Is the Chromecast With Google TV 4k Worth it in 2024?

all right so a little while back I got sick of paying for Netflix Disney plus and the like for just a couple of different movies and then subscribing to another streaming service because Netflix and Disney plus doesn't have what I'm looking for you know we're living in expensive times and so I got desperate to find a way to watch 4K movies at a convenient price let's just say and because my Samsung TV runs taen OS I decided that that was a nogo because it's quite literally the worst TV OS created and every time I use it I just get the sudden urge to put a hole in the TV and so a bit of research online introduced me to the world of Android TV boxes but very quickly I found out that you can't just hop on Amazon and buy whatever looks good because a lot of those cheap Android boxes out there that promise a lot for very little don't actually even run Android TV at all they actually run a ported version of Mobile Android and are filled to the brim with malware so fearing that I'd accidentally be committing cyber crimes at the highest degree I decided not to buy one of those and instead I bought this [Music] this is the Google chomecast with Google TV 4K that came out almost 4 years ago back in late 2020 with a price tag of about €70 or dollars you see traditionally chomecast were just casting devices so basically all they did was play things on your TV screen because you accidentally pressed the cast button on your phone and when you did actually want to cast something it wasn't exactly reliable so when I found out that the newest CH casts were beefed up given a remote and had a sleer version of Android TV installed I was intrigued to say the very least and on top of that reviews online paint this thing as like the greatest thing to ever happen in the Android TV box space but is that really the case well let's just take a look at what you get out of the box first on top we have the CH cast and the remote all boxed up and ready to go and underneath that you'll find the power brick because you can't just plug this thing into your TV's USB port it requires too much power and beside that the freakishly long USBC cable that comes along with it which brings me to the first thing I actually do love about this thing USBC sure Google would have to be taking the piss not to use USBC but nevertheless it's nice to have considering the previous generations used micro USB the worst thing to ever grace this planet so that's nice taking a look at the Chromecast itself it's rocking a relatively similar design to the previous generation in terms of shape and the fact that it's still a dongle only this time it's got a more oval shape and the matte white is also a very welcome new color I really do like how this thing looks it's minimalisttic and because of that it won't make whatever setup you've got go in look like a clown show which is always nice to know but since it's going to be behind the TV for the most part the design doesn't really matter does it what does matter on the other hand is this thing right here the remote now I'm going to set the record straight off the bat this is one of the best feeling TV remotes I've ever held not the best but it's definitely up there from the feel in the hand to the not so loud but very clicky and consistent buttons I can tell you that it's a great remote it's pretty small so in initially I thought there's no way I'll actually like it but everything is just positioned really well on it and it's not just using up a bunch of real estate for the sake of it the buttons you have on there are really all the buttons you'll ever need except for the Netflix and YouTube buttons but of course you can remap them so there's no issues there you don't have to strain your fingers to reach the power button or anything it's all at the center of your palm and I've never had this thing disconnect or not be extremely responsive so while it's not your traditional remote it is a really nice one but none of that would matter at all if the device itself was ass right so what are we working with the chomecast 4K and just to be specific here guys this video is about the chomecast 4K and not the HD model I say that because there are some pretty big differences between the two and so you'd really need a whole different review for the HD model the chomecast 4K is running a quadcore amlogic s905 X3 processor not to be confused with the s905 X4 that can be found in more expensive and more powerful devices it's got 2 GB of RAM and 8 GB of storage space and it can display a maximum resolution of 4K at 60 HZ it's also got Dobby vision and Dobby Atmos capabilities which for the price is pretty crazy one thing I would have loved to see would have been Wi-Fi 6 but you win some you lose some you can't have them all right the chomecast runs a special version of Android TV2 and it's called Google TV which in my opinion looks and feels really nice it's very smooth and snappy I rarely ever get any lag or slowdowns but overall the truth is it's not really that much different to any other Android TV devices out there in terms of software it just looks a bit more polished I guess Google just just wanted to make the chomecast sound a bit more special in the infinite World of Android boxes and dongles but how does this chomecast actually serve in 2024 well in all honesty if you want to use this thing for something like Netflix Prime video or YouTube you know the general streaming apps first of all what are you doing man but second yeah it'll work literally perfect no slowdowns at all no frame drops smooth like butter but let's be brutally honest here you're buying an Android TV box You Can't Hide you're not really here for Netflix and YouTube are you yeah it's okay your your secret's safe with me man don't worry in that case I'm assuming you're using something like Cody or any other application that may or may not let you sneak by some of that copyright law well here's where I had some minor issues when I first tried to watch any large files any really high bit rate content let's just say anything above 30 GB for a 2-hour movie The chomecast would have some noticeable stutter and if you're like me stutter while watching a Chrispy 4K HDR movie is enough to make you put your head through the nearest wall now because of that I gave the chomecast the factory reset which is today's equivalent of smacking something really hard and now the problems seem to have gone but nevertheless it's definitely still something to point out I really don't think this thing was made with ridiculously high bit rate content in mind so I don't expect to be watching any 90 GB movies on the Chromecast but otherwise it's a great little device for the price now I will have links to buy anything I mention here down in the description but just so you know they are Amazon referral links meaning if you do buy using my link I get a little something something and it won't cost you a sent more so if you do want to show some support and you're in the market for an Android TV box like the chomecast make sure to use one of the links below anyway the two gigs of RAM does sound like it could be a potential problem right and I'll admit it was my biggest worry making me a bit hesitant to buy the chomecast but I never really saw usage creep up over 1 and 1/2 gigs so really it is fine on the other hand what I really didn't like is the 8 GB of storage 8 GB is laughable in 2024 but if you only use this to stream content it'll be fine sure space will still be tight but if you really only get your Essentials and don't plan on storing movies on the chomecast again you'll be as snug as a bug in a rug so is the chomecast with Google TV 4K worth it in 2024 almost 4 years later I'd say yes but depending on what your expectations are from this device keep in mind you're paying €70 e or dollars or whatever British pound equivalent or maybe even less if you're getting it on sale so it's definitely more on the budget side of media lers the truth is it's not the most powerful Android box out there 4K content on something like streamio and Cody will run pretty great but if you consider yourself a power user and want to watch the highest quality highest bit rate content files out there then you could benefit from something in a similar price range with a bit more power like a firestick 4K Max or you can go a bit higher in price and get any Google Certified s905 X4 Android box out there like the mol km6 Deluxe for example all of which will of course be linked down in the description below but if you're a normal person person who just likes to watch high quality content at an affordable price the chomecast 4K is not only good but actually still absolutely great in 2024 with all that being said I hope you did enjoy this video and I hope it did answer any questions you may have had and if it did you're welcome but on that note I hope you have a great night and I'll see you next time

Channel: Mani's Tech Shack

Views: 93,785

Keywords: chromecast with google tv, chromecast 4k, android tv box, android tv, google tv, chromecast

Id: ioGBzSdpbrc

Length: 7min 53sec (473 seconds)

Published: Sat Mar 16 2024