Last year, the fish fin-shaped dongle plugged directly into the TV and allowed for streaming video. It was priced at $99 and was originally marketed to rival Apple TV, including the ability to find local content on your notebook, smartphone, tablet and then send it to the TV.
Chromecast, which does the exact same thing, is sold by Google for $39 and even included a free 90-day subscription to Netflix. So far, Hulu, Netflix and Pandora have created native apps for Chromecast with HBO Go expected later in the year.
The new PLAiR 2, which will sell for $49, is powered by a 1GHz ARM Processor, 1 GB DDR3 RAM, has 802.11n wireless, and a built-in GPU/VPU for full 1080p streaming.
Additionally, the device supports Amazon Appstore apps, support for Android TV and the apps run off the device itself, unlike the Chromecast which requires devs to add code to existing services so it can be "cast" to the TV. Supported apps are Netflix, Vudu, Hulu Plus, Pandora, Spotify, Xfinity and many more including games like Angry Birds.
Written by: Andre Yoskowitz @ 2 Nov 2013 14:03
