Chromecast, any HDMI-capable TV can receive video stream

$35 for a device from Google that plugs into any TV's HDMI port and will receive a stream from any device that can run Chrome. You could stream a Webcast onto a tablet or smartphone and then relay the stream to any of the newer meetinghouse TVs.

This does look interesting. But from the early reviews I have read, it seems that taking full advantage might require some server-side (at lds.org) and client-side (such as the Mormon Channel Android app) work to stream video seamlessly from a remote server to the Chromecast device. Initially, only Netflix and YouTube work this way. Other content providers, including the church, will need to develop such direct connectivity using the Chromecast SDK.

I expect that the existing Mormon Channel area on YouTube itself should work fine. I think all the Android Mormon Channel app does today is point to the videos hosted on YouTube, so perhaps that functionality would be similar.

There is supposed to be an alternate method of streaming general content from another device running a Chrome browser thrown from that user device to the Chromecast device via WiFi. But reportedly that does not work as well.

If it's streaming over the Internet, there's no promise that the bandwidth is there to support it.

As for the remote control - how do you assure that only the teacher has control of the TV and not someone else?

aclawson wrote:$35 for a device from Google that plugs into any TV's HDMI port and will receive a stream from any device that can run Chrome. You could stream a Webcast onto a tablet or smartphone and then relay the stream to any of the newer meetinghouse TVs.

From what I've read, that's not exactly how it's designed to work. Quoting from this CNXSoft article:

Chromekey only works with online services such as YouTube, Netflix, Google Play Movie & TV and Pandora, and it does not rely on your device to send data, but just gets it directly from the original source, potentially providing smoother playback, and avoiding draining your batteries.

You use a 'Droid, iOS, PC, or Mac device (with Chrome) as a remote control to "point" it to online content that supports Chromecast, but it won't stream content from a local device, without some serious development work, as RossEvans pointed out.

I think russellhltn is right that bandwidth contraints probably make the Chromecast device unsuitable for many meetinghouse applications. (High-end Rokus and Android HDMI sticks seem superior for that purpose because they can also display locally downloaded content.) But given the buzz about this new product, it may achieve significant market uptake among consumers. That includes LDS members who basically want to get General Conference or Mormon Channel content on their home TV screens.

The church seems to be interested in developing applications that support such dissemination on popular platforms. So the Chromecast might be a target for church developers for those reasons.

Of course, using Chromecast at a meetinghouse, in that it outputs to HDMI, would require your meetinghouse to actually have something besides a tube TV available...

(Sigh.)

You can stream any tab within the Chrome browser to the Chromecast -

[url]device.https://support.google.com/chromecast/a ... ic=3210038[/url]

To cast from Chrome, you must have the Google Cast Extension installed on your Chrome Browser. Learn how to install the Cast Extension here.

Some sites, such as YouTube and Netflix, are optimized for Cast, and deliver the best possible experience. We are working with more sites to enable them to optimize for Cast. For other sites, it is possible to cast a tab to get that content on your Chromecast.

On sites that are optimized for Cast, there are numerous benefits to using controls provided by the site instead of just casting the tab for that site. These include:

Higher quality: Cast-optimized sites can serve high quality content that is best for viewing on TV. This will often means you'll get a full 1080p high definition picture; for some content you may also get 5.1 surround sound (if supported by your TV or receiver). When Casting a tab, you are limited to a maximum of 720p (if supported by your computer).

Battery life and computer load: Cast-optimizes sites play directly on Chromecast, and put no load on your computer. Casting a tab requires a lot of your computers power, which is why it's not supported on all computers.
,
Plays independently: When you play from Cast-optimized sites, you can shut down your computer or close the lid. With tab projection, you need to keep your computer on throughout the cast.
Cast optimized sites will generally try to automatically switch from casting a tab to an optimized mode of operation if you are already casting a tab when you visit the site.

Casting a tab is still very useful for sites that aren't optimized, but whenever you see the Cast icon in the video player of a site, that should be your first choice

Once you're set up to Use Chromecast with Chrome, casting a tab is just a click away! To start casting a tab of your Chrome Browser:

Make sure you are on the tab you want to project to your TV.
Press the Cast button in the Chrome toolbar (top right hand area) of your browser.
A list of available Chromecast devices will appear on your TV. Pick any device to cast the current tab to this device.
After a very brief load time, the current tab should appear on your TV!
You will see the Cast icon change color to indicate that it is active, and you'll see a glow around the icon for the tab that is being shown.

