37 ms·

Nexus Player

369 points by gulbrandr 12y ago

xngzng 12y ago
Feel quite certain we will see Apple announce 4th generation Apple TV tomorrow with a gaming capable A7 processor for Metal games, and voice capable remote control the same as Nexus Player.
smackfu 12y ago
$99 plus $40 for the controller. Since Google doesn't seem to want to provide that information.
- wfjackson 12y ago
  For $40 more you can get a new Xbox 360, although games might not be as cheap as on the Play store. That Xbox is just a 4GB one, but I don't see Google Player local storage mentioned in the linked page.
  - deleted 12y ago
    [deleted]
    - VikingCoder 12y ago
      "$40 more." So, $180.
      - UnoriginalGuy 12y ago
        I see. I misunderstood.
  - Touche 12y ago
    Then you got loud fans and a poor interface for watching TV.
    - benologist 12y ago
      Yeah but if you want to watch online stuff on your tv at this point you probably have about 6000 things that can run netflix etc, including the other google tv boxes, the amazon box, generic android boxes, the rokus, the apple tv, ps3/ps4, xbox360/xbox one, ps tv, chromecast, a hdmi cable or htpc etc.
    - smackfu 12y ago
      Is the TV / app interface bad? I've heard good things about Netflix on the Xbox.
      - Touche 12y ago
        The fact that it's a separate "app" is what's bad. On any TV streaming device (Roku, AppleTV, Fire TV) has content right up front on the home screen. XBOX's TV app also contains a lot of ads. And the apps load much slower.
      - elif 12y ago
        i really like it. I use voice control for everything. at first you feel like a doofus but eventually it becomes second nature. I also plug the chromcast into the hdmi input, so i can swap and PIP all kinds of stuff (also with voice command), and the upnp (local media streaming) implementation is really good too (having frustratedly used the 360, ps3 versions for years)
  - baldfat 12y ago
    Being a Chromecast user already I would say that XBox 360 is just not at all close to the same experience and no Gold Memberships.
    - jonny_eh 12y ago
      Gold membership isn't required to use the media apps anymore.
      - Narishma 12y ago
        Even on the Xbox 360? I though it was only for the Xbox One.
        jonny_eh 12y ago
        Yes, my Gold subscription lapsed long ago but I was able to use HBO Go on it.
        stonemetal 12y ago
        They made the change when the one came out but they made it for both systems.
  - danieldk 12y ago
    But if you have an Android device, you can do much more with this or a Chromecast, because both support Google Cast. XBox only has the crappy Smart Glass app (it's probably good on Windows Phone), and that's it. (I own an XBox One)
    - monstermonster 12y ago
      Its crap on windows phone too :)
- freehunter 12y ago
  A silly price, considering their competitors cost the same, and have been in the game for much longer. Google is late and entered the market at the same price as established players, but with a track record of failure in this space (Google TV and Nexus Q). They probably don't want to provide the information because it's embarrassing.
  - Igglyboo 12y ago
    They don't show the price on the 6 or the 9 either, they definitely aren't "embarrassed" about their phones and tablets.
    - freehunter 12y ago
      That was a facetious comment. The point is, everyone got excited about the Nexus Q but it was too expensive. We got excited about Google TV, but it never caught on compared to the competition. The Apple TV has been $99 since forever, as has the Roku and recently Amazon's FireTV. Google discounts their phones massively over the competition, and that's a big draw for why people buy them. Why price this exactly the same as everyone else?
    - smackfu 12y ago
      I assume they don't show the price for internationalization reasons, but I do wish they had some way to see what it is in your country. Rather than just going to look at the Verge.
  - VikingCoder 12y ago
    ...those devices didn't have the whole back catalog of the Google Play Store running on them. This one presumably does.
    - freehunter 12y ago
      I've played games with a PS3 controller on my Nexus 4 hooked to a big screen before. It never worked, because mobile games are designed for a touch screen. Even Modern Combat, it was fantastic with a controller right up to the point where you needed to touch the screen for a quick time event. You can run the entire back catalog, maybe. But no one will want to until the apps and games are designed for non-touch input.
- pbnjay 12y ago
  I wonder if they're not releasing that info so they have the ability to lower the price if Apple TV makes any price cuts/big features tomorrow.
- Steko 12y ago
  What's interesting here is Google has abandoned the super cheap device strategy (nexus 4/7) and decided to go after iMargins.
jewel 12y ago
I've been anxiously awaiting this. We're thinking of shipping an enterprise product on the Amazon Fire TV, but it's relative lack of control is quite limiting. Hopefully this is priced similarly. I've tried nearly every android TV stick, and while they are pretty close to what we need, and infinitely customizable, we had trouble getting consistent hardware. It seemed like each batch would behave slightly differently.
- Igglyboo 12y ago
  Same here, I want a Fire TV but Amazon's particular flavor of android seems to be a lot more locked down than ASOP and has a smaller ecosystem. This will be perfect for me.
omnibrain 12y ago
Looks like "Nexus Q reborn". It looks very similar to the Amazon Fire TV.
- smackfu 12y ago
  Nexus Q was so bizarre. They included a stereo amp in it and you could run speakers directly. I'm sure that added a lot to the price when most people are either going to plug it into their TV or their existing receiver.
agumonkey 12y ago
Surprisingly not mentioned on the fr_FR main page https://archive.today/zYpBZ https://archive.today/zYpBZ edit: ha... probably market limited.
baq 12y ago
intel inside. interesting times.
ccozan 12y ago
"Start here, finish there" is one of the good features. However is not really new, I can do the same with Amazon Prime ( w/ App from Smart Tv and App on Tablet ).
dchuk 12y ago
There is so little innovation going on in the apple tv-esque space. All of these devices look and act exactly the same (Fire, AppleTV, this thing, Roku, etc)
- baldfat 12y ago
  I don't care about innovation I care about Silos. Stares at the lack of Amazon Instant Video on Android and rolls eye. I stopped giving amazon money for videos and music until they have it on Android as they already have it on Fire, and iOS.
  - cheald 12y ago
    http://www.cnet.com/news/amazon-prime-instant-video-arrives-on-android/ http://www.cnet.com/news/amazon-prime-instant-video-arrives-...
  - VikingCoder 12y ago
    You can get Amazon Instant Video on your Android phone, but not your Android tablet. /half-glower http://www.amazon.com/Amazon-com-Prime-Instant-Video/dp/B00N28818A http://www.amazon.com/Amazon-com-Prime-Instant-Video/dp/B00N...
    - cwyers 12y ago
      Yeah, I was so annoyed when I got the update on my phone, went to my Nvidia Shield to install it, and... nothing. Ugh.
