I already said before that I have a TCL Smart TV with which I am relatively happy: it cost me less than 300 dollars in 2020, it has a 55-inch VA type panel with 4K resolution and the cherry on top the cake was Android TV as the operating system. Unfortunately, experience has shown me that cheap TVs neglect Smart functions too much. I purchased a Google TV device with Chromecast to fix this problem.
There are a few set-top boxes on the market, but despite their power and quality, I ruled out the NVIDIA and Apple TV options (even though I had an iPhone, iPad, and Mac) simply because they were out of my range. budget. In fact, the balance was between a Google TV with Chromecast 4K version or a Fire TV Stick 4K, with the same recommended price of 69.99 dollars. After a lot of reading and my experience, I chose the Chromecast over the Fire TV.
Due to familiarity
Okay, that’s a reason with some trickiness, but weighty: I’ve tried WebOS, Tizen, Fire TV, Android TV and Google TV, and which ones I like the most and which ones I’m most into accustomed are Google OS. After all, trying it out on nearby TVs from time to time isn’t the same as using it every day. Inertia is an important reason in our choices: If a product gives us a good experience, it is normal to continue betting on it. The saying “better known bad than well unknown”, but with a nuance: Android TV was already my favorite.
My Smart TV’s operating system is Android TV and I liked it (despite some slowness and crashes that had more to do with the hardware that ran it) and I had great memories of the Chromecast Ultra that I used years ago and now collect dust in a drawer.
For the ecosystem
At home I have a few smart devices compatible with both Google Assistant and Alexa and although in terms of understanding voice commands I prefer Amazon, on television I preferred Google because the tentacles of the Mountain View company are long and muscular: it has Android, it has the best search engine… and that means a better syncing experience between devices.
If you have an Android mobile, there will always be more features and more refined operation with one Google device than with another, although in general both offer good performance. An example: being able to use your cell phone as a remote control with official applications, whether with Android or iPhone.
By Chromecast feature
This is the cherry on top of the previous one: with Google behind Chrome and YouTube, it’s quite common for you to watch something on your mobile and want to stream it on TV. Chromecast is a function that tends to be underestimated because it is standard, but it is the most practical and useful for launch content from the internet or gallery natively and it’s used for many other things, like video calls.
For customization options
The Fire TV 4K and Chromecast 4K are optimized enough to provide everyday smoothness, so performance wasn’t a critical issue. That Yes, what was crucial were the customization optionsYes, the great advantage of Fire TV is its simplicity to avoid complications and minimize the learning curve, but Google TV also has an intuitive interface and, at the same time, all the power for those who like to tinker the old one. Android TV. That it is the most complete in terms of settings for demanding people like us is a plus.
Due to the number of applications
I left the most obvious for last: HBO (our favorite content platform) and SkyShowTime are not natively available on Fire TV, so installing them requires some tricks. On Google TV, not only are there no shortage of major streaming apps, but also a long list of applications of all kinds to experiment with and make the most of our Smart TV.
Cover | Google TV analysis with Chromecast from Xataka
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