Google’s latest streaming device, the $30 Chromecast with Google TV HD, isn’t intended for location theatre enthusiasts that unrecorded and respire 4K and Dolby Atmos. Quite the opposite. The instrumentality is constricted to a max solution of 1080p (Full HD) and lacks Dolby’s champion video and audio tricks altogether. It is astatine slightest susceptible of playing HDR video. But the people lawsuit is clear: this merchandise is meant for radical who privation to bring caller smarts to an aged TV (or monitor). Maybe you’ve got an Airbnb successful request of much entertainment. These are the usage cases wherever Google’s caller streamer — and similarly-priced starter options from Roku and Amazon — marque implicit sense.

Despite having a mediocre processor that sometimes plods on navigating the interface, the Chromecast with Google TV mostly succeeds astatine its ngo of putting a bully streaming acquisition wherever you mightiness privation it. And conscionable due to the fact that it’s inexpensive doesn’t mean it’s incapable. Aside from its halfway features and bundled remote, you tin tally a USB hub into the Chromecast HD and instrumentality vantage of outer storage, plug successful a webcam for video conferencing, oregon a wired ethernet transportation for bulletproof streaming. 

In presumption of its plan and size, bully luck spotting immoderate differences betwixt this $30 dongle and the $50 Chromecast with Google HD 4K. The older hardware comes successful respective colors, but you’re stuck with achromatic for the HD model. That’s truly the lone ocular differentiator. Otherwise they some plug into an HDMI larboard and travel with a USB-C powerfulness adapter since the USB ports connected TVs often can’t present capable foodstuff to support them moving optimally. The included dependable distant is besides identical and features the aforesaid shortcut buttons for Netflix and YouTube — positive a dedicated Google Assistant button. It’s a comfortable, compact distant that’s casual for you (or guests astatine an Airbnb) to get down successful nary time.

You already cognize its video limits, but for audio, Chromecast with Google TV HD supports accepted Dolby Digital, truthful you tin inactive bask situation sound. Just without the Atmos tallness channels. 

Playback solution aside, the idiosyncratic acquisition of some Chromecasts is, again, the same. And that’s a bully thing. Despite immoderate lingering sluggishness that Google is inactive trying to resolve, Google TV remains my favourite interface for browsing TV shows and movies from aggregate antithetic streaming apps and net TV services. Navigating astir its sections — For You, Live TV, Movies, Shows, etc. — is intuitive, the recommendations are often connected point, and Google’s advertizing is inoffensive. It’s not arsenic blatant arsenic what you get from Roku oregon Amazon, Google’s lone competitors astatine this terms point. Every large streaming app is accounted for, though cardinal players similar Netflix person rebuffed immoderate of Google TV’s features similar the cosmopolitan watchlist. It’s not capable to ruin my penchant for the platform, but it tin beryllium annoying.

Google TV has supported personalized profiles (and content-appropriate kid accounts) for immoderate clip now, truthful everyone successful your location tin person their ain watchlist and personalized picks. On the whole, whether you’re digging into a show’s details page, doing a dependable search, controlling your astute home, oregon pulling up a Nest camera feed, everything astir Google TV feels sleek and modern.

I inactive deliberation Google would beryllium good served by releasing a almighty streaming gadget that could genuinely showcase this bundle to its afloat potential, but I haven’t had a bad clip utilizing the Chromecast HD. I was disquieted that would beryllium the case, but Google’s optimizations implicit clip (and the newer Android 12-based OS) marque it perfectly tolerable. Whether that continues to beryllium existent implicit time, we’ll cognize wrong a fewer months. What I tin accidental present is that immoderate show dips are conscionable momentary and not a changeless annoyance.

Explore the Chromecast’s settings and you’ll find that Google volition fto you spell down either lane: elemental oregon advanced. New with Google TV moving Android 12, there’s a “match framework rate” setting. But this goes beyond different implementations I’ve seen and gets delightfully nerdy. You get 3 choices:

I admit that Google understands location theatre nerds are often truthful finicky that a seamless modulation betwixt framework rates truly matters. You besides get immoderate privacy-centric benefits with the newer software, similar the quality to chopped disconnected microphone (in the handheld remote) oregon camera entree (should you person a webcam hooked up). Text scaling has been added, letting you set the size of on-screen substance betwixt 85 and 115 percent. And setup gets a tad faster acknowledgment to an onscreen QR codification that tin rapidly propulsion the Chromecast onto your Wi-Fi network. Obviously these improvements won’t beryllium exclusive to the cheaper HD Chromecast for long; Google has confirmed Android 12 is coming to the 4K exemplary successful the adjacent future. 

The Chromecast with Google TV HD inactive afloat supports its longtime namesake feature: casting. But its unreality gaming days are efficaciously numbered — at slightest erstwhile it comes to Stadia. Personally, it inactive boggles my caput that Google has yet to merchandise a full-fledged Google Photos app designed for the TV screen. I’d beryllium each implicit that. Those with astute homes would likewise admit a afloat Google Home app for the TV platform, but that excessively is inactive missing.

In a week oregon truthful of regularly utilizing the Chromecast with Google TV HD, I haven’t uncovered immoderate large issues oregon frustrations. It provides the aforesaid modern, content-first presumption arsenic the aging 4K hardware, but for $20 less. And it’s already been discounted astatine respective retailers, truthful this mightiness beryllium to beryllium a compelling impulse bargain for galore implicit the holidays.

If you’re a videophile, you’re astir apt paying this merchandise zero attention. 4K TV owners should perfectly look elsewhere. But for anyone that needs a streamer perfect for plugging into a secondary TV successful the kitchen, gym, a 2nd bedroom… wherever, this $30 Chromecast does the occupation and offers a overmuch richer acceptable of features than the archetypal Chromecast from astir a decennary agone — and it someway costs adjacent less.

Photography by Chris Welch / The Verge