Google TV Streamer Replaces Chromecast in Media Hub Lineup

The Chromecast With Google TV has long been one of our favorite media hubs, but it hasn’t seen much of an update since the scaled-back 1080p Chromecast With Google TV (HD) was released in 2022. That changes today with a refresh that also discontinues the Chromecast brand.

The Google TV Streamer is the newest and now only first-party Google TV media hub. It takes the smart TV platform and features of the 4K Chromecast With Google TV and adds new functions, some of which are based on Google’s Gemini AI bot.

(Credit: Google)

The Google TV Streamer is obviously built around Google TV, which means it covers all major streaming services, including Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV+, Disney+, Netflix, Twitch, and YouTube, and supports local streaming from Android phones and Chrome tabs using Google Cast. It also features the Google Assistant voice assistant, accessible by speaking into the remote. It doesn’t have hands-free control like many Google TV-based TVs, the Amazon Fire TV Cube, and Roku Ultra.

Instead of the back-of-the-TV dongle design of Chromecast devices, the Google TV Streamer is designed to sit in front of your TV. The remote is still connected through Bluetooth and doesn’t require line-of-sight with the hub, but it still benefits from having the Google TV Streamer physically accessible without reaching around the back of your TV. It incorporates a remote finder button similar to the one found on the Roku Ultra, which makes the remote produce a sound to help you locate it. The remote itself has also gotten a slight makeover, and now has a programmable shortcut button. Internally, the Google TV Streamer has a faster processor than the Chromecast With Google TV, twice as much memory, and 32GB of storage.

(Credit: PCMag)

Since the Google TV Streamer is larger than a Chromecast, it adds an Ethernet port for wired connectivity. That’s a nice upgrade if you can run a cable to it, but it masks a shortcoming in the new media hub. The Google TV Streamer supports dual-band 802.11ac Wi-Fi, or Wi-Fi 5.

It’s a fast, reliable, and common Wi-Fi connection that most users can take advantage of with their current router. But Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) can be faster and more reliable, and it’s becoming more popular. Wi-Fi 6E and even Wi-Fi 7 are also picking up steam. The Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K and Apple TV 4K both support Wi-Fi 6, and it seems like a significant omission for the Google TV Streamer.

The Google TV Streamer does, however, function as a Threads border router and can serve as a Matter smart home hub. Smart home control with Google TV has long been available through Google Assistant, but the Google TV Streamer expands on that with its onboard smart home functions and a new Google Home menu that provides on-screen controls similar to the controls on Android’s Google Home panel.

(Credit: Google)

Google also announced new browsing and control functionality using its Gemini AI. It claims the Google TV Streamer will better curate content using Gemini and offer AI-generated summaries of TV seasons.

At $99, the Google TV Streamer is twice as expensive as the 4K Chromecast with Google TV, and as the Chromecast line’s replacement, it leaves a budget-streamer-shaped hole in Google’s catalog. It’s the same price as the Roku Ultra and a bit cheaper than the Apple TV 4K, but Roku also offers the Streaming Stick 4K, and Amazon offers the Fire TV Stick 4K, both of which are $50.

The Google TV Streamer can be preordered today, and ships Sept. 24.

Also today, Google announced the Nest Learning Thermostat (4th gen), which boasts new AI technology that promises to bring more transparency to the process, checking with you as it learns and adapts to your schedule instead of just doing it.