If your Chromecast is currently in use - for example, it might already be playing a YouTube video - when you open the menu or select the device, you will see a short description of what Chromecast is doing, possibly with some controls (pause, mute, etc) for that activity. Click the 'Cast this Tab' button if you wish to terminate the current activity, and cast the current tab instead. This helps to ensure that you don't accidentally pick the wrong device and interrupt another household member!

The significant majority of web content can be cast. However, sites that use plug-ins such as as Silverlight or Quicktime are not supported, and may result in a lack of picture or sound.

During tab casting, video and images for the tab being cast will be shown on your computer and on your TV. However, sound from the selected tab will only play on your TV. Sounds for other tabs and applications will continue to play on your computer. You may switch to other tabs and/or applications while casting; you can even do this in full-screen mode using the Alt-Tab (Mac: Command-Tab) keyboard shortcut.

While casting, you can click the Cast icon again to take any of the following actions:

Click on the status area that shows what is being cast to return to the tab that you started casting from.
Mute what's playing on your TV using the mute button. This is distinct from your TV's mute function, so you need to unmute from Chrome.
Click on the "Stop" button to stop casting.
You may also stop casting by closing the tab.

aclawson wrote:You can stream any tab within the Chrome browser to the Chromecast -

[url]device.https://support.google.com/chromecast/a ... ic=3210038[/url]

To cast from Chrome, you must have the Google Cast Extension installed on your Chrome Browser. Learn how to install the Cast Extension here.

Yes, I understand all that. But several of the early reviews I read said that this generalized method of repeat-casting any Chrome browser content via WiFi (still officially a beta feature) doesn't work very well. Reportedly there is pixelization and stuttering. The services that can stream directly from content servers (Netflix, YouTube, others TBD) don't have that problem. These services reportedly stream smoothly.

I have no personal experience yet, but expect to test a unit soon.

According to this new review in Engadget, there is another factor besides bandwidth that seriously affects the quality of general video mirrored from a source device's Chrome browser to display on the Chromecast device: That is the processor specs of the originating computer. In this test, a newer faster laptop echoed its Chrome tab display decently to the Chromecast at 720p. But older, slower computers didn't work well.

EDIT: See also Google's published hardware requirements for computers hosting Chrome for mirrored streaming.

That implies that in addition to the $35 Chromecast device and a good WiFi connection, the user also would need a fairly good laptop to stream general browser content. This would be another downside to trying to use Chromecast for meetinghouse viewing. Note that these disadvantages do not obtain for content using the direct programmed link to the server application.

I've now had a chance to play with a new Chromecast, and my experience is consistent with the reviews I have read:

Streaming video directly from YouTube, including Mormon Channel content, works very smoothly on my home WiFi. Both my Windows laptop running Chrome and my Galaxy S3 Android's YouTube app handily control the near-perfect YouTube streaming direct from the YouTube server to my Chromecast. (Testing Tabernacle Choir performances are usually a good benchmark.) I also can use the Mormon Channel app on the Android to select videos, then choose the YouTube app for the display, then choose the Chromecast as its target -- a lot of steps, but the sequence does cause the selected video to stream cleanly on the HDTV.

But streaming general content just using the "Cast" functionality within the Windows Chrome browser is very laggy -- video lags audio by 10 seconds or more. Even browsing to non-video websites exhibits lag. The mirrored video on the Chromecast runs between 5 and 20 seconds behind that on my laptop screen when its display changes, apparently depending on complexity. I gather that the specs of my 2-1/2 year old Dell Latitude laptop are at least partially to blame. It has a first-generation I5 CPU, but Google's minimum requirements for high quality video casting from the browser call for a second-generation I5 or better. That is the Intel generation that first incorporated an integrated GPU. My older computer without the onboard graphics processor just can't handle all that video transcoding fast enough. Perhaps, as Google suggests, the latest and greatest PC hardware wouldn't have this problem.

How about the security aspect? Assuming anyone is still looking at this for use in a church, how does one restrict control to the teachers and not the students?

russellhltn wrote:How about the security aspect? Assuming anyone is still looking at this for use in a church, how does one restrict control to the teachers and not the students?

Well, that is yet another issue. The only authentication seems to be at the WiFi level. Apparently any device authenticated and connected to the WiFi network -- which as we know is a lot of folks -- can command any Chromecast that is connected.

Gad. Is there even an ID? What happens if you have two Chromecast devices on the same network?

russellhltn wrote:Gad. Is there even an ID? What happens if you have two Chromecast devices on the same network?

