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I recently picked up a Chromecast device on Black Friday while out with the wife and kiddo for some clothes shopping. It was my little splurge reward for enduring the insanity and taking them shopping. I knew going into it that there are only a handful of apps that have Chromecast support. However, there are a number of ways around some things and there are certain to be more apps supported in the near future. There is one app in particular that I personally would love to see gain support, Plex.

Those of you that already know and love Plex know exactly what it is. It is a combination app/media server that you can link to all your video, music and picture folders and stream remotely. It also mixes in tons of channels and ability to que up YouTube videos, Hulu and a lot more. You can get the app for your Android Tablet, Phones and Google TV set-top boxes. It is worth every bit of minor efforts required to set it up. A little digging shared on Reddit points to Plex hard at work to bring their apps up to speed and available for Chromecast support. Assuming Google takes them on and whitelists them.

I personally would stock up on Chromecasts for the whole family if/when Plex support rolls into play. We might just have to get a hold of our friends at Plex and see if we can squeeze them for some information. I do have a feeling though that the first iterations of this Chromecast support for Plex will likely roll out to Plex Pass subscribers first. I will be keeping an eye out for more information on this and let you guys know what turns up.

Via Techaeris

Source: Gigaom

by Stormy Beach via AndroidSPIN

What would you say the number one device/gadget released this year is? TIME has decided that Google‘s Chromecast streaming device should take the top honours in the gadget section of its “Top Ten of Everything 2013? series, beating out Apple’s new iPads and Oculus Rift for the number one spot. I think TIME’s blurb about the Chromecast sums up its success and appeal the best:

“Instead of trying to do everything — like Google’s famously ambitious and unsuccessful Google TV — this thumb-sized gizmo does one thing, does it as simply as possible and does it for the impulse-purchase price of $35.”

I definitely agree with TIME on this as although the Chromecast isn’t the most technology-laden gadget released this year, it’s achieved what so many media-streaming devices have tried to do over the years in a simple and easy package, and is affordable to anyone who’s willing to drop $35 (sometimes dropping that amount multiple times). Having said that, I’m not so much a fan of TIME’s other choices to round out the top 10 (the new iPads? Really?), but it’s nice to see the Chromecast getting the kudos it deserves.

What would you say is the number one device released in 2013? Let us know what you think should get the top honours in the comments.

Source: TIME via Android Police

by Stephen Yuen via AndroidSPIN