Google Chromecast

After using the new Google Chromecast for the last week I thought I would share a few thoughts.  The Chromecast is a thumb drive like device that plugs into a TV’s HDMI slot.  Once plugged in you can transmit videos or music from your smartphone, tablet, or PC to your TV.

So what is the big deal?  I already have a ROKU box, Apple TV, or an HDMI cable that connects my computer to my TV.  Why do I care about Chromecast?

The BIG DEAL is this:

Size

I love the Chromecast’s thumb drive shape and size.  You can fit the device in your pocket and take it with you on business trips, vacations, or to show off to your neighbor.  Plus you don’t have a box sitting on, by, or even under your TV Chromecast is no larger than your average thumb-drive.

Compatibility

Chromecast is not limited to working with just one computer or phone.  No, you can share this device across an infinite number of devices.  And that is on both the sharing and the receiving end.  You can take this device to a hotel and plug it into the room’s TV and avoid the onslaught of local TV crap.  You can take Chromecast to your friends place, your girlfriend’s condo, your dad’s retirement home, or your kid’s Sunday School class.  What I am trying to say is that you can take this device anywhere and run it off any smartphone, tablet, or PC.

Price

The price is right for the Chromecast.  The device is less expensive than most HDMI cables, making it a no-brainer for someone simply looking to connect their computer to their TV.  When you then consider the cost of similar Internet TV boxes like Apple TV, you save a lot of money going with Chromecast.

Now not everything has been peaches and cream with Chromecast.  I being the Googley person that I am was hoping to have this device cure cancer and bring my dog back from her backyard grave.  It turns out that Chromecast is not really the cure-all I had hoped.

What I Do Not Like

Wall Plug Dependent

I wish Chromecast ran off a battery.  Why shackle such a powerfully small device with a wall plugin.  The decision seems akin to a creating a cellphone that must be plugged into the wall to turn on.  

Cloud Only

It is time to transfer your movies to the cloud, because Google’s Chromecast will only allow you to play content that is on the online (small movie pun compliments of The Internship).  This means that you will have to find another way to play all of those movies you downloaded off Torrent last year.

Wi-Fi Required

The biggest con of Chromecast is that it requires Wi-Fi to function.  Chromecast creates a secondary Wi-Fi network after tapping into your current Wi-Fi network.  It then receives data through this new network.  This means that you cannot use Chromecast if there is no Wi-Fi network to join.

So what does Chromecast mean for Google?  Is this Google’s initiation into a low-cost cost small electronic device market?  At only $35 Chromecast is perfectly targeted to capture the 18-30 tech savvy demographic that keeps Google in business.   Will we be seeing a Chromecast 2.0 soon?  What does this mean for cable?  Are we one step closer to slaying the major networks and living our lives on Netflix and YouTube?

90 Seconds or Less

You may have seen the grissly footage of the 777 that crash landed in San Francisco over the weekend.  Like me, you may have wondered how anyone could survive the crash, especially when photos of the plane revealed a smoldering mess of sizzling seats inside a blackened shell of metal.  How did so many passengers exit the doomed Asiana plane in time to escape the gas explosion that should have killed all aboard?

90 seconds or less.  Anyone who has ever been in a hurry to get off a plane knows it is going to be a 10 to 15 minute endeavor.  What may come as a surprise is that the Boeing 777 is designed so that all it's passengers can exit the aircraft in under 90-seconds ... and that is assuming half the plane's doors cannot open.  I used to wonder why anyone would need to get off a plane so quickly, but now considering flight 241I understand.

Boeing engineers understand the need for a back up plan, but do I?  What is my 90-second backup plan?  Every one of us will encounter a plane wreck or two as we pursue our life goals and passions.  When that treacherous and unexpected moment comes skidding into our life do we have the courage and preparedness to abandon our lost pursuit in 90-seconds or less?

In January of 2012 I began the application process for Walmart's young graduate leadership program.  This would be a springboard for my career, and I knew this was what I needed to do upon graduation.  Halfway through the application process, however, a blazing smoking plane came crashing at my door.  I failed Walmart's personality test.  At first I couldn't bring myself to believe my dream had gone up in smoke.  I kept fighting this failure.  I called recruiters.  I called the software company that created the personality test.  I could not move on, and my paralysis was going to get me burned.  I had put all of my proverbial eggs into one basket.  I had no back up plan.