Have you ever wished your TV would turn itself on and play with your preferred show? Maybe you just came home from a long day at work, or maybe you’re just waking up and haven’t enjoyed your coffee yet, and the only task you wanna do is go back to sleep.
Our dreams of automatic televisions are part of the past because automation has been a driving factor in advancement.
Amazon and Google have been releasing Chromecast devices for a while and refreshes of the Amazon Fire TV stick now.
If you didn’t understand, the Chromecast and Fire TV stick are devices that you simply plug into your TV, and your TV becomes a Smart TV.
The best thing about devices being from Google and Amazon is that they connect with the rest of your house.
Originally these devices were supposed to simply bring wise features to the ordinary TV, but as smart speakers such as the Google Home and Amazon Echo were released and climbed in popularity, the Chromecast and Fire TV stick have adapted many smart features that make them a must-have for clever house fans.
So there is only one problem, although both of these devices are great. Which one of those devices is ideal for you?
The Wired Shopper has a breakdown of all the features, pros, and cons so that you can really get a grip on which these devices would best suit your house.
We have the deepest details for you, which you won’t find in other reviews! We’ve spent a huge bomb on hiring experts and completing the whole testing process.
Chromecast vs Firestick: Comparison
In User Interface and control, Which is better?
A fantastic UI doesn’t only layout the choices in a convenient manner; however, it also permits you to pick up where exactly you left off from the previous night.
Its Fire OS has greatly improved, and it looks much cleaner. It’s easier to use than previously. You obtain a ‘Recent’ tab to the home screen, which shows you the latest app you accessed or the Prime Video name you’re seeing.
The Chromecast does have an interface, as it’s essentially a conduit for your movie. Selection and navigation occur on your device — be it a PC computer, phone, or even tablet — and you can not do anything on your own TV screen.
Together with the Chromecast, to do even basic things such as switching to a different movie or skipping ahead in an episode, you need to find a tablet or your phone computer.
Most TVs have HDMI-CEC, so you can pause the video on your TV remote. It’s possible to use Google Home to control the Chromecast via voice controls, but it also costs much more than the Chromecast itself.
It’s not even officially available in India yet. The Fire TV Stick has an amazing Bluetooth remote, which is just one of its best characteristics.
You also get one for search buttons for playback and a control pad for navigation. Amazon comes with the Fire TV remote app for iOS/Android, which is highly useful to have as typing on a TV using a remote is obviously a nightmare situation. Together with the program, you can also do the functions the remote is capable of all.
But that’s really about it. Considering that the Chromecast is dependent upon your gadget, for the most part, the Google Home app lists compatible media apps then suggests other such programs that you don’t have. And in the Devices segment of the app, you quit casting or can pause playback.
Winner: Amazon Fire TV Stick
Search
The Fire TV Stick includes a committed search tab, where you can type in what you’re looking for. Alternatively, you say your query and may hold the voice button on the remote down.
Sadly, Amazon’s voice helper Alexa is not available in India yet, so the included remote won’t do any voice orders.
Besides that, it also lacks worldwide search – you can just use it for hunting for any Prime Video name, say, for example, an app, like Hotstar by talking.
Though Chromecast has a company Google Home program for Android and iOS, its catalog indexing doesn’t work outside YouTube and Netflix.
Even with those, it demonstrates you half a dozen names – there is no search option. It comes down to searching for what you want to watch and launching programs that are different on your smartphone.
With the limitations and boundations on the Fire TV in our nation, your phone — be it Android or iOS — may wind up becoming smarter, based on what you’re seeking to do.
Even though the Fire TV Stick can look up programs, it will not launch them, something both Google Currently and Siri support.
If you are looking for items, doing this on your phone using the Chromecast is likely to be quicker than using the Fire TV.
Winner: Neither
In performance and quality, which is better Chromecast or Firestick?
Regrading the video output signal, both the Fire TV Stick and Chromecast can output 1080p. There’s also support for H.265 documents (HEVC) as a result of this quad-core chip inside so that your Prime Video titles will load faster and consume less bandwidth.
And because Amazon’s offering also has internal memory (unlike Google’s), it can pre-fetch video documents to reduce wait times.
On the flip side, phone programs constantly tend to get updated and be optimized than their Android TV counterparts.
This means you’ll get attributes that are newer with the Chromecast and experience bugs or crashes.