    - libria 12y ago
      Is this still the case? I just watched an AIV movie on my Nexus 7.
    - fpgeek 12y ago
      I still glower, but I know of two loopholes: 1. You can get Amazon Instant Video on your cellular tablet if you use the Amazon Appstore directly. It's kinda vague on the distinction between a cellular tablet and a phone. 2. Amazon Instant Video works just fine if you sideload the Amazon for Phones and Amazon Instant Video apps.
gagege 12y ago
Did anyone else not see Amazon in that list of apps?
- freehunter 12y ago
  Amazon doesn't play well with Google.
- Igglyboo 12y ago
  Amazon is directly competing with their Fire TV.
- general_failure 12y ago
  https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.amazon.avod https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.amazon.avo...
- Raphael 12y ago
  Amazon has video streaming inside its main Android app. I don't see why it wouldn't work.
wfjackson 12y ago
>Get your apps on Google Play, or rent a movie if your app doesn’t have what you’re looking for What? Are they exclusively targeting movie content with this? It doesn't make much sense to rent a movie if store apps don't have a feature I am looking for.
- cleverjake 12y ago
  The movie rental would be through the google play store. The "apps" most likely are referencing netflix, hulu, and their ilk
- Shebanator 12y ago
  I think you are reading way too much into that sentence.
- freehunter 12y ago
  Rent a movie from Google if it's not available to stream on Netflix is what I read it as. They just didn't want to say the name of their competitor.
Igglyboo 12y ago
Wanted this ever since I saw the Amazon Fire TV, will no doubt be much more "hackable" than Amazons version of android.
cfontes 12y ago
Hum... interesting. OUYA was almost dead. Now it's done.
- tracker1 12y ago
  Ouya was an almost great implementation of that idea... honestly, I think the controllers were pretty bad. The fact that you have to put the Ouya on its' side to get decent controller reception is close to unforgivable. It just wasn't quite fast enough for a full screen interface. Also, the media options were an also ran. It's okay as an emulator box, but the gimped controllers ruin the experience... I have two ps3 controllers that I haven't tried with it as of yet, but plan to.
- bduerst 12y ago
  Almost bought an OUYA two weeks ago. The only thing I could think when I saw that controller is that I'm glad I waited.
tachyonbeam 12y ago
I wonder why they went with an Intel Atom CPU instead of using ARM chips as they do in the Nexus phones. Seems like a strange choice.
- UnoriginalGuy 12y ago
  To me it makes total sense. Intel's Atom has facilities to do hardware accelerated H.264 video decoding[0]. They're both low power chips (ARM and Atom) so can both be passively cooled, ARM is just more focused on minimalism, whereas the Intel Atom is a little bit more feature rich (which is great if you happen to be utilising one of those features, as in this case). [0] PDF(!): http://www.intel.com/content/dam/www/public/us/en/documents/white-papers/atom-sch-us15w-video-decode-paper.pdf http://www.intel.com/content/dam/www/public/us/en/documents/...
  - oflordal 12y ago
    Every modern ARM SoC built for thisnpuepose has H.264 hardware video decode (and typically HEVC for that matter).
- brucehart 12y ago
  I thought that was strange as well. Any phone or tablet app in the Play Store that uses native code will not be compatible. I'm guessing they did this to make it more attractive to game developers. PlayStation, XBox, and PC are now all x86 platforms. Makes it easier for top game studios to also target Google Player if it runs the same architecture.
  - baq 12y ago
    actually, 99% of native apps should work flawlessly _on the condition_ that they're downloaded from the Play Store. intel has something called the Houdini for AOT binary translation: http://stackoverflow.com/a/13005569/38749 http://stackoverflow.com/a/13005569/38749
    - brucehart 12y ago
nogridbag 12y ago
I realize the controller is sold separately, but I did find it a little odd that the controller says "ASUS" at the top instead of "NEXUS" since it seems to be the official controller.
AdmiralAsshat 12y ago
I think the question on everyone's mind is: how well will it run XBMC?
wnevets 12y ago
With the chromecast, I have no interest in another box that plays video content. Having a dedicate box to play casual android games on my tv isnt very appealing to me either. Is there really a big market for this thing?
- heymishy 12y ago
  my thoughts exactly - what does this give me that a chromecast doesnt? i dont care for a controller (or for games). i can't think of anything this can do (that id want to do) that the chromecast cant for a lot cheaper.
  - drewg123 12y ago
    My chromecast sits unused in a drawer because I hate to have to use my phone / tablet to watch TV (lack of tactile feedback, phone lock timeout, and being distracted by work email when I'm trying to relax). This thing has a remote, which is a huge win for me. Maybe it even has an IR receiver (or one could be plugged in via USB), which would allow better integration with my harmony. Also, you'll probably be able to side-load xbmc on it without rooting, like you can on a Ouya, an Amazon FireTV or (rooted) AppleTV to get full access to your media library, to act as a PVR front end, & to give you access to the vast world of shady XBMC plugins. The open question for me is what sort of video the thing will be able to play back natively. And whether or not you can side-load Amazon Instant Video
  - Igglyboo 12y ago
    Chrome cast mirrors a screen and requires a separate device to control, this can run actual applications.
    - sanderjd 12y ago
      This is a common misconception. Chromecast runs "actual applications", which are controlled by an application on a separate device like a phone or tablet. One of those applications (I believe the least useful one) enables you to mirror a display from the controlling device. But most of the applications are things like netflix, google play movies, and hbogo - very similar to the nexus player.
general_failure 12y ago
This kills Roku. Roku is dead, long live Roku.
- freehunter 12y ago
  At $99, how is this a Roku killer? At least Roku has Amazon Instant Video.
  - general_failure 12y ago
    For a start, roku has an extremely closed app development policy. Have you seen how you develop apps for the Roku? The Player will have it open just like other devices. On amazon, Roku 3 streaming player costs 90USD. So, it's the same price range. Except that Player will have more apps in no time. (And from a developer perspective, Roku is using a custom language. You read that right, a DSL of their own)
    - freehunter 12y ago
      I guess by that metric, the Ouya is a Roku killer too. How many units did Ouya sell?
    - general_failure 12y ago
      @freehunter: I cannot reply to you for some reason. but ouya was marketed as a gaming device. Completely different thing compared to how Roku is marketed.
      - freehunter 12y ago
