster, and it had no ads.

This device will probably be about as fast, at least for a while. And Apple themselves is lowering the bar on the ads. This device will probably have worse ads, at first. But let's see how much Apple shoots themselves in the foot on that one. This last quarter's services revenue is too powerful. They're going to have to figure out how to top it three months from now.

I'm guessing I'm going to be seeing even more of Messi's face where I don't want it.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)