Both sticks have support for dual-band WiFi, so there are no issues with network speed or congestion.
Besides that, the Fire TV Stick possesses Bluetooth, which permits you to set up wireless headphones for sound. That’s a wonderful improvement, especially if you watch TV while your partner is sleeping.
Apps and services
Due to the setup base for Android, Chromecast appreciates a support base that is wider, together with Google.
By comparison, Amazon said it’d offer solutions for the Fire TV Stick, games, and 3,000 apps. Both provide access to the highly popular services — Voot, Sony Liv, Airtel Movies, Netflix, Hotstar, Eros Today, and many more. You can also know the top 10 apps available on fire TV Stick!
But with Google and Amazon on the warpath, their offerings are absent on each other’s platform. Certainly, you won’t get Chromecast playing Prime Video for you, and Play Music is absent on the Fire TV Stick. YouTube works by relying on the TV-optimised edition of the website.
The other benefit of the Fire TV Stick is that you don’t need to have any of the apps always on your smartphone.
Without them, you won’t be able to cast a single thing to the Chromecast. In case you’re out of space on your mobile phone, that is even more frustrating.
Winner: Chromecast
Additional features
The Fire TV Stick also includes support for games in addition to streaming media. The Amazon App Store for India lacks the Majority of the big names — Alto’s Adventure and Crossy Road — however. There are a few in Flappy Birds Family, also Lego Star Wars: The New Yoda Chronicles.
Unfortunately, Amazon is not selling the Fire TV Gaming Controller in India, which makes for a poor experience with the remote. Beyond this, you receive access to many different programs, be it to get productivity, lifestyle, information, and much more.
Together with the Chromecast, you can always mirror your telephone screen to the TV since there’s typically a bit of lag, frame drops, and the like; however, playing games will not be feasible. Both have mirroring support to your own Android devices.
While it’s native together with all the Chromecast, you may have to put in an app to the Fire TV Stick along with your mobile phone.
There are numerous options that you will see in the Amazon App Store. So, Amazon Fire TV Stick dominates here.
Winner: Amazon Fire TV Stick
Chromecast & Firestick Price in India
Google’s 2nd-gen Chromecast sells for Rs. 3,300 on Amazon, but you need to have the ability to receive one for marginally lesser where there’s a sale. Amazon’s Fire TV Stick is a bit more costly at almost Rs. 4000.
You should factor in that Amazon provides you more for your money, with a Bluetooth remote and internal storage.
In case you haven’t subscribed to Prime. Still, you can get Amazon Pay cashback to get Rs. 499 using the Fire TV Stick. For what it’s worth, it’ll probably see a price drop during Amazon’s’Great India’ sale this year.
Winner: Chromecast
CHROMECAST
FIRESTICK
Easy Setup
Alexa Remote
Connect To The Google Home App
Easy Setup
View Your Camera On The TV With Your Voice
With Your Voice, View Your Camera On Your TV
Cast Tabs From Your Laptop/Desktop
Play Content From Your Smartphone
Control With Your Voice
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Control Seamlessly With Your Smartphone
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CHROMECAST
FIRESTICK
No Optional Remote
Clunky UI
Connects To TV With An Attached Cord
Restricted Ecosystem
Big In Size
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Chromecast Review – Deeper Details of Chromecast
In our Chromecast vs. Firestick, before reaching a conclusion, we need to go into deeper details of both devices.
The Chromecast was designed to be controlled by your smartphone via a feature called casting. Casting requires you to open the app that you want to perform on your TV, like Pandora or Hulu, and tap the casting icon that’s normally on the top right of the screen.
From that point, you just select your Chromecast, and you are in business. Chromecast ensures casting from numerous of your favorite programs, including Netflix, Pandora, Hulu, and more.
Since Google has a mind for simplicity, the Chromecast does lots of things well and quite easily. It requires no distance other than the smartphone, which you already have with you and fits behind televisions.
Not only can you utilize your smartphone, but also, the Chromecast permits you to communicate with your Chromecast.
It does this through Google Home, Google Home Minior Google Home Max. There is a lot of practical voice features that make the Chromecast a pleasure for you, and you might forget you ever needed a remote for your TV to start out with.
Easy Setup
For many households, setting up gadgets and having a smart home can be a dreadful experience.
As there are many distinct businesses that sell merchandise for smart houses, from Philips Hue into August, the installation could vary, and you are not always certain how it is likely to go. The Google Chromecast needs roughly zero maintenance and is rather simple to get going.
