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What is Google TV? Here’s everything you need to know

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Google entered the smart TV market with Chromecast in 2013. For many years, Google’s Chromecast devices were rather limited in their functions, and lack of remote control and user interface. As a result, Chromecast paled compared to Apple TV, Roku, and Fire TV, as these devices came standard with such features. However, in 2020, Google launched Google TV, which is available on the latest Chromecast with Google TV and built into some of the latest smart TVs. Google TV now competes with other streaming devices, so let’s go over exactly what is Google TV and if it’s right for you.

Further reading

What is Google TV?

The Google TV remote in front of Apple TV Fitness.
Phil Nickinson/Digital Trends

Google TV, at its core, is a user interface running on top of Android TV, although with a different look and feel than Android TV. It is pre-installed in the Chromecast with Google TV and comes with a dedicated remote. This lets you browse around Google TV as you would on a Roku or Amazon Fire Stick. The interface curates suggestions for movies and TV shows based on your viewing habits. Google is known as the “search giant” and touts the feature of asking the Google Assistant anything. You can “Ask Google” to find something to watch, for example.

Recommended Videos

Google TV’s focus is to ensure users can access their most-viewed and recommended content directly from the home screen. Like other streaming device platforms, Google TV features Netflix, Apple TV Plus, Hulu, and more. However, Google TV lets you access what you want to watch without diving directly into the specific streaming app as long as you are logged in to your account.

Related

Google Nest cameras will also connect to the interface so that Nest camera owners can view their cameras via their TVs.

Does Google TV replace Android TV?

Throughout 2021 and beyond, Google TV will be the primary interface for TV manufacturers that opted for Android TV, which was also developed by Google for use on TVs, media players, set-top boxes, and more. as mentioned, Google TV is essentially a re-skin of Android TV with some added features. Therefore, Google TV will be used by Google going forward. In June 2021, The Streamable reported that Google’s VP of Android TV and Google TV, Shalina Govil-Pai, said that while Android TV will continue to provide the base operating system, Google’s plan is to have all of their third-party Android TV partners shift all of their retail devices to Google TV. Check with your TV manufacturer to see if your TV can be updated to Google TV.

How does Google TV work?

Whether you purchase a Chromecast with Google TV or a Google TV-enabled TV, the experience is pretty similar. All Google TV-enabled devices need an internet connection. Some devices will give the option of using an Ethernet cable for a hard-wired connection, but they all work with Wi-Fi, too. Setting up Google TV is pretty simple. You can download the Google Home app on your mobile device for the fastest experience, but you can also do it directly from the TV itself. Furthermore, having a Gmail account makes this experience seamless.

After the initial setup, you will be presented with the Google TV home screen. The home screen features a slide show of various movies and TV shows that are recommended based on viewing preferences. It may also include advertisements for the latest movie releases. Below that is the Top Picks for You column, which is another recommended list of content, followed by Your Apps. The platform includes a Highlights tab as well to collect a personalized hub of entertainment info, generally news and reviews about important or upcoming titles that Google thinks you will like.

Google TV uses Knowledge Graph and machine learning to boost the discoverability of content aimed at the viewer. Google’s Knowledge Graph is the company’s collection of facts about people, places, and things. This allows Google to answer or present users with accurate information about movies, TV shows, historical facts, and more. The interface is divided into multiple tabs allowing users to browse movies, shows, apps, and purchased content.

Google TV’s focus is to ensure that users never have to venture into apps to watch their preferred content. With just a click of a button, jumping back into Marvel Studio’s Moon Knight on Disney+ is a seamless experience, and it can be done directly from the home screen of Google TV without opening Disney+ itself.

Parental controls are also built into the interface, allowing parents to create separate profiles for their kids. Kid profiles are tied to the parent’s account, so they do not have their email and password to worry about. There is also a Google Family Link app to set guidelines for their kids’ experience with Google apps and devices. For example, Google TV’s parental controls let parents set screen time, lock and unlock profiles, and set rating limits.

Games on Google TV

There are a lot of games available for Google TV. You will find titles like Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories, Final Fantasy, Oceanhorn, and more. The only downfall is that in comparison to Android TV, Google TV does not have direct access to the Play Store; searching for some games has to be done through voice or word search. You can also sign in with your Google Stadia account (the company’s cloud-based game-streaming service) on Google TV with the Stadia app and play your compatible Stadia games directly from Google TV, including support for the Stadia controller.

What are some Google TV voice commands?

Chromecast with Google TV remote.
Google

What you ask the Google Assistant is predicated on the apps that you are logged in to. For instance, “Play Master Chef on Hulu,” will only work if you have a Hulu subscription. However, Google TV does offer universal commands, such as:

  • “Play some R&B music.”
  • “Open [app name].”
  • “Tell me about Chef Ramsay” gives a detailed description of the person as well as content from various streaming services that they appear in.

Availability

As mentioned before, Google TV is available on the latest Chromecast with Google TV. However, there are now several TV manufacturers including the platform built-in, such as Sony, TCL, and Hisense. It’s likely we can expect more TV manufacturers to adopt Google TV for their future products, too. In addition, Google may send out updates for TVs and devices currently running Android TV to replace them with the Google TV interface.

Google TV has been available for Android users since September 2020 as it replaced Google Play Movies and the TV app.

Is Google TV right for me?

Google TV is an excellent alternative to Amazon Fire TV and Apple TV. If you are intertwined with the Google ecosystem, then the Google TV interface is perfect for you. In addition, having a Google Assistant on your TV helps make your TV browsing experience more seamless and intuitive.

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Amanda Blain
Amanda Blain
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Amanda has been geeking it up since the Commodore 64, Atari, and MS-DOS days.  She regularly attends technology tradeshow…
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