Printable View
I had seen a number of news recently which showed that soon there will be a specific type of TV coming up. Those will be running no Android. But they are far too costly.
I want some option by which I can run Android on my existing LCD TV. I am sure there is some way for it.
You can do that via TV box. This box are like miniPC or similar to set top box which runs on Android. But they are quiet costly. I had seen a number of brand in international market, but in Indian market there are no local brands.
There is one device that you can look for. It is called as Razor Bee smartTV. This is one of the most cheapest microPC that runs on Android. Unfortunately it runs on Android 2.2. The price of this device lies between Rs.2500 to Rs.3000. This device is a like a micropc which comes with Android. There is no way you can upgrade to higher version. And @ price of Rs.3000 this is a bit costlier for me. If you want you can spent the among and test the product. It has a user friendly interface with fully functional remote control. T
his remote provides you help for web surfing, YouTube, etc. You can also play media files from your usb or sd card. Along with this micropc helps you to use DLNA phones also. You can run supported android games also. The internal storage of this device is just 2GB. So you cannot expect to put much in the same. You have to get a external SD card storage solution anyhow. It works on Cortex A8 processor and the internal memory is just 256MB. It is a low standard product. Other than this there is a wifi support and AV interface to connect with your TV. For additional connectivity there is 3.5mm mic connector and audio jack. There is additional 2 USB ports and Touch support Remote control.
You can check on different shopping site for the price. Wherever I had checked I found the price lies around Rs.3000.
Razor Bee looks a bit low budget device. 256MB ram is quiet not good for playing some android games and today when have devices of Android 4.0, then it is not worth to go for 2.2. Too poor for running new applications.
Check for Google TV Cloud Stick. This looks like a usb device. Very thin and small. You need HDMI port to use this. It runs on Android 4.0. If this was around Rs.2500 to Rs.3000 then it was worth to buy. But you can expect the price below Rs.5,500. It comes with a single HDMI connectivity with a microSD card slot. You just have to plug the device on your hdmi port and you can see Android on your TV screen. It also has internal wifi connection support. If there is no hdmi port in your TV set then forget this device. It is costly but yet worthy to buy. With Android 4.0 OCS you get minimum 4Gb of internal storage support.
There is a MicroSD card slot which can be used to put additional storage support. Due to wifi support you can simply stream your PC videos on the TV set. Right now the stick is operated through your regular remote. There is no support to use any mouse, keyboard, or it comes with any controller. It works properly on many TVS. There can be resolution issue related to some apps or game as LCD are having quiet a big size screen. You can carry the same in your pocket wherever you want.
I never thought there would be a some kind of device which can such small. When I checked the specification of Google TV Cloud Stick I found that it has a 1Ghz processor and 512MB Ram. Luckily there is 4Gb internal storage provided in the same.
If you are planing to buy Google Cloud Stick then before that there is one more product that you can try. It is called as Portronics Limebox. The cost of this device is around Rs.6999. It is costly but a worth product. The device comes with Android 2.3 that is quiet enough. Because a number of device still today are working on Gingerbread. The processor used inside is 1.2Ghz and 512MB ram. The internal storage is 4GB which most of the android devices had.
But with SC card slot you can simply upgrade to 32GB that is quiet enough. Under the connectivity settings there is a WiFi and RJ45 connection. There are additional 2 usb connection and a hdmi slot. So it does not looks a complicated device, but the right product for your TV to make it a SmarTV. The device is costly based on the availability among sellers. Some are also charing Rs. 9000 for the same. With cool android interface the device is capable of giving you smart support on the screen.
It looks that this kind of devices are overpriced and because of which it is not worth to buy. There are smartv models on the web but they are too costly and that makes it complicated to buy.
When you buy a smartphone just check that the phone give you HDMI connectivity or not. Like a low range tablet Micromax Funbook which has a special cable. This cable helps you to connect the tablet to TV and the same helps you to then control your TV like a Android TV. You can play all games easily on a widescreen. It is not complicated to connect and use.
So when you have this kid of device there is no need to connect a external box and some different type of remote. It saves your money in buying a device that you can only use with a TV. With a tablet you can simply use it externally also.
Even I agree with the same. Getting a separate TV box is not worth. I agree with the above comment where you can look for a device that have a hdmi connectivity port.