        HN is kind of weird with the comments. If you don't see the "reply" button, click "link" then there should be a comment box that will work. Anyway, no one knows how this will play out, but Roku didn't kill Apple TV, FireTV didn't kill either, and I wouldn't expect this thing to do much damage in the very crowded market either, all things considered. Brand name doesn't mean that much these days, as Microsoft and Blackberry can tell you. What matters is how cool it is and how quick the adoption and lock-in is. Lots of people already have smart TVs, gaming consoles, or Apple TV/Roku devices.
moskie 12y ago
I fear the release the this new Nexus Player portends we're not going to see an update to the Chromecast anytime soon, if ever. That makes me sad. I guess I'm just not the average user, but the Chromecast handily beats what this (and other options in this genre, i.e., Apple TV / Fire TV / Roku) have to offer. I don't want another remote control. And making my phone the best remote control is an awesome solution. And the Chromecast doesn't take up any room in my living room / entertainment center. And it's only thrity-five-goddamn-dollars. I guess the downside is that I can't play crappy games on my big screen. Darn.
- hoopism 12y ago
  It says this is chromecast enabled... so it's the same thing with more, no?
  - cfontes 12y ago
    But bigger...
    - moskie 12y ago
      And three times the price.
- jonny_eh 12y ago
  Why does it need updating? 4K support? Since the Nexus Player will have Chromecast support built-in (like all Android TV devices), software will hopefully continue to add support on their end.
  - moskie 12y ago
    > Why does it need updating? This is a good point... it's not missing much in terms of features and functionality. A pie in the sky idea, that none of these devices have tried to incorporate, is to have a webcam peripheral support to enable video chatting. This is the primary thing I still use my HTPC for. Being able to gather my wfie and/or friends into the living room to video chat with friends that live elsewhere, having those friends be able to see the whole room where we're able to sit comfortably, is really a great experience. And at this point, using an HTPC for that is overkill, in terms of horsepower needed. Incorporating a feature like this into a media device would be a killer feature for me. "Casting" a Skype or Hangout video chat.... I'd be all over that.
swartkrans 12y ago
Is that running Google TV?
- wldcordeiro 12y ago
  Android TV, Google TV was an OS purely for TVs that failed. Android TV is Android with modifications to run on TVs.
  - lern_too_spel 12y ago
    Google TV is also Android with modifications to run on TVs. https://developers.google.com/tv/android/docs/gtv_documentation_intro https://developers.google.com/tv/android/docs/gtv_documentat... I think this is just a rebranding to distance Android TV from the failure that was Google TV. I'm taking bets on what the name of the next revision will be when Android TV fails.
    - swartkrans 12y ago
      > I'm taking bets on what the name of the next revision will be when Android TV fails. Chrome TV
    - Shooti 12y ago
      I think the difference is Google TV was built by the Youtube division, Android TV was built by the Android division.
    - yincrash 12y ago
      There were several reasons Google TV failed. One of the biggest was that it launched with no NDK support so games of any high caliber were not portable to it.
Pxtl 12y ago
Now that every company is releasing gamepads for their set-top devices hopefully we'll see android games support them properly.
d23 12y ago
Is it just me, or do the controllers (both of them) look just like the Fire TV's controllers? I just don't get it. Does every company have to jump in head first to any emerging market just because the others are doing it?
dangrossman 12y ago
I wish this was a real Google TV replacement. My 4-year-old Google TV box (Logitech Revue) -- with Android 3.1 -- is really showing its age. The app store is pretty empty and it only supports things like Amazon Video and HBO Go because Android still had Flash back then. The missing key is an HDMI input. My TV is always tuned to the Google TV input whether I'm watching live cable TV, a Netflix movie or casting a YouTube video. I have a single remote control (the Google TV one) for all of them. It changes channels and settings on my cable box with HDMI CEC. All these new boxes make you switch inputs and remotes all the time. I have too many remotes already.
- chambo622 12y ago
  I thought all of the original Android TV devices got updated to the second major version of the platform based on Android 4.2.
  - deleted 12y ago
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  - deleted 12y ago
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- bdcs 12y ago
  Speaking of HDMI CEC, I think you may like a Chromecast >> All these new boxes make you switch inputs and remotes all the time. I have too many remotes already. The Chromecast can turn on a TV (and the TV can turn on the audio receiver) via HDMI CEC. I was surprised when the Chromecast icon was displayed when the TV was off. Lo and behold, it just worked.
  - dangrossman 12y ago
    It doesn't switch inputs back when it's done, so I'd still need a phone and two remote controls to go from casting back to watching TV on my TV. Its use of CEC doesn't help solve the input/remote problem at all. The 2010 Google TV already did everything the Chromecast does except tab/screen mirroring, minus ever having to switch inputs or use multiple remotes.
izacus 12y ago
Ah, this will replace my RPi with XBMC (for local playback) and Chromecast combo nicely - not having to use two devices will clear up some HDMI space on the receiver :) The Android TV interface looks pretty sleek as well.
- Fuzzwah 12y ago
  I have a similar setup to you. I'm not sure where you're storing your local content, mine is all on a couple of external USB HDDs connected to the R-Pi. I'm not seeing how the Nexus Play is going to replace the R-Pi running XBMC..... My initial take is that the Nexus Play is like paying $65 extra for a chromecast that has a remote. I realize there is more to it than that (due to it running full android) but for my use case that doesn't seem to matter much.
  - dmayle 12y ago
    There is an Android XBMC app, maybe that's what he/she is referring to.
higherpurpose 12y ago
Shame it comes with a much weaker Atom processor instead of the new 64-bit Tegra processor, that's already in the Nexus 9 tablet. That decision doesn't make any sense to me, which shows once again that Google's Intel-related decisions are all political, and not technical.
- baq 12y ago
  when companies are as big as those two, every decision is political.
- Zigurd 12y ago
  It's a $99 product, vs $400 for the N9 tablet. It's an easy bet that the Atom is cheaper and battery life is not an issue.
mmanfrin 12y ago
So this is a Fire TV + Chromecast - Amazon Siloed Content.
cbeach 12y ago
"Your favourite apps are on Nexus Player" Spotify and iPlayer are my favourites. Notably absent.
- fs111 12y ago
  to be fair, that is spotify being difficult. They try to push their own connect thing and actively block chromecast...