Just plug in the Chromecast, and it’ll ask you to open and download the Google Home program, in addition to exhibiting a code to utilize that will help you confirm that you’re currently linking to the device.
As soon as you’ve got the device set up, it is possible to select which area it belongs to and provide it a name so you can control it with your own Google Home and start performing voice orders.
Connects To the Google Home app
A considerable thing about the Chromecast is it is installed using the Google Home program. This usually means that it transforms into your smart home and does not need space or apps on your device.
Set us up a breeze, and as soon as you put it up can be controlled with any voice or smartphone exactly enjoy the Google Home may be managed by anyone.
View Your Camera On The TV With Your Voice
Are you safety concerned? Chromecast and Google Home have the best answer. Using a Chromecast, Google Home, along with a camera like Arlo, you are able to view your camera onto your TV just by asking Google to display the camera.
This may be performed, so whether you are lying down in bed or watching TV in the living area or, you’ll be able to check on what’s currently happening at your door or outside.
Cast Tabs From Your Laptop/Desktop
Tab casting, yet another feature for the Chromecast, is a great feature that essentially allows you to use your TV as a monitor for desktop or your laptop computer.
Up are 3 dots that open Chrome’s preferences. Click throw from that display, and you’ll have the ability to cast your browser into the TV.
This feature is flexible in that it can be used by you for play or for work. You read posts, can stream media from your browser, and use it.
Control With Your Voice
The Chromecast can be used with Google Home, as stated before. This pairing extends the performance in a couple of ways of the Chromecast.
If you’ve got an HDMI CEC television, you’re ready to command the TV itself along with your Google Home.
You can turn the television off and on and change the volume, which means that you can tell your Google Home to perform various things, and it will still turn on and play with the series when your TV is off. From there, if it becomes too loud, you can tell Google to turn down the volume, and it will do that!
Control Seamlessly With Your Smartphone
The very best thing, in my view, about the Chromecast is the fact that you can use your smartphone to flow almost any networking program as simple to your TV as you would play with it.
That’s not all that your mobile can do. The volume can be controlled by you. You can play, fast forward, pause, and rewind along with your own Android or iOS device.
The encounter is so perfect that even when streaming with your mobile device, you can command the display via your Chromecast device. That means that you are able to be casting Netflix out of your phone and tell Google Home to pause the show.
So now, you may think, “wow, it’s the best device for the smart house.” If you are the average consumer that’s searching for a house solution, Google Home and Chromecast are all options. For some folks, there might be a few additional facts.
No Optional Remote
It’s not gonna be perfect for everybody, although the Chromecast is a device that is good all around.
The Chromecast also serves as a television source for many people, and a learning curve might be presented by this device if you are not tech-savvy or great with a smartphone.
When compared with the devices included, there is no transition from using a remote to control your cable service to controlling your favorite programs like Netflix and Hulu. Since more and more people having a remote and switch to apps, we would love to see an optional remote.
Connects To TV With An Attached Cord
It has built-in cables if there’s a thing that we hate in the device. They aren’t replaceable if something happens to an end, and if the cable dies, the devices die with it.
We’ve avoided lots of things that we buy, just as they have flimsy-looking cables that are built into the main device. Batteries are a prime example. The cord is durable, and your Chromecast isn’t going to be banging around attached to a TV.
Big In Size
The Chromecast, while small in comparison to most electronics, is pretty large in contrast to criteria that are “goes-behind-your-TV.”
Additionally, it can be a tight fit depending upon your HDMI situation. Added into the Chromecast’s size, you might need to use the micro USB charger to power it using a free port or either AC on your TV.
- Our trust is with Amazon
Firestick Review – Deeper Details of FireStick
So, let’s get deeper with the second device in this article. The Amazon Fire TV stick is identical to the Chromecast in that you plug it into the HDMI jack on the rear of your TV, and it makes a TV smart.
Similar to Chromecast, you are also connected by the Firestick to the rest of your house for input from the included remote or added voice functionality.
The remote, known as the Alexa voice distance, serves as both a standard remote for switching back and forth via programs and is capable of voice input like an Amazon Echo.
The Amazon Firestick is a portal to wise home characteristics as well as the sole competitor into the Google Chromecast in that it delivers both functionalities as an entertainment as well as a media device.
