so i just got a Google Chromecast na padala sakin last week and i have to say i am completely inlove with it, it maybe the greatest piece of consumer electronics in recent memory, for the price of $34($37 w/ tax) roughly P1,600 or P2,000(more or less) locally and it will turn your old LCD/LED TV into one of those Uber Expensive Smart TVs as long as you have Android Smartphones or Tablets or iOS devices(though iOS devices have no full mirror functionality)
i was interested in the Chromecast when it hit last year but finding out it only had Specific App functionality like Youtube and others i was very reluctant to get one, but then 2 things happened recently, Google allowed VIDEO PLAYBACK Casting from videos played on Chrome Browser for Android and in I/O they finally allowed Full Mirror Capability on the Chromecast (albeit on Nexus and newer Samsung Devices only) which was perfect since i have a Nexus 7 LTE and for the past week ive only used my PC for gaming, everything else i need to do on the Internet i do on my N7 and Chromecast
"But Smart TVs already have FULL MIRRORING via MIRACAST" you say, sure your expensive SmartTVs can already Mirror you devices and its good if you want to play Games or Surf the Net but what about Streaming Videos and Movies along with your favorite Series Shows? Mirroring with SmartTVs requires your devices to be ACTIVE or ON all the time so it can mirror whatever is on your device which will drain you device's battery and heat it up like a mothafucka, Chromecast gives you the best of both worlds, to Full mirror your device and then allow you to open a Video Stream(on the Chrome Browser) and "CAST" it on the Chromecast to PLAY INDEPENDENTLY of your Android Device meaning you can put your device on Screen off/IDLE and put it down while the video continues to play where you can use your devices to select a part of the video you want to watch specifically
INSTALL ADBLOCK PLUS APK(its not in the Play Store) for Android Chrome coz Ads on Mobile browsers are way more horrible than those on Desktop browsers
NETFLIX, HULU and AMAZON PRIME Subscribers can also watch their content as these APPS are supported by Chromecast, sayang wala lang Netflix sa Pinas hehe[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GWH-hEuOguo[/youtube]
here is a list of FULL MIRROR Supported Devices as of Nov 2014:
Nexus 4
Nexus 5
Nexus 6
Nexus 7 (2013)
Nexus 9
Nexus 10
Samsung Galaxy S4
Samsung Galaxy S4 (Google Play Edition)
Samsung Galaxy S5
Samsung Galaxy Note 3
Samsung Galaxy Note 4
Samsung Galaxy Note 10
HTC One M7
HTC One M7 (Google Play Edition)
LG G3
LG G2
LG G Pro 2
Sony Xperia Z3
Sony Xperia Z3v
Sony Xperia Z3 Compact
Sony Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact (selling my Nexus 7 to get this baby)
Sony Xperia Z2
Sony Xperia Z2 Tablet
Tesco hudl2
TrekStor SurfTab xintron i 7.0
UPDATE Nov 2014:So Google just updated the Chromecast app and Chrome Browser and has now put a CAST icon on the Play/Progress bar of embedded videos eliminating the need to prebuffer videos before you can see the Cast button to make embedded videos play on your HDTV immediately
UPDATE Dec 2014:seems like Chromecast has a workaround to allow full Windows Mirroring
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6rgFk0ayNI[/youtube]