Android TV to replace Google TV

According to a recent report, the search giant is officially abandoning the Google TV brand. So, is it farewell to Google TV altogether? Well, no, actually as it is just the brand designation that is being killed off. Google-based television services will continue onward; they will now be called Android TV.  According to GigaOm, this hasn’t been officially confirmed by Google as yet, but unnamed partners are saying that Google will now re-brand its service as “Android TV.”

Google TV first hit the market in Oct. 2010 via the Logitech Revue and from that time on, it’s been a struggle to keep up to date the version of Android that powers Google TV, compared to the version of the Operating System found on various mobile devices.  The company announced back in May that Android 4.2.2 would come to Google TV services within a few months; LG appears to be the first in line of the major manufacturers taking Google up on its offer, with an update to their devices most likely to be scheduled to arrive in late October.

However, once manufacturers continue on with Android TV, it will presumably be easier for them to update to successive versions of Android e.g. 4.4 KitKat.  This depends upon manufacturer timelines, although Google is supposedly relaxing its requirements for those looking to use Google TV in their devices. According to GigaOm, Google originally required those making use of Google TV to include a QWERTY keyboard with their devices, in addition to them meeting various hardware requirements.

A number of Google partners are not using the “Google TV” logo anymore, preferring instead to describe their various TV’s as being able to access “the latest Google services” for televisions. A number of Google’s developers aren’t even using the Google TV branding, e.g. a recent “Android TV Developer Day” event scheduled in Seoul.  Even various Google employees have now started to refer to themselves as being affiliated with “Android TV” instead of Google TV across social media platforms.  In the mean time, whilst we wait for Android TV to hit officially,we can still use Chromecast to entertain ourselves.  Google has seen much success with its $35 Chromecast dongle, which allows users to “cast” Netflix, YouTube, Google Play, from a mobile device or PC to their TV.

[Image via: geeky-gadgets]
[SOURCE: http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2425579,00.asp]