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It’s hard to believe that it has been just shy of ten years since Google released the first Chromecast device. While the Chromecast name is nearly synonymous with Google’s long line of video and audio streaming dongles, the first iteration of the Chromecast laid the groundwork for an entire ecosystem of Cast-enabled devices from third-party manufacturers big and small. Go to the electronics department of nearly any retailer and you are almost sure to find some speakers or televisions that are equipped with “Chromecast built-in.”
Fast forward ten years and we know have Chromecast w/Google TV and the options are plenty. You can pick up a 4K stream from Google or grab a more budget-friendly 1080P model and both come with a remote, the Google Assistant and the intuitive Google TV interface. Not only that, buyers aren’t restricted to only buying a Made By Google device. You can pick up models like the onn. 4K w/Google TV for under $20 and get practically the exact same experience as buying a Chromecast from Google.
If you happen to still have an original 2013 Chromecast around, chances are good that it’s still serving you well. The OG dongle had a price tag of $35 and in its prime, it was worth every penny. Some would say that it changed the way we view content and most certainly played a small part in shaping the streaming media space as we know it. It was a cheap way to make your TV a Smart TV before Smart TVs were a dime a dozen. Even now, the tiny Chromecast is capable of doing exactly what it was designed to do without hiccups or obstacles.
I’m sure most of you have upgraded to a newer device by now but in case you still have the original Chromecast in use, today marks a sad day for the little streamer that could. As spotted by 9to5Google, the Chromecast firmware support page was quietly updated to reflect that this would be the last software update that the 2013 Chromecast would receive. That’s not to say that your old Chromecast will cease to work but moving forward, it will be left behind.
Support for Chromecast (1st gen) has ended, which means these devices no longer receive software or security updates, and Google does not provide technical support for them. Users may notice a degradation in performance.
Google Support
While it may be a sad day for the original Chromecast, this is still great opportunity to give credit where credit is due. Any device, large or small that can give its users 10 solid years of service is to be applauded. The original Chromecast stands out among the crowd as a small, unique product that changed the landscape of many of the products we use on a daily basis. For this, we tip our hats to the 2013 Chromecast and thank it for its faithful, cost-effective service.