From its straightforward setup, the voice remote comes with the ability to view all your security cameras. Certainly, there’s much to love with the Firestick, and that’s why it’s popular.
Alexa Remote
As time advances and the way we watch TV, in addition to the quality of the TVs, we observe changes much one thing has remained the same.
Remotes have been the approach since they have been introduced. Sure the way that remotes operate has changed over time. Some remotes have a billion buttons. Some have 2 buttons, like the Apple TV remote or the Alexa remote.
Logitech has recently brought us the Harmony remote, which includes a touchscreen and much more.
Having a remote to control your Firestick usually means that there is less of a learning curve for people that are technologically challenged.
The oldies in your home or other folks who aren’t into the whole TV deal won’t have extra stuff they have to learn, and everything is much easier for those who might not possess smartphones.
The Alexa distant has the Alexa voice helper built-in, which means you can request her to open play shows, apps, and more.
Easy Setup
Setup on the Amazon Firestick is straightforward. You will want to insert the batteries in the Alexa remote as the setup occurs on the TV.
You’ll be ready to go after a few prompts to connect to your WiFi and log in to your Amazon account. You’ll be introduced to the UI or Firestick, and nothing more, you’re ready to stream.
With Your Voice, View Your Camera On Your TV
The Firestick is connected to your smart home, meaning that it has a few tricks up its sleeve, such as the capability to display your safety camera on your TV.
Using the Echo device or the distant remote, you have the ability to request Alexa to bring up your camera.
Your camera will then exhibit whatever it is considering onto your screen. This will permit you to discover out what’s going on, whether you’re in the living area or any other area having a Firestick.
Play Content From Your Smartphone
Your smartphone exclusively controls Chromecast. Therefore it’s reasonable that the procedure is intuitive.
The Firestick additionally supports streaming through a smartphone, even though in a somewhat awkward way. Throughout your smartphone, you are able to mirror your screen to your TV.
While it’s certainly not as rich or intuitive as Chromecast is with tab calling and loading person programs while still enabling you to do anything you need in your smartphone, the Firestick’s mirroring feature is undoubtedly a sweet addition.
While the Firestick is convenient and cool in many ways, it also comes with its own negatives. Its hardware is solid. However, this Firestick’s downfall lies in its software.
Read this part too carefully, as here the things are gonna get fully clear whether you should go for the Chromecast, or investing your bucks in the Fire Stick is more beneficial for you.
Clunky UI
The Chromecast within an interface that seamlessly integrates with all the apps that you use every day. It’s a straightforward design that makes it pretty convenient to use.
It disappears in the background where there’s no requirement to think about doing it. In comparison to Chromecast, it’s currently lacking. Certainly, this Firestick’s user interface is confusing and slow, and the way they arrange apps isn’t so customizable.
Restricted Ecosystem
One of the annoying obstacles that we’ve always had with the Amazon ecosystem is it competes with Google and also relies on it.
Fire tablets, as an example, use Android. They restrict the system, you are locked into Amazon apps, and unless you’re tech-savvy, there’s not much you can do on it that instead of the Android ecosystem.
You won’t find the Play Store here, nor will you find several common features of Android. The Firestick is different. The Firestick is no different. It’s an unknown UI for people who have never seen an Amazon product Once Android runs.
- Our trust is with Amazon
The Conclusion
Certainly, if you’ve got a house that is wise, it’s just natural that at some stage, you’d look into incorporating your TV.
The two options at this time by far would be the Firestick and the Chromecast, so which one should you get?
Well, there are two approaches to answer this query. Primarily, you have to take. In case you are invested, for instance, into a Google system, a Firestick isn’t likely to have each of the functions it would with an Amazon ecosystem. Second, you need to consider the functionality of the device.
The Chromecast is undoubtedly excellent. Even without the Google Home that the Chromecast includes a bunch of great features, it incorporates with the programs that you use, which makes it easy for anyone who uses media programs like Netflix.
The Amazon Firestick includes a remote that’s great with Alexa built-in. Though it can be troublesome to use the port, it is quite simple to use, and it doesn’t have many features as the Chromecast.
The Chromecast will make Google a good ecosystem to get into if you are really into media if you do not have a system nonetheless.
In case one already has an Amazon Echo, he should proceed with the Chromecast unless he mostly needs to use it with his voice.
Honest recommendation from Top 10 product India’s point of view – Amazon FireStick!
