Google, in partnership with LG Electronics, is broadening the connectivity between smartphones, PCs, TVs, and other devices.
On Jan. 9, during the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2024 at the Las Vegas Convention Center, Google unveiled plans to expand the ecosystem of its Android operating system. It announced that starting this year, select models of LG TVs will come equipped with Chromecast. Chromecast is a protocol that facilitates pairing between display devices.
Initially, LG Electronics TVs destined for large-scale deployment in hotels will include Chromecast. This feature, however, will not be available in consumer-grade TVs. Consequently, users can continue watching movies or videos streamed from their Android phones, including Google phones and Galaxy Android phones, on LG Electronics TVs without the hassle of logging into individual apps.
Google also revealed collaborations with Chinese appliance manufacturers Hisense and TCL. At CES, they introduced two TV models from each company that will come with built-in Chromecast. Currently, there are about 220 million monthly active devices running on the Android TV OS.
Android will also enhance connectivity with LG Electronics PCs. Google, in collaboration with major PC manufacturers including Samsung Electronics, has ensured that Nearby Share, an Android-based file sharing solution, is a standard feature on Windows PCs. Traditionally, Google and Samsung have used the names Nearby Share and Quick Share, respectively, but they have decided to unify under the Quick Share brand. Tapping the new Quick Share icon will display a list of nearby devices available for use, and users can choose settings for personal information protection.
Fast Pair, a feature that quickly finds and connects devices like speakers and headphones to Android phones or Chromebooks, is also being expanded. So far, there have been 660 million pairing instances using Fast Pair, as explained by Google.
Google emphasized its plans to extend the Android ecosystem not only to mobiles but also to smart speakers, laptops, TVs, and automobiles. This expansion suggests an upcoming competition with Samsung Electronics. Samsung Electronics is highly regarded for its SmartThings, which integrates devices such as smartphones, TVs, and washing machines into a smart home ecosystem.