Chromecast vs. WD TV: The main differences

Chromecast or WD (Western Digital) TV Live - what are the differences between the two streaming devices? We'll tell you!

The streaming box: WD TV Live from Western Digital

Streaming devices are in. After all, every television becomes a Smart Tv. But what can the WD TV from hard drive manufacturer Western Digital do?

• The WD TV Live supports all common video formats.
• Most image formats and audio files can also be played effortlessly.
• The WD TV Live is a media server box that takes up a lot of space.
• The WDTV works with WPS and WLAN or Ethernet.
• The streaming standard DLNA is supported in the network.
• The WDTV streams in HD resolution of 1080p and is connected to the TV via HDMI cable.
• If you don't want to stack DVDs in the living room, the WDTV is a good solution for playing digital films that you have saved on your computer or a USB stick.
• The price of the device is around 85 euros.
• WDTV supports streaming services and video websites such as Netflix, YouTube or Pandora.
• As a remote control, you can use your smartphone or tablet with the Android app. iPhone users use the iOS version.

The streaming stick: Chromecast from Google

• Google’s Chromecast is a dongle: a very small device that you can plug into an HDMI port on your TV.
• It only costs 35 euros.
• The Chromecast can be set up and operated using the Android app. The tool is also available for iPhone and iPad.
• You can use it to bring a wide variety of digital content from your PC, mobile phone or tablet to your television.
• In some cases, however, the image can jerk somewhat.

Conclusion: small but nice or big and powerful?

The Chromecast is smaller and cheaper; the WD, however, larger and more expensive. Those who value compatibility and picture quality for home cinema are in good hands with WDTV Live. The Chromecast, on the other hand, convinces with its direct Google integration on YouTube, but is not quite as powerful.

If you choose Google’s Chromecast, we’ll take you right in this article and explain how to use the Google TV stick.