Google TV Streamer
$100
Save $16
- Dimensions
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6.4 x 3 x 1 inches
- Brand
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Google
- Integrations
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Google Assistant, Google Home, Alexa, Matter, Thread
- Bluetooth codecs
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Bluetooth 5.1
- Wi-Fi
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2.4GHz and 5GHz
The Google TV Streamer is the flagship streaming device for the Google TV platform, getting software features like a Google Home panel well ahead of the competition. It’s normally a touch overpriced considering it doesn’t have the strongest hardware out there, but at only $84 in this early Prime Day deal, you get a lot more bang for your buck.
- Ethernet
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Up to 1000Mbps
I was all in on the Nvidia Shield TV. I got a Pro model for the big TV in the living room and a couple of the cheaper versions for the other TVs in the house. But even with Nvidia’s legendary software support, those Shield TVs slowly started showing their age — especially as Google left the base Android TV OS to wilt on the vine while it shifted its focus to its newer Google TV OEM skin.
So when the Google TV Streamer came out late last year, I nabbed one to replace the aging Shield TV Pro attached to my living room TV. If you can get over the promoted content on the home screen, the overall experience is a clear upgrade — snappy scrolling, plenty of apps with 4K HDR support, and a smattering of useful features like the Google Home panel for quick access to my smart home.
The Google TV Streamer is finally cheap enough to buy one for your ‘other’ TVs
Honestly, jumping ship to the Google TV Streamer was a smoother experience than I was expecting — in fact, my biggest problem has been the jarring transition whenever I move between using it on the main TV and the outdated Shields attached to the TVs in my other rooms. But at $100 a pop, I wasn’t quite ready to upgrade the secondary TVs to Google’s new Chromecast replacement.
With this early Prime Day deal, the Google TV Streamer is down to one of its lowest prices ever — cheap enough that I can justify one for the bedroom and office.
Smart home enthusiasts will love it for two reasons. One is the Google Home panel, which can be accessed with a programmable button on the remote to show controls, camera feeds, and more. The other smart home selling point is the fact that it can function as a Thread border router, extending the range of your Matter network.
Of course, the usual smart TV specs are all there, with 4K resolution as well as HDR, Dolby Vision, and Dolby Atmos support. There’s even a dedicated Ethernet port to help make sure all that high-res streaming goes off without a hitch. So if you’re in the market for a new streaming box, this one is hard to beat at only $84.
