Google’s new Chromecast is a small device, barely larger than a flash drive, that lets you stream online content to a TV straight from an iOS or Android phone or tablet, or from any laptop using Google Chrome. The dongle is plugged into the HDMI port of any TV and is then auto-discovered by apps like YouTube. In order to watch a video, users send it from their mobile device with a simple command. You can also adjust volume or set up a collaborative playlist from multiple devices.
The dongle runs videos from the cloud, not from the device, so users can run another app on their device while the video plays. Right now, the device can be used with a number of video apps, including YouTube, Google Play, and Netflix. It also supports music apps as well, in the form of Google Play Music and Pandora. The Chromecast costs $35 and comes with three free months of Netflix (even for current Netflix subscribers) and is available now.
Source: GigaOm