- dmayle 12y ago
  I'm confused, both of those offer Android apps. How are they absent?
mahyarm 12y ago
Now we need a $20 google audiocaster. It would kill the airplay speaker market for android devices. You can hack it with a $20 hdmi to 3.5mm audio adaptor, but then it becomes a $55 device. I'm somewhat surprised there is no ethernet in this player. For some places, wifi just doesn't work in their environment.
- andybak 12y ago
  I bought a dirt cheap bluetooth audio receiver and that seems pretty close to sufficient. You can solve this with a Chromecast plus a VGA to HDMI adapter with an audio jack input.
  - mahyarm 12y ago
    In my experience bluetooth speakers require a lot of pairing/un pairing work and extra menu taps, while wifi speakers are one tap once you've set them up.
- csulok 12y ago
  http://www.motorola.com/us/accessories-headphones-speakers/Moto-Stream/moto-stream.html http://www.motorola.com/us/accessories-headphones-speakers/M...
  - mahyarm 12y ago
    Bluetooth is not a replacement for wifi audio.
kin 12y ago
Google Cast sounds a bit too good to be true, just like the Chromecast was. I hated the Chromecast 'cause it simply didn't have enough content for me and the performance was terrible. I'll have to wait and see how the performance for the Google Cast is. I'd like it to at least be as good as my ability to airplay HD MKV files to an Apple TV.
- malbs 12y ago
  I have a chromecast too, its not even plugged in, I hate having to "cast" to it from another device. I use a raspberry-pi with xbmc running on it, but this could be great.... could be.
apayan 12y ago
I've had the pleasure of using one of these for the past month and it's been really great. I have a Chromecast that I used all the time before, but because I can cast to the Android TV (Player), I don't use the Chromecast anymore (I only have one TV). The whole UI feels very snappy, and videos load very quickly. The game pad feels great in my hands. No complaints there. The selection of games on Google Play isn't huge (yet?). I currently see 16 games listed on it for download/purchase. My favorite so far is Leo's Fortune. I enjoyed it on my Nexus 5 when it came out, but after playing it on Android TV, I won't even play it on the phone anymore because I've experienced how much better the game is with a controller. I suspect that's going to be the case with a lot of games that come out for Android in the future. Touch interface only games have a lot of limitations. Besides Netflix, you can also use Plex (PlexPass subscribers only right now) and that works pretty flawlessly as well. I've been very happy with the whole setup and I'll be recommending it to all who are in the market for a set top box.
- izacus 12y ago
  Um, does it support playing files from local Samba stores? At least through app? (Plex refuses to make a build for my Synology NAS so that's out of the question.)
thedangler 12y ago
Maybe it is just me but I do not see it in the play store. (Canada)
cbsmith 12y ago
A.K.A.: Nexus Q 2.0
cbsmith 12y ago
A.K.A.: Nexus Q 2.0
notastartup 12y ago
Remember ouya?
acgourley 12y ago
Does anyone know if it has miracast?
taeric 12y ago
This really looks just like a circular version of the FireTV. The remote looks very similar. To the point I'd assume they are the same design. Is this just a case where Amazon got a reference implementation out the door before Google did?
- slinkyavenger 12y ago
  If you go look at all the Chinese Android consoles, you'll see they did the remote first, down to the integrated mic for voice search. There are even a few of them that have a hockey-puck appearance.
  - taeric 12y ago
    That just furthers my suspicion that this is some sort of reference board implementation. Curious that Google is entering the game as late as they are. For disclosure, I should say I have and rather enjoy a FireTv. Not the most amazing device ever, but more than capable of what it is made to do. (And more to the point, does a good job by me.)
thefreeman 12y ago
This is a legitimate question, not a troll. Are there actually any mobile games out there that you would want to play on your tv with a controller? Pretty much every mobile game I have ever tried has been a cesspool of micropayment dark patterns, or else something that really just serves to kill time when there is nothing else to do (riding the bus, waiting at an office, etc.)
- MarkMc 12y ago
  I would love to run Sky Force on a big TV. And no doubt the Nexus Player will spur the development of new 'TV' games (or ones ported from Xbox and playstation)
- wastedhours 12y ago
  Classic GTA titles, certainly.
- Raphmedia 12y ago
  Take a look at gameloft games for starter. There are a bunch of great games out there.
dataminded 12y ago
The lack of Ethernet is a deal breaker for me. Ethernet is the only thing my chromecast is missing. I don't want games or apps, just a stable internet connection.
- Nux 12y ago
  I've used the R-pi and now a Intel NUC with XBMC and for watching streams I could tell that I had major issues with WIFI. Everything is SO much better with a proper network cable.
UK-AL 12y ago
I don't get this. I have a Chromecast + nexus 7 as a remote and its already my preferred way of watching Netflix etc. Much better than a clusmly remote. I hope this doesn't mean there backtracking on Chromecast.
devin 12y ago
Sad that a bunch of designers can't come up with an original thought. Looks exactly like the Apple TV.
josteink 12y ago
What? A media-hub with NO wired ethernet? How am I supposed to take that seriously? I don't care about what people saying about wifi having gotten "better". By every single measurable criteria, it is slower, is less reliable, has lower capacity and higher latency than wired gigabit ethernet and I doubt that will change anytime soon. I demand wired ethernet on my devices, and I know a bunch of other who do too.
- teh_klev 12y ago
  I'm totally with you on that. Where I live the channel space is packed out with neighbouring WiFi. Even within line of sight and only 10 or so feet away I barely get more than 7-10Mbs on my Netgear N600 dual band device.
- taeric 12y ago
  You and the bunch of other folks you know, sadly, aren't really much of a blip on the market for this. There is probably a bigger market that wishes this thing could hook up wirelessly to the tv.
  - josteink 12y ago
    > There is probably a bigger market that wishes this thing could hook up wirelessly to the tv. Sure. We can all wish. Back in the real world, this is the group of buyers who buys stuff like this, hook it up in a wifi-crowded area and then complain when things don't work properly. Which is absolutely fair enough, because they're not technicians and not everyone should have to be capable of diagnosing network issues. So why not just give these "commoners" something reliable in the first place?
- thedangler 12y ago
  I didn't even realize that it didn't have a wired hook up. This is disappointing. I have a chromcast and it is laggy sometimes, and will simply just stop working. Hopefully the wireless card in the player is better than the chromcast.

