Many of us already know that what a Chromecast is, right? Today I am going to give you an idea of what exactly it is and what are the features from my experience. First, I want to tell you that I am using this device for the past 3 months and the details here are based on my experience.
In order to make it more clear, I am going to explain it in a questionnaire format.
1. What is Chromecast?
Chromecast is a streaming media player from Google which let you stream your media including photos, videos, etc from mobile, tablet computer to a bigger screen such as a TV, monitor, etc.
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2. How can I connect it to TV or monitor?
You can connect it to your TV or monitor or any output display unit. The only you need is an HDMI port on your TV/Monitor.
You just need to plug the HDMI cable in the Chromecast to your HDMI port in your TV/Monitor and plug the power cable in the Chromecast to the power supply or USB port. Then select the HDMI input on the TV to see the Chromecast connected.
3. Is it need an additional power supply to work?
Like any device, Chromecast also needs small power to run it. For this, the device is provided with a USB enabled power input, it is like your mobile phone, you can power it via direct power plug or just connect the USB to the USB port of your TV/Monitor.
It will be better to connect it to the USB port of your TV/Monitor because, if it is connected like that, you don’t need to plug it on and off each time you turn on and off the TV. It will automatically start when you power on your TV.
4. How Chromecast works?
Chromecast works via your Wifi. There is no cable between your phone and Chromecast, so all the communication is done in wireless mode.
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In order to start using it, you have to configure the device by connecting to your Wifi. After that, all the devices connected in the same Wifi can connect to Chromecast and stream content to the TV.
5. What contents can be viewed on the big screen via Chromecast?
As I mentioned above, the device is from google and they made it first for YouTube, but now most of the streaming services such as Netflix, Hulu, Pandora, Tune-in Radio, Hotstar, SonyLiv, SunNXT, etc have Chromecast support.
You can watch all the contents in these services directly on the TV using Chromecast, no need of watching on the small device. Other than these streaming services, you can view photos, videos, etc on your mobile on the TV using Google Photos or any other supporting 3rd party application.
6. Can I mirror my mobile screen on TV?
Yes, you can mirror your mobile/tablet screen directly to your TV using Google Home App, there is an option called Cast Screen, by which you can cast the screen and audio to your TV.
7. Do we need additional applications for Chromecast to work?
You only need the Google Home app, which is actually used at the beginning for Configuration only, after setting up, you don’t need to use it anymore, but we are not recommended to remove the application, since any additional configuration, renaming the device, changing the wallpaper, or even screen mirroring, etc can be done by this app only.
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8. How other apps like YouTube, Netflix works with it?
When you open your Chromecast supporting apps, and if the device is active in the same wifi, you can see a small cast icon on the top of your app, just click on it and connect to Chromecast, after that all the content you are choosing from your mobile will be played on your big screen.
9. Do we need to have a High-speed internet connection for this to work?
You need a broadband connection for Chromecast to work. I tested at different speed connections and below are the results.
- Above 10mbps speed, all the services including Netflix, Hotstar, SonyLiv, Hooq etc worked smoothly and streamed content in HD quality.
- At 3 Mbps – Here also, all the services are working fine but found some quality loose in Netflix, but working without buffering.
- At 2 Mbps – YouTube work smoothly, Netflix also works fine, but stream content in low quality, some difficulty in streaming Hotstar, Hooq, etc.
- At 1 Mbps – YouTube is working fine here at slow speed also, even in HD, but other services find some difficulty.
Since it is highly optimized for YouTube, YouTube videos are playing fine in all the cases, If you are a YouTube Lover, you can use it at any speed. But if you are using other services, we recommend your internet speed should be 3-5 Mbps at least.
10. I have only mobile internet in my home, can I use Chromecast?
Chromecast only works if there is a wifi hotspot exist, the device will connect to a hotspot which actually acts as a bridge between mobile and Chromecast.
11. Where can I buy it and How much it cost?
In India, you can buy it for Rs.3,999/- from Flipkart and in US it will be available to buy from Google Store at $35
Buy it From Flipkart