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Chromecast Media Player £20? (Read 810 times)
denismartindale
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Chromecast Media Player £20?
Oct 13th, 2015 at 1:19pm
 
TEMP. LINK Chromecast Media Player

Another temporary special offer on the Aria website.

I get the email offers, so I wondered how long it would take before this media player would be available for £20...

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mkcomputing
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Re: Chromecast Media Player £20?
Reply #1 - Oct 21st, 2015 at 7:25pm
 
It has been even cheaper elsewhere.

Remember, Google has just put out a new version, so expect widespread dumping.

I paid £20 a year ago when one of the high street shops was offering deal.
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MK
 
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denismartindale
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Re: Chromecast Media Player £20?
Reply #2 - Oct 21st, 2015 at 8:51pm
 
I appreciate this new version update and found extra details here:

http://www.google.com/intl/en_uk/chromecast/

http://www.google.com/intl/en_uk/chromecast/tv/#?discover

http://www.google.com/intl/en_uk/chromecast/buy-tv

Argos, Currys and Tesco... and Google Store...

https://store.google.com/product/chromecast_2015

Compatible apps list here:

https://www.google.com/intl/en_uk/chromecast/apps/?utm_source=chromecast.com

INFO:

Chromecast Specs
WHAT’S IN THE BOX?
Chromecast
Power cable
Power adaptor
REQUIREMENTS:
TV with an HDMI port
Wi-FI network
Compatible computer or mobile device.
Supported OS and devices: Android 4.1+, iOS 7.0+, Windows 7, Mac OS X 10.7 or ChromeOS
Availability and performance of certain features, services and applications are device and network dependent and may not be available in all areas; subscription(s) may be required, and additional terms, conditions and/or charges may apply.

SEE FULL SPECS

Dimensions:
Device: 51.9 x 51.9 x 13.49 mm
Package: 124.4 mm x 58 mm x 124 mm
Power cable: 1.75 m
Weight: 39.1 g (0.086 lbs)
Ports & Connectors:
HDMI
Micro-USB
Colour
Black
Coral
Lemon
Coral and Lemon available exclusively at Google Store
Resolution: 1080p
Connectivity/Network: Wi-Fi 802.11ac (2.4 GHz/5 GHz)
Power: 5 V, 1 A power supply

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denismartindale
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Re: Chromecast Media Player £20?
Reply #3 - Oct 21st, 2015 at 9:43pm
 
I've just ordered this new Chromecast for £30 from the Google Store, post free, rather than from the other sellers, as they charge extra for delivery. I also subscribed after the order to get further updates and special offers.





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frank59
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Re: Chromecast Media Player £20?
Reply #4 - Oct 22nd, 2015 at 1:48pm
 
  I hope you'll be giving a review of your new chromecast.

As I'm interested in one myself.
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ATB Frank.
 
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denismartindale
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Re: Chromecast Media Player £20?
Reply #5 - Oct 22nd, 2015 at 5:43pm
 
I've just posted about the Ebay coupon code valid upto 10pm as explained:

CUKFLASH

That is applied during the PAYPAL checkout stage and was accepted.

I saved £50 today so I ordered the NOW TV black box and a 3-month Entertainment Pass for £25.

I was led to believe by customer feedback comments that the new Chromecast offers better HD quality playback than the NOW TV box does.

I've already got the white NOW TV box, yet the new black box is better for playbacks... maybe not as good as the Chromecast, so I bought both anyway.

I'm not trying to start an Internet devices museum here. I was reasonably happy with Nickelodeon on the VU TV service. That ended today. So getting NOW TV will act as a continuation even if not the best way to view and record as before.

I noticed that the selection of channels was better value so I might as well get the Entertainment Pass and see how that works out even if just for viewing purposes.

I'm not sure about any box sets as yet.

When we consider that £30 here and there isn't that big a deal, it makes sense to experiment with the technology as some customer feedback has suggested even if that only makes these customers happy with just a few of the services.

The Chromecast version available now will have created enough video tutorials that Google search should list the websites. We click the VIDEOS tab to see what's available beyond the official website and YouTube.

The VM TiVo has a YouTube TV channel that helps us use the SEARCH feature to find such video tutorials. NB some will be in HD as well as SD quality. We can record such details to our DVD Recorders.

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denismartindale
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Re: Chromecast Media Player £20?
Reply #6 - Oct 24th, 2015 at 6:29pm
 
The Chromecast Media Player

I got this and unpacked the contents, connected to the HD TV.

I installed the Chromecast app onto the DS 1.5 box.