369 points by gulbrandr 12y ago

Feel quite certain we will see Apple announce 4th generation Apple TV tomorrow with a gaming capable A7 processor for Metal games, and voice capable remote control the same as Nexus Player.

smackfu 12y ago

$99 plus $40 for the controller. Since Google doesn't seem to want to provide that information.

wfjackson 12y ago
For $40 more you can get a new Xbox 360, although games might not be as cheap as on the Play store. That Xbox is just a 4GB one, but I don't see Google Player local storage mentioned in the linked page.
- deleted 12y ago
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  - VikingCoder 12y ago
    "$40 more." So, $180.
    - UnoriginalGuy 12y ago
      I see. I misunderstood.
- Touche 12y ago
  Then you got loud fans and a poor interface for watching TV.
  - benologist 12y ago
    Yeah but if you want to watch online stuff on your tv at this point you probably have about 6000 things that can run netflix etc, including the other google tv boxes, the amazon box, generic android boxes, the rokus, the apple tv, ps3/ps4, xbox360/xbox one, ps tv, chromecast, a hdmi cable or htpc etc.
  - smackfu 12y ago
    Is the TV / app interface bad? I've heard good things about Netflix on the Xbox.
    - Touche 12y ago
      The fact that it's a separate "app" is what's bad. On any TV streaming device (Roku, AppleTV, Fire TV) has content right up front on the home screen. XBOX's TV app also contains a lot of ads. And the apps load much slower.
    - elif 12y ago
      i really like it. I use voice control for everything. at first you feel like a doofus but eventually it becomes second nature. I also plug the chromcast into the hdmi input, so i can swap and PIP all kinds of stuff (also with voice command), and the upnp (local media streaming) implementation is really good too (having frustratedly used the 360, ps3 versions for years)
- baldfat 12y ago
  Being a Chromecast user already I would say that XBox 360 is just not at all close to the same experience and no Gold Memberships.
  - jonny_eh 12y ago
    Gold membership isn't required to use the media apps anymore.
    - Narishma 12y ago
      Even on the Xbox 360? I though it was only for the Xbox One.
      - jonny_eh 12y ago
        Yes, my Gold subscription lapsed long ago but I was able to use HBO Go on it.
      - stonemetal 12y ago
        They made the change when the one came out but they made it for both systems.
- danieldk 12y ago
  But if you have an Android device, you can do much more with this or a Chromecast, because both support Google Cast. XBox only has the crappy Smart Glass app (it's probably good on Windows Phone), and that's it. (I own an XBox One)
  - monstermonster 12y ago
    Its crap on windows phone too :)
freehunter 12y ago
A silly price, considering their competitors cost the same, and have been in the game for much longer. Google is late and entered the market at the same price as established players, but with a track record of failure in this space (Google TV and Nexus Q). They probably don't want to provide the information because it's embarrassing.
- Igglyboo 12y ago
  They don't show the price on the 6 or the 9 either, they definitely aren't "embarrassed" about their phones and tablets.
  - freehunter 12y ago
    That was a facetious comment. The point is, everyone got excited about the Nexus Q but it was too expensive. We got excited about Google TV, but it never caught on compared to the competition. The Apple TV has been $99 since forever, as has the Roku and recently Amazon's FireTV. Google discounts their phones massively over the competition, and that's a big draw for why people buy them. Why price this exactly the same as everyone else?
  - smackfu 12y ago
    I assume they don't show the price for internationalization reasons, but I do wish they had some way to see what it is in your country. Rather than just going to look at the Verge.
- VikingCoder 12y ago
  ...those devices didn't have the whole back catalog of the Google Play Store running on them. This one presumably does.
  - freehunter 12y ago
    I've played games with a PS3 controller on my Nexus 4 hooked to a big screen before. It never worked, because mobile games are designed for a touch screen. Even Modern Combat, it was fantastic with a controller right up to the point where you needed to touch the screen for a quick time event. You can run the entire back catalog, maybe. But no one will want to until the apps and games are designed for non-touch input.
pbnjay 12y ago
I wonder if they're not releasing that info so they have the ability to lower the price if Apple TV makes any price cuts/big features tomorrow.
Steko 12y ago
What's interesting here is Google has abandoned the super cheap device strategy (nexus 4/7) and decided to go after iMargins.

jewel 12y ago

I've been anxiously awaiting this. We're thinking of shipping an enterprise product on the Amazon Fire TV, but it's relative lack of control is quite limiting. Hopefully this is priced similarly. I've tried nearly every android TV stick, and while they are pretty close to what we need, and infinitely customizable, we had trouble getting consistent hardware. It seemed like each batch would behave slightly differently.

Igglyboo 12y ago
Same here, I want a Fire TV but Amazon's particular flavor of android seems to be a lot more locked down than ASOP and has a smaller ecosystem. This will be perfect for me.

omnibrain 12y ago

Looks like "Nexus Q reborn". It looks very similar to the Amazon Fire TV.

smackfu 12y ago
Nexus Q was so bizarre. They included a stereo amp in it and you could run speakers directly. I'm sure that added a lot to the price when most people are either going to plug it into their TV or their existing receiver.

agumonkey 12y ago

Surprisingly not mentioned on the fr_FR main page https://archive.today/zYpBZ https://archive.today/zYpBZ edit: ha... probably market limited.

baq 12y ago

intel inside. interesting times.

ccozan 12y ago

"Start here, finish there" is one of the good features. However is not really new, I can do the same with Amazon Prime ( w/ App from Smart Tv and App on Tablet ).

