![]() Needless to say, I found the app in two seconds on my Roku. The whole process is ridiculous and is not something I'd expect from a Google-run device, but here we are. It's currently downloaded onto my home screen, but Google search still can't find it when I ask for it. I tried again by physically typing "BritBox app" into the search bar, only to have Google Assistant tell me that it "isn't available on this TV, but here are some other apps that are." Of course, the first "related app" was the one I had been looking for all along. Searching under the Apps tab at the top of the home screen gave the same results. ![]() First, I used Google Assistant to search for "BritBox." Instead of the app, I got a row of YouTube videos reviewing the service. ![]() Attempting to find and download the BritBox app was a lesson in futility. The search on the Chromecast with Google TV is also not nearly as good as Roku's. Searching for the Britbox app yielded YouTube videos. And if I don't know what to watch, I'll go to the search bar and find something myself, thank you very much. I just want to be left alone so I can get straight to my apps. I much prefer the cleaner layout on Roku. Look, I know that some people really love seeing cross-app content in this way, but I find it too cluttered and overwhelming. Scrolling down further gives you Popular Movies and Shows, Dramas, another Peacock ad and Recommend YouTube Videos. Below that is a row filled with Top Picks for You, followed by all my downloaded apps. The top of the homescreen is filled with five rotating slots of various show or movie suggestions, mixed with an ad for NBC's Peacock service. Google TV is cluttered and has questionable search capabilitiesĪside from its inability to stream in 4K HDR, the only thing holding this device back ever-so-slightly is the Google TV platform itself. I moved easily between apps and browsed the home screen with hardly any lag. Navigating around the platform is also fairly zippy. HBO Max took a little longer to load, at around 5 seconds. Netflix loads from the home screen in a second, as does Hulu. It also maintains the same plug-and-play design and is even made with 49% recycled plastic, according to Google.īut it's also fast. It has the ability to cast pictures and videos from Google Photos, and take Google Meet video calls from your Apple or Android phone to your TV. The remote isn't the only upgrade on this player. The remote on the Chromecast with Google TV HD (right) is identical to the one found on the Chromecast with Google TV 4K. The Chromecast with Google HD fixes this problem by letting me use just one, small, easy-to-read remote. I absolutely loathe having to use more than one remote at a time - it's cumbersome and I always find myself grabbing the wrong one. I can't tell you how much of a game-changer this is for me. Not only did it work seamlessly to control my 2020 Samsung TV's power, volume and inputs, but it also comes with a button to access the Google Assistant. It offers Alexa support, so you can use your voice to control the TV, but it still lacks physical volume, mute and power buttons.īy offering the same remote as the Chromecast with Google 4K, the HD model brings a whole different level of functionality to its inexpensive streaming device. This means that you need both the original TV remote and the Roku remote to use that device. For example, the remote that comes with Roku's entry-level streamer, the Roku Express, lacks voice control or the ability to adjust the volume, never mind being able to turn the TV on or off. Many entry-level streaming devices skimp on hardware features in order to sell their players at a lower price. If you do decide to upgrade your TV in the future, your streaming device would then be able to unlock the best capabilities of that new television and display content in the higher quality picture settings. This means something like the Roku Streaming Stick 4K, Express 4K Plus or the actual 4K Chromecast might be a better value in the long run, even if you don't currently have a 4K TV. That said, 4K streaming devices don't cost much more money than the Chromecast with Google TV HD, and will work just as well on non-4K televisions. ![]()
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