Chromecast...what's the advantage?

[GabeU]

@BirdDog @monicakm

What exactly is it that Chromecast does?  It says "Stream entertainment from your device to your TV".  What does this mean, exactly?  Does this mean like streaming HBO Go, DirecTV, Netflix, etc, onto your laptop, but being able to watch it on your TV instead of your laptop?  

I have a long HDMI cable with which I can connect my laptop to my TV and watch whatever I stream to my laptop on my TV.  Is this essentially what Chromecast does, only Chromecast does it wirelessly?  

If not wirelessly, how does Chromecast connect to your laptop.  I know the doohickey plugs into your TV's HDMI port and that the doohickey has its own power source, but how does said doohickey connect to your laptop, or vice versa, I should say?

Thanks.  I tried looking this stuff up on the Chromecast site, but it doesn't give a whole lot of info.  

[BirdDog · Accepted solution]

Yea, the advantage is it is wireless so if someone's only other option is running a cable accross the floor or ceiling it is handy. It casts local content to the TV using Chrome and can also cast/stream online content. There's differents feeds that can be subscribed to, some free and others with a fee. Basically it can make a relatively dumb TV smart. My one older Roku TV is kind of clunky when it comes to casting so I purchased the Chromecast for it.

The newest edition of VLC video player can cast to it pretty well if not wanting to use Chrome all the time, with a few minor bugs yet. It should get better with future releases.

In the end, just another tech gadget to play with that can be useful at times.