dchuk 12y ago

There is so little innovation going on in the apple tv-esque space. All of these devices look and act exactly the same (Fire, AppleTV, this thing, Roku, etc)

baldfat 12y ago
I don't care about innovation I care about Silos. Stares at the lack of Amazon Instant Video on Android and rolls eye. I stopped giving amazon money for videos and music until they have it on Android as they already have it on Fire, and iOS.
- cheald 12y ago
  http://www.cnet.com/news/amazon-prime-instant-video-arrives-on-android/ http://www.cnet.com/news/amazon-prime-instant-video-arrives-...
- VikingCoder 12y ago
  You can get Amazon Instant Video on your Android phone, but not your Android tablet. /half-glower http://www.amazon.com/Amazon-com-Prime-Instant-Video/dp/B00N28818A http://www.amazon.com/Amazon-com-Prime-Instant-Video/dp/B00N...
  - cwyers 12y ago
    Yeah, I was so annoyed when I got the update on my phone, went to my Nvidia Shield to install it, and... nothing. Ugh.
  - libria 12y ago
    Is this still the case? I just watched an AIV movie on my Nexus 7.
  - fpgeek 12y ago
    I still glower, but I know of two loopholes: 1. You can get Amazon Instant Video on your cellular tablet if you use the Amazon Appstore directly. It's kinda vague on the distinction between a cellular tablet and a phone. 2. Amazon Instant Video works just fine if you sideload the Amazon for Phones and Amazon Instant Video apps.

gagege 12y ago

Did anyone else not see Amazon in that list of apps?

freehunter 12y ago
Amazon doesn't play well with Google.
Igglyboo 12y ago
Amazon is directly competing with their Fire TV.
general_failure 12y ago
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.amazon.avod https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.amazon.avo...
Raphael 12y ago
Amazon has video streaming inside its main Android app. I don't see why it wouldn't work.

wfjackson 12y ago

>Get your apps on Google Play, or rent a movie if your app doesn’t have what you’re looking for What? Are they exclusively targeting movie content with this? It doesn't make much sense to rent a movie if store apps don't have a feature I am looking for.

cleverjake 12y ago
The movie rental would be through the google play store. The "apps" most likely are referencing netflix, hulu, and their ilk
Shebanator 12y ago
I think you are reading way too much into that sentence.
freehunter 12y ago
Rent a movie from Google if it's not available to stream on Netflix is what I read it as. They just didn't want to say the name of their competitor.

Igglyboo 12y ago

Wanted this ever since I saw the Amazon Fire TV, will no doubt be much more "hackable" than Amazons version of android.

cfontes 12y ago

Hum... interesting. OUYA was almost dead. Now it's done.

tracker1 12y ago
Ouya was an almost great implementation of that idea... honestly, I think the controllers were pretty bad. The fact that you have to put the Ouya on its' side to get decent controller reception is close to unforgivable. It just wasn't quite fast enough for a full screen interface. Also, the media options were an also ran. It's okay as an emulator box, but the gimped controllers ruin the experience... I have two ps3 controllers that I haven't tried with it as of yet, but plan to.
bduerst 12y ago
Almost bought an OUYA two weeks ago. The only thing I could think when I saw that controller is that I'm glad I waited.

tachyonbeam 12y ago

I wonder why they went with an Intel Atom CPU instead of using ARM chips as they do in the Nexus phones. Seems like a strange choice.

UnoriginalGuy 12y ago
To me it makes total sense. Intel's Atom has facilities to do hardware accelerated H.264 video decoding[0]. They're both low power chips (ARM and Atom) so can both be passively cooled, ARM is just more focused on minimalism, whereas the Intel Atom is a little bit more feature rich (which is great if you happen to be utilising one of those features, as in this case). [0] PDF(!): http://www.intel.com/content/dam/www/public/us/en/documents/white-papers/atom-sch-us15w-video-decode-paper.pdf http://www.intel.com/content/dam/www/public/us/en/documents/...
- oflordal 12y ago
  Every modern ARM SoC built for thisnpuepose has H.264 hardware video decode (and typically HEVC for that matter).
brucehart 12y ago
I thought that was strange as well. Any phone or tablet app in the Play Store that uses native code will not be compatible. I'm guessing they did this to make it more attractive to game developers. PlayStation, XBox, and PC are now all x86 platforms. Makes it easier for top game studios to also target Google Player if it runs the same architecture.
- baq 12y ago
  actually, 99% of native apps should work flawlessly _on the condition_ that they're downloaded from the Play Store. intel has something called the Houdini for AOT binary translation: http://stackoverflow.com/a/13005569/38749 http://stackoverflow.com/a/13005569/38749
  - brucehart 12y ago

nogridbag 12y ago

I realize the controller is sold separately, but I did find it a little odd that the controller says "ASUS" at the top instead of "NEXUS" since it seems to be the official controller.

AdmiralAsshat 12y ago

I think the question on everyone's mind is: how well will it run XBMC?

wnevets 12y ago

With the chromecast, I have no interest in another box that plays video content. Having a dedicate box to play casual android games on my tv isnt very appealing to me either. Is there really a big market for this thing?

heymishy 12y ago
my thoughts exactly - what does this give me that a chromecast doesnt? i dont care for a controller (or for games). i can't think of anything this can do (that id want to do) that the chromecast cant for a lot cheaper.
- drewg123 12y ago
  My chromecast sits unused in a drawer because I hate to have to use my phone / tablet to watch TV (lack of tactile feedback, phone lock timeout, and being distracted by work email when I'm trying to relax). This thing has a remote, which is a huge win for me. Maybe it even has an IR receiver (or one could be plugged in via USB), which would allow better integration with my harmony. Also, you'll probably be able to side-load xbmc on it without rooting, like you can on a Ouya, an Amazon FireTV or (rooted) AppleTV to get full access to your media library, to act as a PVR front end, & to give you access to the vast world of shady XBMC plugins. The open question for me is what sort of video the thing will be able to play back natively. And whether or not you can side-load Amazon Instant Video
- Igglyboo 12y ago
  Chrome cast mirrors a screen and requires a separate device to control, this can run actual applications.
  - sanderjd 12y ago
    This is a common misconception. Chromecast runs "actual applications", which are controlled by an application on a separate device like a phone or tablet. One of those applications (I believe the least useful one) enables you to mirror a display from the controlling device. But most of the applications are things like netflix, google play movies, and hbogo - very similar to the nexus player.

general_failure 12y ago

This kills Roku. Roku is dead, long live Roku.

