The Google TV Streamer is the following huge improve to the Chromecast line

Up till now, Google’s Chromecast line has been largely centered on making it simple to observe reveals and flicks in your favourite huge display. However with the brand new Google TV Streamer, Google lastly has a correct set-top field for binging content material that additionally helps a wider vary of sensible house controls.

Design: From dongle to wedge

Coming only a week forward of Google’s upcoming Made By event, maybe the most important change for the TV Streamer is switching from being a easy dongle that hangs off your TV to a really standalone gadget that lives in your media console. Google says its wedge-shaped design is supposed to mix in simply along with your decor when sitting in entrance of your TV in order that it provides higher reception for its included distant and different sensible house gadgets (extra on that later).

Google has additionally given the Streamer TV a large {hardware} improve in comparison with the Chromecast with Google TV from 2020, together with a 22 % sooner CPU, double the RAM (4GB as a substitute of 2GB) and 4 occasions extra storage (32GB complete). Which may not sound like a ton, however contemplating that the earlier mannequin usually ran out of area for downloading primary streaming apps, that’s a much-needed enchancment. Streaming decision caps out at 4K/60fps, although you do get help for HDR, Dolby Imaginative and prescient, Dolby Atmos and spatial audio (when paired with Google Pixel Buds).

Moreover, there’s an HDMI 1.1 jack, a powered USB-C port and a devoted Ethernet slot for individuals who need peak bandwidth for streaming. Google additionally made the distant a contact longer whereas transferring the amount rocker to the highest and including a customizable button that may be set to launch your favourite app, change inputs or summon the brand new sensible house management middle. And identical to earlier than, there’s a built-in microphone and a button for summoning the Google Assistant.

Good house: Turning into a correct gadget hub

This brings me to the Google Streamer’s improved sensible house capabilities. Not solely does it help Matter, it additionally contains a built-in Thread border router for simply speaking with the opposite gadgets in your own home. On prime of that, the TV Streamer is getting its personal model of the Google Home panel (which we’ve seen on earlier Pixel telephones and Nest Hubs) in order that it is simpler to regulate issues like sensible lights whereas additionally providing you with the power to view feeds out of your safety cameras and video doorbells.

New AI options

Lastly, it wouldn’t be a 2024 Google gadget with out some new AI options. Due to Gemini, the TV Streamer can create customized suggestions based mostly on the type of content material you watch and generate summaries, evaluations and even season-by-season breakdowns for stuff you haven’t. There’s additionally an ambient TV mode that means that you can pull screensavers or recollections out of your Google Photographs library. Nonetheless, if you’d like one thing a bit extra distinctive, you may also use AI to generate one thing fantastical. In the meantime, for those who lose the distant, you possibly can ask the Google Assistant (not Gemini) that can assist you discover it or you possibly can merely press the devoted button on the again of the field.

So whereas I haven’t had a lot likelihood to dive into its options, with the brand new TV Streamer, finally it looks like Google has a considerably extra succesful sensible house hub that’s additionally a real rival to the Apple TV 4K and different Android-based containers just like the NVIDIA Shield TV. The Google TV Streamer prices $100 and is on the market for pre-order in the present day with official gross sales starting September 24. Will probably be out there in two colours: porcelain white and hazel, the latter of which will likely be out there solely from the Google Retailer.