Summary
- Android TV boxes have evolved in the past decade, offering more customizable features and options for users.
- Walmart’s Onn TV device showcases a new “star” button that can be personalized to launch favorite apps with just one press.
- This button should start popping up more and more with newer devices going forward.
It may be hard to believe, but the Chromecast has been around for 10 years. And since its inception, the TV landscape has changed drastically, with smart features on TVs becoming the norm, whether being built-in from the factory, or folks purchasing an aftermarket Google TV box to upgrade one that they already own.
Of course, with ten years now in the rearview mirror, Google isn’t the only one making Android-powered TV boxes, and as such, we’re seeing more devices on the market then ever before. And while folks wait for Google to launch its own updated devices, it looks like other brands are giving us a look at the future.
Google’s customizable button is here
We’ve been hearing about Google’s customizable remote button for quite some time now, but it now looks like it’s become a reality, landing on one of the latest Onn products. Walmart’s Onn TV devices have delivered an Android TV experience on the cheap, and with good results. The recently leaked Onn 4K Pro gives us an early look at the “star” button, and how it can be used for a customized experience.
The report comes from AFTVnews sharing screenshots of the button in use, and on first setup, gives users the option of making it a hotkey to a favorite app or it can also be set as input switcher (via 9to5Google). If you choose to set the star button to launch your favorite app, you’ll be presented with a selection of streaming apps that are installed on your device. As you’d expect, once this button is assigned, it will launch your selected app with just the press of a button.
This app can later be reassigned to something new, so you’re never going to be stuck with just one option. Of course, there’s nothing groundbreaking here with the new star button, but it’s a nice little addition considering how many different streaming services are out there now. And being able to assign a button to launch your favorite is going to be a nice quality of life addition to the experience.
With Onn being one of the first to deliver this kind of experience, it’s only going to be a matter of time before other brands will launch it as well. As you might expect, we have big expectations of what’s to come with Google’s next Chromecast devices. With that said, Google I/O is just around the corner, which would be the perfect platform to showcase something new.
Although we’re hoping to see a new 4K Chromecast, it’s not clear what Google will announce at the event. But we do expect some hardware at the developer event. Regardless, as mentioned before, there are a lot of different Android TV / Chromecast options to choose from, so even if Google doesn’t launch something new, there’s always going to be some great options out there.
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