If you want to talk about the world's best Android TV box, it may be considered Google 's Chromecast 4K. Although this device cannot be used very simply in China for well-known reasons, in terms of functions, design, performance and content, Google's Chromecasttml2 is indeed stronger than the Android TV boxes of other manufacturers, and many users with conditions in China have purchased this product.
Chromecast 4K has always used Google TV's system, which is no different from the current TVs that use Google TV overseas. However, in the kernel system, it still uses the old Android 10, which is obviously a bit sorry for its strongest Android TV box name. So Google recently upgraded the system for this device, upgrading the Android 10 system to Android 12, which is considered to be keeping up with the current mainstream Android TV system (of course not counting domestic TVs and boxes). While upgrading the system, Google has also added a lot of features to this product.
We also tested it on Chromecast. Through system updates, we can indeed download the latest system and update it to Android 12 system . Of course, the interface is still the interface of Google TV. In this update, some functions that are more important to audio and video enthusiasts have been added, such as manually setting them in the audio and video format, and the frame rate matching function that everyone is most concerned about is also added. The settings of
audio and video format are easy to understand, that is, the Chromecast's video HDR format and the supported surround sound audio format, which users can manually adjust. The HDR formats include Dolby Vision, HDR10+, HDR10 and HLG; while the audio format can be selected from mainstream surround sound, such as DTS or Dolby Atmos. If the TV or speaker does not support it, you can also output normal Dolby surround sound audio.
As for the function of matching frame rates, it is what the public users expect. In the past, Chromecast did not support this feature, but now Chromecast allows the output video refresh rate to match the content's frame rate (24Hz, 25Hz, 50Hz, 60Hz), so that it can play completely without jitter on the TV. For example, some video content before was actually 24Hz, but Chromecast will convert it to 60Hz or 50Hz to output it to the TV, so that there will be some jitter after the screen is converted. Now there will be no such problem. Users can enjoy the video content in its original form. Of course, this function also requires the cooperation of TV and streaming media software. If the TV itself does not support the function of matching frame rates, it will be meaningless.
If conditions permit, we actually recommend that users buy this product to watch streaming videos. The domestic price is not expensive, and you can buy it for three or four hundred yuan. Of course, due to the size and purpose, it is indeed impossible to install various domestic streaming media software, so iQiyi, You and Tencent basically have no hope, which needs to be paid attention to. However, downloading a KODI to watch local video content is actually very good. In addition, it comes with many overseas streaming software, it is still worth the price!