freehunter 12y ago
At $99, how is this a Roku killer? At least Roku has Amazon Instant Video.
- general_failure 12y ago
  For a start, roku has an extremely closed app development policy. Have you seen how you develop apps for the Roku? The Player will have it open just like other devices. On amazon, Roku 3 streaming player costs 90USD. So, it's the same price range. Except that Player will have more apps in no time. (And from a developer perspective, Roku is using a custom language. You read that right, a DSL of their own)
  - freehunter 12y ago
    I guess by that metric, the Ouya is a Roku killer too. How many units did Ouya sell?
  - general_failure 12y ago
    @freehunter: I cannot reply to you for some reason. but ouya was marketed as a gaming device. Completely different thing compared to how Roku is marketed.
    - freehunter 12y ago
      HN is kind of weird with the comments. If you don't see the "reply" button, click "link" then there should be a comment box that will work. Anyway, no one knows how this will play out, but Roku didn't kill Apple TV, FireTV didn't kill either, and I wouldn't expect this thing to do much damage in the very crowded market either, all things considered. Brand name doesn't mean that much these days, as Microsoft and Blackberry can tell you. What matters is how cool it is and how quick the adoption and lock-in is. Lots of people already have smart TVs, gaming consoles, or Apple TV/Roku devices.

moskie 12y ago

I fear the release the this new Nexus Player portends we're not going to see an update to the Chromecast anytime soon, if ever. That makes me sad. I guess I'm just not the average user, but the Chromecast handily beats what this (and other options in this genre, i.e., Apple TV / Fire TV / Roku) have to offer. I don't want another remote control. And making my phone the best remote control is an awesome solution. And the Chromecast doesn't take up any room in my living room / entertainment center. And it's only thrity-five-goddamn-dollars. I guess the downside is that I can't play crappy games on my big screen. Darn.

hoopism 12y ago
It says this is chromecast enabled... so it's the same thing with more, no?
- cfontes 12y ago
  But bigger...
  - moskie 12y ago
    And three times the price.
jonny_eh 12y ago
Why does it need updating? 4K support? Since the Nexus Player will have Chromecast support built-in (like all Android TV devices), software will hopefully continue to add support on their end.
- moskie 12y ago
  > Why does it need updating? This is a good point... it's not missing much in terms of features and functionality. A pie in the sky idea, that none of these devices have tried to incorporate, is to have a webcam peripheral support to enable video chatting. This is the primary thing I still use my HTPC for. Being able to gather my wfie and/or friends into the living room to video chat with friends that live elsewhere, having those friends be able to see the whole room where we're able to sit comfortably, is really a great experience. And at this point, using an HTPC for that is overkill, in terms of horsepower needed. Incorporating a feature like this into a media device would be a killer feature for me. "Casting" a Skype or Hangout video chat.... I'd be all over that.

swartkrans 12y ago

Is that running Google TV?

wldcordeiro 12y ago
Android TV, Google TV was an OS purely for TVs that failed. Android TV is Android with modifications to run on TVs.
- lern_too_spel 12y ago
  Google TV is also Android with modifications to run on TVs. https://developers.google.com/tv/android/docs/gtv_documentation_intro https://developers.google.com/tv/android/docs/gtv_documentat... I think this is just a rebranding to distance Android TV from the failure that was Google TV. I'm taking bets on what the name of the next revision will be when Android TV fails.
  - swartkrans 12y ago
    > I'm taking bets on what the name of the next revision will be when Android TV fails. Chrome TV
  - Shooti 12y ago
    I think the difference is Google TV was built by the Youtube division, Android TV was built by the Android division.
  - yincrash 12y ago
    There were several reasons Google TV failed. One of the biggest was that it launched with no NDK support so games of any high caliber were not portable to it.

Pxtl 12y ago

Now that every company is releasing gamepads for their set-top devices hopefully we'll see android games support them properly.

d23 12y ago

Is it just me, or do the controllers (both of them) look just like the Fire TV's controllers? I just don't get it. Does every company have to jump in head first to any emerging market just because the others are doing it?

dangrossman 12y ago

I wish this was a real Google TV replacement. My 4-year-old Google TV box (Logitech Revue) -- with Android 3.1 -- is really showing its age. The app store is pretty empty and it only supports things like Amazon Video and HBO Go because Android still had Flash back then. The missing key is an HDMI input. My TV is always tuned to the Google TV input whether I'm watching live cable TV, a Netflix movie or casting a YouTube video. I have a single remote control (the Google TV one) for all of them. It changes channels and settings on my cable box with HDMI CEC. All these new boxes make you switch inputs and remotes all the time. I have too many remotes already.

chambo622 12y ago
I thought all of the original Android TV devices got updated to the second major version of the platform based on Android 4.2.
- deleted 12y ago
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- deleted 12y ago
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bdcs 12y ago
Speaking of HDMI CEC, I think you may like a Chromecast >> All these new boxes make you switch inputs and remotes all the time. I have too many remotes already. The Chromecast can turn on a TV (and the TV can turn on the audio receiver) via HDMI CEC. I was surprised when the Chromecast icon was displayed when the TV was off. Lo and behold, it just worked.
- dangrossman 12y ago
  It doesn't switch inputs back when it's done, so I'd still need a phone and two remote controls to go from casting back to watching TV on my TV. Its use of CEC doesn't help solve the input/remote problem at all. The 2010 Google TV already did everything the Chromecast does except tab/screen mirroring, minus ever having to switch inputs or use multiple remotes.

izacus 12y ago

Ah, this will replace my RPi with XBMC (for local playback) and Chromecast combo nicely - not having to use two devices will clear up some HDMI space on the receiver :) The Android TV interface looks pretty sleek as well.

Fuzzwah 12y ago
I have a similar setup to you. I'm not sure where you're storing your local content, mine is all on a couple of external USB HDDs connected to the R-Pi. I'm not seeing how the Nexus Play is going to replace the R-Pi running XBMC..... My initial take is that the Nexus Play is like paying $65 extra for a chromecast that has a remote. I realize there is more to it than that (due to it running full android) but for my use case that doesn't seem to matter much.
- dmayle 12y ago
  There is an Android XBMC app, maybe that's what he/she is referring to.

higherpurpose 12y ago

Shame it comes with a much weaker Atom processor instead of the new 64-bit Tegra processor, that's already in the Nexus 9 tablet. That decision doesn't make any sense to me, which shows once again that Google's Intel-related decisions are all political, and not technical.

baq 12y ago
when companies are as big as those two, every decision is political.
Zigurd 12y ago
It's a $99 product, vs $400 for the N9 tablet. It's an easy bet that the Atom is cheaper and battery life is not an issue.

mmanfrin 12y ago

So this is a Fire TV + Chromecast - Amazon Siloed Content.

cbeach 12y ago

"Your favourite apps are on Nexus Player" Spotify and iPlayer are my favourites. Notably absent.