Yes, each Chromecast has a name defined at setup. At runtime, a user of any controlling device (PC, smartphone, etc.) can pick any Chromecast that is discovered to be running and connected on its WiFi. You can start a "cast' from one controlling device, then pause or stop it from another. I believe the only way to isolate devices is to put them on different WiFi networks.

RossEvans wrote:But streaming general content just using the "Cast" functionality within the Windows Chrome browser is very laggy -- video lags audio by 10 seconds or more. Even browsing to non-video websites exhibits lag. The mirrored video on the Chromecast runs between 5 and 20 seconds behind that on my laptop screen when its display changes, apparently depending on complexity. I gather that the specs of my 2-1/2 year old Dell Latitude laptop are at least partially to blame. It has a first-generation I5 CPU, but Google's minimum requirements for high quality video casting from the browser call for a second-generation I5 or better. That is the Intel generation that first incorporated an integrated GPU. My older computer without the onboard graphics processor just can't handle all that video transcoding fast enough. Perhaps, as Google suggests, the latest and greatest PC hardware wouldn't have this problem.

Too bad it requires such high-end hardware. Because this sounded like a good place to "retire" one's old phone.

russellhltn wrote: Too bad it requires such high-end hardware. Because this sounded like a good place to "retire" one's old phone.

A smartphone can be used to control the Chromecast as it connects directly to supported servers such as YouTube, Netflix, etc., basically like a remote. But no smartphone running the Chrome browser can do an ad hoc "cast" from its browser to the device. Right now, only PCs, Macs and Chromebooks can do that at all. And only high-end models can do it well, according to Google's own specs.

Still, the Chromecast is an interesting consumer device, and at this price point will probably get a large installed base with more supported server-side content providers. I hope the church will support it with appropriate development for home use. It's just not very suitable for general meetinghouse use, I think.

russellhltn wrote:How about the security aspect? Assuming anyone is still looking at this for use in a church, how does one restrict control to the teachers and not the students?

I found this information in a review:

Google really needs to add basic playback controls like play, pause, and mute to the Chromecast setup app. Google also desperately needs to add in some basic password controls; right now anyone walking by can grab control of your Chromecast and send video to it. That makes it super easy to use, but also opens up a world of elaborate trolling.
<Bold added for emphasis.>

To me that means until Google upgrades the device with some access controls it would be difficult to maintain control in any environment let alone in a church classroom.

Thank you (and all here) for sharing your insights and findings related to Chromecast. Keep it coming! We will be testing chromecasts current capabilities as well as keeping our eyes on this emerging technology to see how it might relate to needs in meetinghouse digital presentation.

We've fought for years to get live conference broadcasts on our tv at home and this seems like a perfect solution, particularly if the Google Cast features were added to the lds.org video players, enabling users to push the video to start on the TV. No more need for cables, adapters or laptops dedicated to the broadcast alone.

I'd love to see this developed further. Especially for the application of watching videos from LDS.org (not just conference). A lot of the longer videos are not on YouTube, which essentially then requires you to hook up a laptop to watch.

davjared wrote:We've fought for years to get live conference broadcasts on our tv at home ...

Have you looked into the Mormon Channel on the Roku? The Mormon Channel streams Conference live in five languages. A simple set-top-box that connects to the Internet and to your TV.

richielloydbrown wrote:..... as well as keeping our eyes on this emerging technology to see how it might relate to needs in meetinghouse digital presentation.

There are devices like Chromecast that connect HDMI TV to Internet througt wifi (or Ethernet).
This means that you can see anything from the Net (LAN and/or WAN).
They are Android based (ARM CPU) devices with a browser in it. Some of them include an optical mouse too.
One for all: stick android hdmi from Metronic.

I would love to see the Chromecast at least within the home. It seems (from reading posts here and elsewhere) it is not a good solution when multiple people on are the same wifi network (aka, at church perhaps).

However, within the home (under wifi password protection, and the limited number of those that have that password) it would be excellent to optimize the lds.org website (especially the Move Player that runs general conference) for a Chromecasting experience to the TV. Shooting conference up from an iPod or a Tablet would be super sweet.

The Mormon Channel app on Android and iOS would gain the ability to stream audio from the radio stations, but video streams can already be passed off to the YouTube app, which will then give you the option of playing it on the Chromecast. It would be nice to have the video support integrated directly into the Mormon Channel app, but it's less pressing.

Being able to put a hymn up on a larger screen with the LDS Music app might be nice for FHE.

Using Gospel Library to play audio and scroll along automatically is one possibility for family scripture study, as well.

portersb wrote:Being able to put a hymn up on a larger screen with the LDS Music app might be nice for FHE.

