tweakersThose who like to stream series or films on television, but cannotplay the associated apps directly on their device, will benefit from anexternal media player. Wout Funnekotter, editor-in-chief at technology siteTweakers, subjected the two main entry-level models to a comparison test. “Thechoice for the ordinary user is quite logical.”
By Thomas Rosseel, in collaboration with Tweakers 27-12-22, 13:01
Latest update: 15:09 Source: Tweakers.be
“In the entry-level models, two come to the fore: the Chromecast with GoogleTV and the Amazon Fire TV Stick. At Tweakers we compared the 4K versions witheach other,” says Funnekotter. “These are media players, the functionality ofwhich is similar to what is built-in as apps in modern smart TVs.”
Who is it interesting for?
“First of all, for those who have a somewhat older television that does nothave apps and smart functions. You plug the media player into your HDMI port,connect it to WiFi and make your old TV smarter. These devices are also veryhandy for those who also like to watch TV while traveling. They are smalldevices that you can easily take with you and simply plug into the TV in yourhotel room, provided you have WiFi.
Beware: what you see nowadays – unfortunately – is that the software supportfor smart televisions often does not last very long. You may no longer be ableto install certain apps after about two years.”
Are they equally nice?
“The first conclusion of our test is that the Chromecast and the Fire TV Stickare not that different,” Wout continues. “The large, well-known streamingservices, such as Netflix, Prime Video and Disney +, are simply available onboth devices, are easy to install and are beautifully displayed on yourtelevision. There is also a remote control with both devices that works fine.
The Fire TV Stick does offer less support for local services. For example,apps such as VRT Max, Streamz and VTM GO are not available on the Fire TVStick, but are available via the Chromecast. The explanation is that Amazondoes not use the official version of Android, and therefore does not have theofficial Play Store, while Android is from Google and that is the case withthe Chromecast.”
Advertising: unavoidable
“You also notice that they both have advertising on board, even for streamingservices that you don’t even use. Amazon does that a bit flatter. There is alarge bar with sponsors in the picture.
Google is trying to do it a little smarter. You can indicate which servicesyou have a subscription to. This way you only get viewing tips from thosespecific services. That can be quite fun, because that’s how you sometimesdiscover a new series. The great thing about the Chromecast is that you cansimply turn off the ads for other streaming services that you don’t want tosee. You can ensure that you only see a simple bar with your installed apps.In terms of price, the two devices hardly differ from each other.”
Looking for an extensive(er) review and comparison of these two products?You can go here for that.
The choice of expert Wout
Wout’s conclusion is therefore quite obvious. “If you are considering such adevice, you have to ask yourself: which streaming services do I mainly use? Ifyou only watch Netflix and Disney +, you have the choice. If you use localservices, you should go for the Chromecast anyway.
For most people, I recommend just getting that Chromecast with Google TV. Youhave the least problems with that: you have the Play Store and all the supportservices. For the enthusiast, who may want to work with all kinds of softwarehimself, the Amazon Fire TV Stick can be interesting, purely because thedevice supports some extra codecs. But for an ordinary user that is notrelevant at all,” concludes the tech expert.