chromecast News - Page 2 of 3 - CNX Software

October 1, 2014October 1, 2014 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 19 Comments

$18 Matchstick is an HDMI TV Stick Running Firefox OS (Crowdfunding)

A few month ago, a Firefox OS HDMI streaming stick (codenamed netcast) by Mozilla that would compete with Google Chromecast was previewed. It is now called Matchstick, based on Rockchip RK3066 and has just been launched on Kickstarter. MatchStick technical specifications: SoC – Rockchip RK3066 dual core Cortex A9 processor @ 1.2 GHz with Mali-400 MP4 GPU System Memory – 1GB DDR3 (micron) Storage – 4 GB flash. (FORSEE, NCEFES86 eMMC) Video Output – HDMI Connectivity – 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi (AP6181?), but the board supports other Wi-Fi modules include AP6210 and AP6330, and many people are asking for dual band Wi-Fi in comments, so maybe a stretch goal… USB – 1x micro USB port for power Power – 5V via micro USB port. TPS659102 PMIC. Dimensions – 110 x 40 x 11 mm The Firefox OS dongle will come with an HDMI extension Cable, a micro USB Cable, and a […]

June 21, 2014 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

Mozilla Netcast is ChromeCast-like Device Powered by Firefox OS

According to Gigaom, Mozilla has been working on an HDMI TV dongle that might be codenamed Netcast with ChromeCast like video streaming and screen mirroring functionalities, and that runs Firefox OS with an open bootloader. There aren’t any hardware details available for the device, but we more or less know how it will work. As you are using your Firefox browser or another Firefox OS, you can simply click a “Casting button” to watch YouTube videos, mirror the screen or so on. I also understand it will be compatible with ChromeCast apps. Gigaom got hold of an engineering sample and gave it a try run Firefox browser in Android (Nexus 7), and playing a YouTube video on the TV using Netcast. It’s also working with Google Music, Plex, but some other apps are not working just yet. Mozilla’s media casting device has not been officially announced yet, so we don’t […]

April 3, 2014April 3, 2014 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 21 Comments

Amazon Launches $99 Fire TV Android Media Player Powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon Quad Core SoC

After few months ago, news broke that Amazon was working on an Android STB. The company has now launched Amazon Fire TV media player featuring Qualcomm Snapdragon 8064 quad core Krait processor with 2GB RAM, and supporting Amazon Prime Video, as well as a host of other popular online video and audio streaming services such as YouTube, Netflix, Hulu, Vimeo, Pandora, and more. Let’s go through the specifications first: SoC – Qualcomm Snapdragon 8064 quad core Krait 300 processor @ 1.7 GHz with Adreno 320 GPU. (Part of Snapdragon 600 family) System Memory – 2GB LPDDR2 @ 533 MHZ Storage – 8 GB internal Video Output – HDMI 1.4b output, w/HDCP. Resolution: 720p and 1080p up to 60fps Audio Output – HDMI, optical SPDIF Video Codecs – H.263, H.264, MPEG4-SP, VC1 Audio Codecs – AAC, AC-3, E-AC-3, HE-A, PCM, MP3, Dolby Digital Plus, 5.1 surround sound, 2ch Stereo and HDMI […]

March 19, 2014May 25, 2014 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 12 Comments

EZCast App is Now Supported by ChromeCast

EZCast is a decent Wi-Fi display solution using a proprietary protocol to show your local or online content on your TV via EZCast HDMI dongles powered by Action Semi ATV SoC. I’ve already reviewed two devices with Tronsmart T1000 and WiDiCast EC-E2, and found it to be fairly good with Android devices, but not so good with Windows PCs. Since the release of GoogleCast SDK for the ChromeCast, some people have asked support for ChromeCast protocol in EZCast dongle. However, it’s my understanding the SDK does not allow ChromeCast emulation on other devices yet. So instead the EZCast team has ported the app to support ChromeCast, which means if you own a ChromeCast you don’t need to buy an EZCast dongle to play around with EZCast and access your local content. However, as you can see from the comparison tablet above,. EZCast for ChromeCast is not quite able to support […]

February 17, 2014February 17, 2014 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 9 Comments

Xtreamer SideWinder4 is an XBMC Android TV Box with a DVB-T2 Receiver, and Google Cast Support

Xtreamer, a Hong Kong based company specialized in digital media products, is now taking pre-orders for Xtreamer SideWinder4, an Android media player powered by AMLogic AML8726-MX dual core processor, featuring a DVB-T2 receiver, and pre-loaded with XBMC and Cheapcast Chromecast emulator. Let’s get right to the specs: SoC – AMLogic AML8726-MX dual core ARM Cortex A9 @ 1.5GHz with Mali-400MP2 GPU System Memory – 1GB DDR3 Storage – 8GB NAND Flash (32M bit nor flash + 32Gbit MLC flash), micro SD card slot Video Output – HDMI 1.4 Audio Output – HDMI 1.4 + optical S/PDIF. Dolby & DTS 2ch output, 5CH & 7CH pass-through Connectivity – 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi with AirPlay, Miracast and DLNA support, 10/100M Ethernet USB – 3x USB 2.0 host ports Power Supply – DC 5V, 2A power adapter (CE, FCC, CCC certified) Dimensions – 18 x 8.2 x 3.5cm The device runs Android Jelly […]

February 4, 2014February 4, 2014 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

Google Cast SDK Officially Released for Chromecast

Since it’s release in July 2013, Google Chromecast HDMI TV stick has been very popular thanks to its low cost, and despite of its lack of feature, it does what it ‘s supposed to do – multi-screen experience across mobile devices and large screen displays – reasonably well. A Google Cast API preview was released at launch time for both the receiver (Chromecast) and sender (Android, iOS or Chrome) but the license terms prevented developers to release apps without written permission by Google as the API could still evolve. This restriction has just been lifted, as Google has now officially released Google Cast SDK for Chromecast and other upcoming Google Cast devices. The Sender SDK is available for Android, iOS, and Chrome on the sender side, and the Receiver SDK allows you to run an app on the Chromecast. Google claims the Google Cast SDK is simple to integrate because […]

December 31, 2013November 23, 2014 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

Google Chromecast Gets a Custom ROM: PwnedCast

If you’ve got a ChromeCast, and are disappointed by its limited features, XDA member ddggttff3 has released a custom ROM for the device based on the 13300 stock image. It is rooted, has its own OTA system, and features a dedicated recovery and a custom kernel in order to enhance the user experience. Main features: Root SSH/Telnet Access Uses DHCP DNS Servers Google OTA’s Disabled Custom Boot Image PwnedCast OTA Update Engine! PwnedCast Recovery Image, based on FlashCast V1.1.1 KyoCast Built In! Currently the most interesting feature is the addition of KyoCast which provides access to services like AOL, HBO, Post, Rev3, and Songza. But more work and features are certainly on the way. If you want to give it a try, download the image, and flash it as follows: Setup and Install FlashCast V1.1.1 on a USB Drive in Windows or Linux. Don’t use another FlashCast version, or it […]