Mystery device, Chromecast, appears in Google Play support
A link for something called Chromecast has been showing up sporadically today in the “About Devices†page of the “Google Play†support section on Google. We’re not sure whether or not it’s going to be an official moniker for a device or service, but it certainly has a catchy name.
Speculation has swung from it being the name of a new generation of AppleTV-like set-top boxes to it being a simple HDMI/Wi-Fi/content gateway adapter that would allow for cheap AirPlay-like connectivity between Google devices and HDTVs. It might also instead be a hybrid device-and-service thing, mashing up the likes of YouTube with other content providers like Netflix and Hulu to create a way for any HDTV to view any Web video content anytime – provided it somehow goes through a Google Play-connected device first.
But that’s all conjecture; we have no way of knowing, as the link has since disappeared. It wasn’t available everywhere and to everyone (this writer was able to snag the above screengrab using a proxy server). When it was live it went to a “page not found†error.
A mystery product showing up on a support site a mere 24 hours before an announcement event – like the one Google has planned for tomorrow – means that we likely won’t have to wait long to find out exactly what Chromecast is. The idea of a “Chrome dongle†has been floating around the Androidosphere for awhile, and it could be that simple.
In related news, this writer was able to type the word “Androidosphere†without laughing out loud and will be changing his preferred DJ name to “Chrome Dongleâ€.
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Article source: http://www.forbes.com/sites/matthickey/2013/07/24/google-leaks-mystery-device-called-chromecast-but-what-the-heck-is-a-chromecast/