The initial setup recognised the Chromecast6712 on the wi-fi network options using the Settings app.

I used the router's settings instead, got the Chromecast updating on the second HD TV.

The update was successful, the DS apps were already installed for Youtube, VeVo, AllConnect so I was able to open each app to see what loaded as video content. The CAST ICON is like 3 curved lines within a rectangle like a TV screen.

Selecting that meant I could send the content to the Chromecast, so YouTube HD videos were the best quality I could get.

I tested the Supergirl TV series trailer first. About 8 minutes OK. Then a review of the trailer for about 25 minutes and that was OK, then other YouTube videos each playing well on the second HD TV.

Netflix was already loaded as an app on the DS box and I subscribe so I logged in and accessed the content eg several Nickelodeon and POPGIRL TV channel series were included.

I tested THOR: The Dark World. The film's loading percentages were loaded in seconds, playback quality from the start. Alas, mid screen for some film formats not full screen width and height. It's hit and miss with so many user uploads to YouTube and original film screen formats. By the way, the film's ending credits were easier to read as most were in capital letters. My HD TVs are 32" screens so not ideal for the mid screen video playbacks. My viewing distance is less than 3 feet away so my recommendation would have to be for testing on a larger HD TV to make sure the instructions text is clear enough.

From the initial tests, I could see that the Chromecast matched the Freeview+ HD receivers' picture and sound HDMI output quality to some HD TV, if they were broadcasting the films or the TV series.

As long as the wi-fi remained excellent I couldn't get any problem connecting. No glitches observed.

It's already known that the DS and other Internet devices may start video content in lower picture quality until the Broadband speed is detected, then the streaming quality improves. This was clear from the film's starting title sequence on the DS box's Netflix app being tested to compare with the Chromecast.

Note, I'm not using a mobile phone or Internet tablet. The DS box's remote control affects the DS box's HD TV view not the second HD TV showing the Chromecast display, so skip ad affects the DS box's screen and response which then carries over to the Chromecast HD TV view and subsequent action prior to any video content.

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denismartindale
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Re: Chromecast Media Player £20?
Reply #7 - Oct 24th, 2015 at 8:43pm
 
From what my comments have provided, it would seem that the DS 1.5 box would be better served if using a HD TV with 2 HDMI inputs and just switch between the 2 displays. The alternative of this would be the DS 3 AV output cable option going to a scart adaptor unit connected to some DVD Recorder, so as to switch between scart output from the DVD Recorder... over to the HDMI source for the Chromecast. Not ideal...

Further info seen during the various setups:

http://www.google.com/chromecast/learn/

From Get Apps, I saw Dailymotion so I installed that, too.

DramaFever was another app and NOWTV and Nick TV, too. For DramaFever click top left settings etc for Browse categories. Further on there are others like BBCiPlayer...

While I'm doing these installations, the Chromecast switches from one photo to another like it's acting as a screensaver avoiding screen problems more associated with PC monitors.

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denismartindale
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Re: Chromecast Media Player £20?
Reply #8 - Oct 25th, 2015 at 2:33pm
 
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denismartindale
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Re: Chromecast Media Player £20?
Reply #9 - Oct 25th, 2015 at 2:51pm
 
The Cast To TV offers extra links:

https://www.google.com/intl/en_uk/chromecast/apps/

https://www.google.com/intl/en_uk/chromecast/get-offers/

:::

I was interested in the TV style apps here:

https://www.google.com/intl/en_uk/chromecast/apps/

Keep using the SEE MORE link to display again and again, so that, of these apps, you may recognise about 20 that have been suggested for the Digisender TV already.

Impossible to test these and keep these on the DS box, so it means test one, uninstall one, next to test...

We've heard of SPG and Flixster Video and Viewster and Viki and Netflix and Blinkbox and RedBull TV and Crackle and some foreign TV channels. NB subscription services apps and further along the User Interface TV apps or as selected by large cross Settings and Regional/International Channels.

Various video sites where you search for whatever strikes your fancy and any related video results.

FilmOn TV is able to display the UK TV channels and that will depend on if the wi-fi remains active. (That's another subscription service for the HD view to work...)

The BBCiPlayer will feature SD and HD content.

You'll see PLEX as well as Google Play Movies.

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denismartindale
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Re: Chromecast Media Player £20?
Reply #10 - Oct 25th, 2015 at 2:55pm
 
When I saw the ES File Explorer included, I was surprised as it's just a File Manager, but maybe it means we could access any downloaded videos, too.

