Android Mini PC...

David333

With the Google Chromecast having just been announced in the States, it seems that there are a few comments online saying that Android Mini PCs do the same job, only better.

It appears that they are tiny (pen drive sized) Android computers that you plug into your monitor's HDMI slot. You can then play local media (maybe from an external USB drive), youtube, BBC iplayer, netflix, etc. This looks fantastic, and, at a price around £50, a fun toy!

Does anybody have one? Any recommendations if I decide to buy one in the future?

S0litaire

Chromecast is not exactly the same as the USB computers. It's more like a USB stick that turns any HDMI TV into an "Android Smart TV"

So it's more like "Apple TV", it will stream things from your pc or take over a web stream you start on your phone or tablet so you can do something else with the handheld device (example : if you have more than 1 chromecast in your house, what ever you are playing can follow you between rooms)

personally I'm waiting for Google to release it in the UK and I'll be getting one ASAP ^_^

David333

I agree with regard to the Chromecast, and if it were being released today around the £35 mark, I would be getting one too!

However, I have lots of local media and it seems that Android Mini PCs are able to play this whereas the Chromecast won't be able to. Seems like a good way to hook my external drive up to a monitor, turning that into a smart TV, without having to go through my laptop...