fs111 12y ago
to be fair, that is spotify being difficult. They try to push their own connect thing and actively block chromecast...
dmayle 12y ago
I'm confused, both of those offer Android apps. How are they absent?

mahyarm 12y ago

Now we need a $20 google audiocaster. It would kill the airplay speaker market for android devices. You can hack it with a $20 hdmi to 3.5mm audio adaptor, but then it becomes a $55 device. I'm somewhat surprised there is no ethernet in this player. For some places, wifi just doesn't work in their environment.

andybak 12y ago
I bought a dirt cheap bluetooth audio receiver and that seems pretty close to sufficient. You can solve this with a Chromecast plus a VGA to HDMI adapter with an audio jack input.
- mahyarm 12y ago
  In my experience bluetooth speakers require a lot of pairing/un pairing work and extra menu taps, while wifi speakers are one tap once you've set them up.
csulok 12y ago
http://www.motorola.com/us/accessories-headphones-speakers/Moto-Stream/moto-stream.html http://www.motorola.com/us/accessories-headphones-speakers/M...
- mahyarm 12y ago
  Bluetooth is not a replacement for wifi audio.

kin 12y ago

Google Cast sounds a bit too good to be true, just like the Chromecast was. I hated the Chromecast 'cause it simply didn't have enough content for me and the performance was terrible. I'll have to wait and see how the performance for the Google Cast is. I'd like it to at least be as good as my ability to airplay HD MKV files to an Apple TV.

malbs 12y ago
I have a chromecast too, its not even plugged in, I hate having to "cast" to it from another device. I use a raspberry-pi with xbmc running on it, but this could be great.... could be.

apayan 12y ago

I've had the pleasure of using one of these for the past month and it's been really great. I have a Chromecast that I used all the time before, but because I can cast to the Android TV (Player), I don't use the Chromecast anymore (I only have one TV). The whole UI feels very snappy, and videos load very quickly. The game pad feels great in my hands. No complaints there. The selection of games on Google Play isn't huge (yet?). I currently see 16 games listed on it for download/purchase. My favorite so far is Leo's Fortune. I enjoyed it on my Nexus 5 when it came out, but after playing it on Android TV, I won't even play it on the phone anymore because I've experienced how much better the game is with a controller. I suspect that's going to be the case with a lot of games that come out for Android in the future. Touch interface only games have a lot of limitations. Besides Netflix, you can also use Plex (PlexPass subscribers only right now) and that works pretty flawlessly as well. I've been very happy with the whole setup and I'll be recommending it to all who are in the market for a set top box.

izacus 12y ago
Um, does it support playing files from local Samba stores? At least through app? (Plex refuses to make a build for my Synology NAS so that's out of the question.)

thedangler 12y ago

Maybe it is just me but I do not see it in the play store. (Canada)

cbsmith 12y ago

A.K.A.: Nexus Q 2.0

cbsmith 12y ago

A.K.A.: Nexus Q 2.0

notastartup 12y ago

Remember ouya?

acgourley 12y ago

Does anyone know if it has miracast?

taeric 12y ago

This really looks just like a circular version of the FireTV. The remote looks very similar. To the point I'd assume they are the same design. Is this just a case where Amazon got a reference implementation out the door before Google did?

slinkyavenger 12y ago
If you go look at all the Chinese Android consoles, you'll see they did the remote first, down to the integrated mic for voice search. There are even a few of them that have a hockey-puck appearance.
- taeric 12y ago
  That just furthers my suspicion that this is some sort of reference board implementation. Curious that Google is entering the game as late as they are. For disclosure, I should say I have and rather enjoy a FireTv. Not the most amazing device ever, but more than capable of what it is made to do. (And more to the point, does a good job by me.)

thefreeman 12y ago

This is a legitimate question, not a troll. Are there actually any mobile games out there that you would want to play on your tv with a controller? Pretty much every mobile game I have ever tried has been a cesspool of micropayment dark patterns, or else something that really just serves to kill time when there is nothing else to do (riding the bus, waiting at an office, etc.)

MarkMc 12y ago
I would love to run Sky Force on a big TV. And no doubt the Nexus Player will spur the development of new 'TV' games (or ones ported from Xbox and playstation)
wastedhours 12y ago
Classic GTA titles, certainly.
Raphmedia 12y ago
Take a look at gameloft games for starter. There are a bunch of great games out there.

dataminded 12y ago

The lack of Ethernet is a deal breaker for me. Ethernet is the only thing my chromecast is missing. I don't want games or apps, just a stable internet connection.

Nux 12y ago
I've used the R-pi and now a Intel NUC with XBMC and for watching streams I could tell that I had major issues with WIFI. Everything is SO much better with a proper network cable.

UK-AL 12y ago

I don't get this. I have a Chromecast + nexus 7 as a remote and its already my preferred way of watching Netflix etc. Much better than a clusmly remote. I hope this doesn't mean there backtracking on Chromecast.

devin 12y ago

Sad that a bunch of designers can't come up with an original thought. Looks exactly like the Apple TV.

josteink 12y ago

What? A media-hub with NO wired ethernet? How am I supposed to take that seriously? I don't care about what people saying about wifi having gotten "better". By every single measurable criteria, it is slower, is less reliable, has lower capacity and higher latency than wired gigabit ethernet and I doubt that will change anytime soon. I demand wired ethernet on my devices, and I know a bunch of other who do too.

teh_klev 12y ago
I'm totally with you on that. Where I live the channel space is packed out with neighbouring WiFi. Even within line of sight and only 10 or so feet away I barely get more than 7-10Mbs on my Netgear N600 dual band device.
taeric 12y ago
You and the bunch of other folks you know, sadly, aren't really much of a blip on the market for this. There is probably a bigger market that wishes this thing could hook up wirelessly to the tv.
- josteink 12y ago
  > There is probably a bigger market that wishes this thing could hook up wirelessly to the tv. Sure. We can all wish. Back in the real world, this is the group of buyers who buys stuff like this, hook it up in a wifi-crowded area and then complain when things don't work properly. Which is absolutely fair enough, because they're not technicians and not everyone should have to be capable of diagnosing network issues. So why not just give these "commoners" something reliable in the first place?
thedangler 12y ago
I didn't even realize that it didn't have a wired hook up. This is disappointing. I have a chromcast and it is laggy sometimes, and will simply just stop working. Hopefully the wireless card in the player is better than the chromcast.