chromecast or android tv box?

[pomkon]

should i buy an android tv box with chromecast built in, or a chromecast v2? 

 

they are the same?

[Techicolors]

if you don't mind using up an HDMI port for chromecast dongle and use a phone to communicate with the dongle, i would do that. 

[laughingtnt]

If you want a dedicated remote, go for the Android TV. If not, then go for the chromecast. I personally have a chromecast v1 and love it. I can ask my google home to turn on my tv and stream things with it as well.

[dalekphalm]

Personally, I hate Chromecasts. They are so overrated. Unless you live alone, having a dedicated remote operated streaming/media box, is far superior to controlling it through a phone.

 

So if the type of streaming box you want to use is an Android TV, then sure, do that. I personally use an XBOX One S, and a Roku 4K, as my streaming boxes.

[pomkon]

21 hours ago, laughingtnt said:

If you want a dedicated remote, go for the Android TV. If not, then go for the chromecast. I personally have a chromecast v1 and love it. I can ask my google home to turn on my tv and stream things with it as well.

i already have a not so good 4k smart tv. i have google home as well.

 

my question was do some android tv box have chromecast built in? so i dont have to buy an extra dongle.?

[pomkon]

19 hours ago, dalekphalm said:

Personally, I hate Chromecasts. They are so overrated. Unless you live alone, having a dedicated remote operated streaming/media box, is far superior to controlling it through a phone.

 

So if the type of streaming box you want to use is an Android TV, then sure, do that. I personally use an XBOX One S, and a Roku 4K, as my streaming boxes.

i think google home is a must for chromecast.

 

my tv is not android. so i want a android tv box with chromecast built in

[dalekphalm]

3 hours ago, pomkon said:

i already have a not so good 4k smart tv. i have google home as well.

 

my question was do some android tv box have chromecast built in? so i dont have to buy an extra dongle.?

Some Android boxes may support "casting". My Roku 4K does. Same with my XBOX One S.

 

Additionally, if they support MiraCast, that's additional casting support.

 

But why do you need casting anyway? What problem are you attempting to solve, via casting? With an Android TV box, you can simply just use the remote to navigate your feeds. Though I do confess, very occasionally, it's nice to have if you happen to find a YouTube video on a different device that you want to play on the TV - it's faster to cast it, vs using the remote to search for the video title.

[pomkon]

20 hours ago, dalekphalm said:

Some Android boxes may support "casting". My Roku 4K does. Same with my XBOX One S.

 

Additionally, if they support MiraCast, that's additional casting support.

 

But why do you need casting anyway? What problem are you attempting to solve, via casting? With an Android TV box, you can simply just use the remote to navigate your feeds. Though I do confess, very occasionally, it's nice to have if you happen to find a YouTube video on a different device that you want to play on the TV - it's faster to cast it, vs using the remote to search for the video title.

i recently got a google home. I want to have a smarter home. im finding out what peripherals work work well with it. I dont know if it would help me a lot. but i do want to get philips hue-like products.

[divito]

I used to run an HTPC in my bedroom, but controlling it left a lot to be desired in terms of the services I use. And while I was fine with it, it was more trying for my girlfriend. So I swapped in my old Xbox 360 which helped bridge the gap for Plex, Youtube, and Netflix, but that left out Prime Video, Spotify, etc...

I was debating between a Fire Stick, a Chromecast, and an Android box, and ending up choosing a Mi Box, and it's essentially the most all-around solution that I've found for viewing everything, and it runs Android TV which is something I wanted.

So far, it's been better than I expected.

[dalekphalm]

29 minutes ago, divito said:

I used to run an HTPC in my bedroom, but controlling it left a lot to be desired in terms of the services I use. And while I was fine with it, it was more trying for my girlfriend. So I swapped in my old Xbox 360 which helped bridge the gap for Plex, Youtube, and Netflix, but that left out Prime Video, Spotify, etc...

I was debating between a Fire Stick, a Chromecast, and an Android box, and ending up choosing a Mi Box, and it's essentially the most all-around solution that I've found for viewing everything, and it runs Android TV which is something I wanted.

So far, it's been better than I expected.

How is the remote control, and the UI/Controlling the Mi Box?

 

I'm always on the hunt for the best set-top media streaming box. Currently Roku 4K and XBOX One are the best ones that I've tried. Roku 4K has it's own limitations, and XBOX One is damn expensive for streaming/Plex, etc.

[divito]

56 minutes ago, dalekphalm said:

How is the remote control, and the UI/Controlling the Mi Box?

 

I'm always on the hunt for the best set-top media streaming box. Currently Roku 4K and XBOX One are the best ones that I've tried. Roku 4K has it's own limitations, and XBOX One is damn expensive for streaming/Plex, etc.

Has been fairly intuitive so far, and the remote is solid quality compared to the random other things you get with other Android boxes. Only thing I might augment it with is a Bluetooth keyboard. You can use voice for searching so you don't need it, but even as a fall back or if someone is sleeping. 

 

The thing that pushed me into the Mi Box vs. other boxes or even Roku was Android TV and Kodi. 

 

There are some decent reviews that show the UI, I only watched a couple. I can make a video later tonight if you're interested. But to me, a Mi Box checks essentially every box that I had. 

[dalekphalm]

39 minutes ago, divito said:

Has been fairly intuitive so far, and the remote is solid quality compared to the random other things you get with other Android boxes. Only thing I might augment it with is a Bluetooth keyboard. You can use voice for searching so you don't need it, but even as a fall back or if someone is sleeping. 

 

The thing that pushed me into the Mi Box vs. other boxes or even Roku was Android TV and Kodi. 

 

There are some decent reviews that show the UI, I only watched a couple. I can make a video later tonight if you're interested. But to me, a Mi Box checks essentially every box that I had. 

Interesting - I'll for sure keep it on my radar. I have no need for Kodi, since anything Kodi does, I'd do through Plex anyway (I also probably wouldn't use any of the pirate streaming plugins either).

[divito]

1 minute ago, dalekphalm said:

Interesting - I'll for sure keep it on my radar. I have no need for Kodi, since anything Kodi does, I'd do through Plex anyway (I also probably wouldn't use any of the pirate streaming plugins either).

That's fair. I don't use Kodi anymore as Plex does a decent job filling that gap, but my girlfriend wasn't too pleased with Rogers PVR and stuff, so we cancelled cable quite some time ago.

While a good chunk of stuff is available on Netflix and Prime, and she doesn't mind waiting a season for it to show up, there is the odd show that she hasn't bought on DVD, and it's not available through a service, so that was a primary consideration for having Kodi available, more as a fallback than anything else.

The other reason is that, while I use Plex more than she does, and I have a catalogue of ~500 movies on there and a bunch of TV series, we still have another 2-300 DVDs of movies and TV shows I haven't ripped or downloaded a digital version of. Rather than grab the DVD or wait for me to get it on Plex, Kodi is a decent go-between for the time being. I need a 10TB drive before I undertake that project.