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.estrongs.android.pop&hl=en-GB

I remember that with File Explorers we get options based on installed apps as to which one to use eg video player or some other.

These are https apps URLs, so direct links there, on that webpage, would be easier to access than trying to manually type those URLs.

So save these app webpages as favourites. As a PC user, I can display all the TV apps at once and then save the complete webpage file with its images, too.

When accessing the TV app logo, it displays Android, Apple or Chromecast options, if they're available.

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denismartindale
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Re: Chromecast Media Player £20?
Reply #11 - Oct 25th, 2015 at 3:55pm
 
Upon restarting the DS 1.5 box, I had a temporary problem connecting with the wi-fi on, but once sorted, I opened the Chromecast app and then checked DEVICES. That scrolled down past usual settings to show the latest updated version and other Internet settings.

Backdrop is about what you can display on the TV screen (the one that shows what the Chromecast shows, not the DS box TV display...
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denismartindale
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Re: Chromecast Media Player £20?
Reply #12 - Oct 25th, 2015 at 5:37pm
 
The NOW TV app on the Google Play Store was installed and I first viewed the Sky Movies preview images even though I'm not subscribing. I switched to the Entertainment Pass display even though I'm yet to receive my NOW TV box and the Entertainment Pass.

I then decided to switch from TV HDMI view to take out that HDMI input because I wanted to view the same content via the 3 AV cable output via a gold-plated scart adaptor to the DVD Recorder. NB No video display until I disconnected the HDMI cable. I have already reset the CVBS output to the higher level to enable the 3 AV output to work, as previously explained.

So now the NOW TV was showing on the same TV using a scart connection while the HDMI showed the Chromecast. The other TV was therefore not as important in displaying the content as before as with the previous set up, 2 HD TVs were being used, 1 for the DS box view and another for the Chromecast view.

Remember that recordings ought to be tested and tried in either the SP or XP rec. modes to compensate for the CVBS quality not being ideal.
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denismartindale
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Re: Chromecast Media Player £20?
Reply #13 - Nov 20th, 2015 at 8:29pm
 
The DS 1.5 set top box was checking the Google Play Store Media apps and I tested the MAGINE TV app which offers some UK TV channels and uses the Chromecast as well.

So I set up an account eg email and set up a password and got access to the main channels and checked the limited availability at present. The live TV channels seemed unwilling to playback anything on the ethernet connection so after confirming the same result on the PC access at the website I switched the DS 1.5 box to wi-fi.

Eventually... the Doc Martin ITV3 HD show was casted to the Chromecast on a primary HD TV next to the secondary HD TV connected to the DS 1.5 box...

At first, the screen quality was slightly blurred until it presented a better quality. It's normal for the Internet access to be detected for its speed and then to present the Internet stream at its most suitable streaming quality. The programme ended and continued with the Lewis programme... Both TV shows were displayed in full ie screen width and screen height. However, some TV channels have shows that won't be full screen, but this test shows that when the broadcast has full screen, it can't be detected as anything other than watching a real HD TV channel.

Also note that a Sky subscription for my £20 a month deal doesn't include ITV3 HD... that's a HD channel subscription extra...

Note that the wi-fi Internet devices are in the same room to create this connection when I tested it this evening.

The PC user is more able to adjust various setups like the postcode check required for regional broadcasts in the UK.

http://magine.co.uk/

It may switch to https://magine.com/

So I logged in on the PC, verified the main TV channels, tried the selected TV playback yet got nothing while that PC was still on the ethernet access.

The main service has a TV GUIDE to help explain a show and also a timeline to display the current listings.
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denismartindale
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Re: Chromecast Media Player £20?
Reply #14 - Nov 20th, 2015 at 8:36pm
 
The MAGINE website has account details, with a representation for a member's status eg for free channels only or a subscription, presumably for pay channels being added in due course.

When finding out about a new Google Play Store app, there's the READ MORE option, to explain various features. There's a mention of there being no adverts, plus there's no extra logo added by MAGINE, as we would see with the various versions of the FILMON app which features dozens of UK TV channels and others.

So MAGINE is worth testing for live TV which will include the usual channel's TV adverts between each part of a show. That means a clearer display of the lowercase text seen in TV adverts. The Chromecast is the new model and is recommended for superior streaming from the original sources.

Feedback would be helpful if  R & T members could confirm these comments.

Check the Google search results here:

https://www.google.co.uk/?gws_rd=ssl#q=MAGINE+tv

APP LINK:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.magine.aliceoid&hl=en_GB

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