LDS Music 1.5 will support this via AirPlay. It has already been submitted to the app store and should be released this week...

I've had a Chromecast for a while now and it works awesome for every app I've used it with when it came out I thought it would be awesome for it to work with the Mormon Channel and Gospel Library. Hopefully you guys can get that implemented I think a lot of people would use it. The Chromecast is also a lot cheaper than other devices in the same market so even people with lower income could afford one. I added this to the Wish List on the Wiki hopefully that's ok. Anyways keep up the amazing work.

Just wanted to post some updated information about this. Google has released the API / SDK publically now and it is available for anyone to use. https://developers.google.com/cast/

While it's main focus is to still 'point' the chromecast to a server and pull down it's contents directly, there are many apps which are currently able to stream local content from your device, for instance a local video on my nexus 4, directly to the chromecast. This does appear to be available functionality through the SDK.

I would love to see this functionality added for my home. I currently own 2 of these devices with plans for a 3rd. With the releases of the SDK, is functionality is increasing at a very rapid rate and is quickly approaching a level where in the next few months it will rival device such as the roku in its abilities for half, or less, the cost.

(For those looking for a way to stream those longer videos available on LDS.org that aren't available on YouTube, you can download the video to your device and stream it to your chromecast using an Android app called AllCast, EzCast, or several others which you can find it in the Google Play store. There are also apps in the iTunes app store as well for iOS users.)

I've had a Chromecast since launch and really hope Mormon Channel and Gospel Library get updated to support send media to it. It should be pretty simple to do and I know a lot of petiole would benefit from it anyways keep up the great work guys.

The current Android Gospel Library beta has support for Chromecast. I don't have a Chromecast device, so I can't test it, though.

I've watched an entire movie with it ( A treasure in heaven John Tanner) and it works awesome! My next request however is enabling it to work on the audio only scripture reading so we can send the audio to the TV not just videos. But I'm very happy with being able to watch all the church videos on the Chromecast now and how that the Mormon Channel app also gets support added so we can watch all the live streams and content on their on our TV using out Chromecast.

I'm a seminary teacher and tried to use my Chromecast at the ward building this morning (look ma, no wires!) But my device couldn't see the Chromecast.
1. Could there be firewall issues, meaning that Chromecast uses a different TCP port that is not opened on the church's LAN?
2. Does anyone have suggestions on where on the net I could connect with other people who may have gotten this to work?
3. Anybody know the best way to get in touch with whomever administers the building's LAN?
Tia
Mike A

Have you talked with your STS? Do you know if he has upgraded your firewall yet to the new configuration?

I don't know what an STS is. And do u anticipate that the new configuration would be more Chromecast friendly or less?

mikeamelang wrote:I don't know what an STS is.

STS = Stake Technology Specialist. The STS is an assistant stake clerk with responsibility for most of the technology issues in buildings in the stake. If your stake hasn't called an STS, then the stake clerk has those responsibilities.

mikeamelang wrote:I'm a seminary teacher and tried to use my Chromecast at the ward building this morning (look ma, no wires!) But my device couldn't see the Chromecast.
1. Could there be firewall issues, meaning that Chromecast uses a different TCP port that is not opened on the church's LAN?
2. Does anyone have suggestions on where on the net I could connect with other people who may have gotten this to work?
3. Anybody know the best way to get in touch with whomever administers the building's LAN?
Tia
Mike A

Sorry, but it's not going to work. You can read the technical reason's why in the thread Chromecast not connecting to the internet.

mikerowaved wrote:

mikeamelang wrote:I'm a seminary teacher and tried to use my Chromecast at the ward building this morning (look ma, no wires!) But my device couldn't see the Chromecast.
1. Could there be firewall issues, meaning that Chromecast uses a different TCP port that is not opened on the church's LAN?
2. Does anyone have suggestions on where on the net I could connect with other people who may have gotten this to work?
3. Anybody know the best way to get in touch with whomever administers the building's LAN?
Tia
Mike A

Sorry, but it's not going to work. You can read the technical reason's why in the thread Chromecast not connecting to the internet.

Ah, thanks for pointing me to that thread.

I am not sure if this is the best place to post this question, but does anyone know if the Mormon Channel iOS (iphone) app will be getting Chromecast support soon? It would be a very helpful feature to those of us who have an iOS phone instead of Android.

My understanding is that you would need to install Google Cast from the App Store to stream from your iOS device to a Chromecast.

William Woodford

Wouldn't the use of a Miracast device be better because it can display content from the local device that does not need to be streamed live? This also works great from a Windows PC as well as Android devices. It doesn't work with iOS devices.