One of the best TV streaming devices just got a tiny bit better. Google is rolling out an update to the Google Chromecast with Google TV giving you more control over picture settings, including HDR, The Verge reports.
Download the update and restart the device, and you’ll find a new “advanced video controls” sub-menu in the settings. Here you’ll be able to tinker with all sorts of settings, including setting your preferred HDR setting, whether that be Dolby Vision, HDR or forced SDR.
As the Chromecast with Google TV does dynamic range matching (assuming you’ve selected that option) this new option won’t be hugely useful to most people, but those with lower-end HDR TVs may find that forcing SDR gives them better overall performance.
You can manually switch to a different resolution at various refresh rates, too. These include: 4K (60Hz / 50Hz / 30Hz/ 25Hz / 24Hz / smpte); 1080p (60Hz / 50Hz / 24Hz); 720p (60Hz / 50Hz); 1080i (60Hz / 50Hz); 576p (50Hz); and 480p (60Hz). Really, though, you should be fine with the setting the Chromecast has picked for you – something that it should now be even better at doing, thanks to the new update.
It gets better on the audio side too, with Bluetooth audio stuttering reduced on certain apps.
Its wi-fi performance should be improved on 5GHz and mesh networks, while HDMI-CEC can now be configured to turn on/off only the TV. Finally, a security update should provide peace of mind.
A couple of things are missing from this update, though – the recently promised HDR10+ support, and an option for the device to automatically match the frame rate of the content being played. Until a ‘match frame rate’ option is added, some content can stutter a little bit.
That said, the Google Chromecast with Google TV is already one of the best streamers around, earning five stars in our review. But it’s up against some stiff competition from Amazon’s Fire TV streamers and the new Apple TV 4K.
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