It may have been only about 30 minutes, but Google unveiled a bunch of new stuff at yesterday’s event. One of the coolest gadgets is the Chromecast with Google TV — an updated Chromecast dongle that comes with a remote and runs special version of Android TV. The app that powers the new Google TV launcher interface has now appeared on the Play Store. It’s called Google TV Home, and it’s useless right now unless you have the new Chromecast.
Placing this launcher app in the Play Store will allow the new Chromecast device homescreen to get UI tweaks, feature improvements, and more without needing to wait for an entire software update to roll out. Version 1.0.331643392 is the current build available on the Play Store, and it already has more than 5,000 installs.
Despite sharing the same icon as the Android TV Home app, the Google TV homescreen is much different. It’s built around the idea that people want to spend less time bouncing between different streaming service apps and more time actually watching stuff. In order to accomplish this goal, Google mixes in content from all your favorite apps and services together on the homescreen — although you can disable this if you prefer the old way of doing things.
Ready to check out that new interface for yourself? Well, there we’ve got a problem, as we sideloaded the app on an existing Android TV box and … it doesn’t do anything. You can install it, but there’s no option to actually launch the new homescreen, so for now this is just a curiosity — download it from APK Mirror yourself if so inclined.
Google TV is the future of Android in the living room, and the company plans to upgrade eligible devices to the new experience at some point down the line. Is the new Chromecast with Google TV worth buying now if you already have an older device? Check out our full review to find out for yourself.
