Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) has finally unveiled the first device to support its Android TV platform, the puck-shaped Nexus Player gaming and streaming device.
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Nexus Player.(Image source: Google) |
With hardware company Asus lending an assist on the manufacturing side, the Nexus Player is set to roll out Oct. 17 with a suggested retail price of $99.99. The device will controlled by voice and graphical user interface, but an optional gaming controller can be had for $39.99. The box is, of course, made to also interact with Android-based mobile devices.
Android TV is the follow-up to the unsuccessful Google TV platform. And with the release of the Nexus Player, Google is officially entering a market crowded with streaming device makers, Roku, Apple and Amazon being the most dominant.
Release of the device is also relevant to pay-TV operators at a time during which major program suppliers such as HBO are migrating to over-the-top services.
Despite the struggles endured by Google TV, Google managed to secure some level of beachhead in the streaming market with the low-cost Chromecast dongle, which was released last year. And the Nexus Player comes "cast" ready, with users of Android and iOS devices able to port over video content to the player the same way they do on Chromecast.
The 4.7-inch-diameter Nexus TV includes 8GB of internal storage and is able to stream over 802.11 ac Wi-Fi.
For more:
- read this story from The Verge
- read this Mashable story
Related links:
Rumor mill: Google to introduce Android TV platform at I/O developer conference
PlayStation TV, Android TV crowd into streaming-device market
Yahoo, Google reportedly plotting more 'conventional' TV plays