Google Ends Chromecast Netflix Promotion After 1 Day Due To Overwhelming Demand. Well, that escalated quickly. On Thursday, Google told the Los Angeles Times that it would be ending a promotion for three free months of Netflix that a customer received when he or she bought Chromecast, Google's new streaming-video stick. "Due to overwhelming demand for Chromecast devices since launch, the 3-month Netflix promotion is no longer available," Google said in a statement. Three month of Netflix costs about $24. The cancellation comes only a day after the $35 TV dongle was announced by Google. The device streams TV shows, movies and music from smartphones, tablets and PCs. The low price point undercuts established competitors in the market for set-top boxes, which includes Apple TV and the Roku 3, both of which retail for $99.
The device -- which was sold out on both Best Buy's website and Amazon on Thursday morning -- is available for order at Google Play and will be in Best Buy physical locations by Sunday. Earlier on HuffPost: Google ends Chromecast-Netflix promotion 'due to overwhelming demand' Citing overwhelming demand, Google on Thursday said it has ended a Netflix promotion tied to its new Chromecast TV dongle.
The promotion gave users, new and existing, three free months of Netflix's video streaming service, valued at about $24, when they bought Chromecast, a $35 gadget that was announced Wednesday. Chromecast is a device that lets users send video and audio content from their smartphones, tablets and laptops to their TVs. The device is plugged into the TV through an HDMI port and pulls content from the cloud by connecting to Wi-Fi. PHOTOS: Six things rich tech execs splurge on "Due to overwhelming demand for Chromecast devices since launch, the 3-month Netflix promotion (which was available in limited quantities) is no longer available," Google told The Times in a statement.
Partly because of the Netflix promotion, Chromecast has been selling fast. Both Amazon.com and BestBuy.com sold out of the device by Thursday morning (BestBuy.com is selling the device again). Chromecast setup and first impressions. It only takes a few simple steps and you'll be up and running with Chromecast and your favorite content Google caught more than a few people off guard Wednesday when it revealed Chromecast, a Chrome-powered HDMI dongle designed to bring the best content from any device to your TV. It doesn't seem that a single person was pessimistic about the idea though, as just a few demos of what Chromecast was capable of had the whole audience ecstatic about the idea.
Delivering precisely what was promised by the Nexus Q and more, at just one-tenth the price, the Chromecast has some serious potential behind it. We've got our hands on one, and having gone through the process of setting up and using the device we're downright giddy with excitement about this thing. So what is it like to set up and use a Chromecast connected to your TV, controlled by your Android device? Setting up the Chromecast Playing content on your TV So simple, so powerful. From TVs to tablets: Everything you love, across all your screens. When I was growing up, my family had a single screen we huddled around every day: the television set in the living room.
Nowadays, we “huddle” around multiple screens—laptops, smartphones and tablets—using them almost interchangeably as we navigate through our day. In a world of ubiquitous computing, life would be a lot simpler if we didn’t have to learn new behaviors and interfaces each time we switched screens—if we could have one consistent, intuitive experience no matter where we are or what we’re doing. Today, with the launch of Chromecast and the new Nexus 7 tablet, it’s even more effortless to enjoy content you care about—whether it’s video, music, movies, games—wherever you are, across your devices.
Introducing Chromecast To help make it easy to bring your favorite online entertainment to the biggest screen in your house—the TV—we’re introducing Chromecast. Android 4.3—a sweeter Jelly Bean Nexus 7 is the first device to ship with Android 4.3, the newest version of Android. Chromecast: For Bigger Fun. Google's new Chromecast dongle plays hard to get. Initial orders of Google's brand new Chromecast wireless video-streaming dongle are now gone, though some users are still having luck getting one. The $35 dongle, which plugs into the HDMI port of televisions and lets users stream content from multiple device platforms , is now listed as "coming soon" with no option to order it from Google's online store.
Shortly after sales went up, it was listed to ship between August 2 and August 7, down from the 1-2 days for initial orders. The device's availability has fluctuated throughout the early hours it was on sale. It was listed as available for some users who were logged in with their Google account, though appeared as unable to be purchased to others. The Chromecast was one of two pieces of hardware announced by Google on Wednesday. Google has a history of selling out some of its hardware, though it's typically been phones and tablets, which carry a higher price tag. Google's Play Store isn't the only place to pick up the Chromecast stick. Google Play: Chromecast. Chromecast is no AirPlay killer, but it does pose questions for smart TVs | Technology. Whenever I think about "smart" TVs, I'm reminded of a quote from Zeebox's Anthony Rose made during an interview with GigaOm in April 2012.
"In the future, your TV will be a beautiful but dumb hi-res panel that will play the content it is told to by your smartphone or tablet," said Rose, in response to a question about the significance of internet-connected televisions and their built-in app stores. According to Ofcom's 2012 Communications Market Report, 15% of UK consumers owned smart TVs at the end of last year, although separate research from Analysys Mason suggests that less than half of these people are likely to have actually connected their TVs to the internet.
One of several problems with smart TVs is their reliance on remote controls: an often-clunky experience at a time when touchscreen interfaces on smartphones and tablets have been getting slicker and more user-friendly at a rapid pace. Chromecast. Google Launches The $35 Chromecast Streaming Device To Bring Chrome To The Living Room. Meet the Chromecast. As the name suggests, it’s powered by Chrome and is designed to bring Google’s browser/OS to the biggest screen in the house. The Chromecast is designed first to be a streaming device. It’s supposed to be the easiest way to get YouTube and Google Play and Netflix and Pandora and photos on HDTVs. Think Apple TV, but rather Google TV with another name (because, well, Google TV is already a thing). The Chromecast is the first expansion of the Chrome operating system out of traditional forms of computing. Up until now, Chrome OS was a desktop operating system, designed for use on a laptop or monitor.
Google retooled it for the living room and tapped mobile operating systems to provide the content. The Chromecast uses an AirPlay-type system to provide content to the device. Chromecast is essentially Google’s answer to AirPlay. Best yet, any device can be the controller. Desktops connected to the same network can also act as a controller. Chromecast Is Google's Answer £25 Getting Web Video on Your TV. Google Chromecast Annoys TV Executives. You'd Be Crazy Not to Buy Google Chromecast. Chromecast Could Be The Beginning Of Google's Domination Of TV Delivery.