Chromecast vs Apple TV - which one should you buy?

If you're looking for a media-streaming device to pull in content from the internet via services such as Netflix, the two big products are the Chromecast and the Apple TV. On a first look it may seem a simple choice with the Apple TV better for iPhone users, while the Chromecast is better for Android users or those on a tight budget. Think again; it's actually a lot more involved than that with both devices having their own strengths and weaknesses. We'll take you through both platforms to help you make a final decision

Price

It's hard to argue with the value of the Chromecast. Costing just £30, it's so cheap as to be an impulse buy. Although the Apple TV is relatively well priced for an Apple product, £79 is still a fair amount of cash to spend. The price difference reflects the differences in the products, though. As we'll see in the rest of this article, the Chromecast is really a dumb receiver, while the Apple TV is a dedicated media streamer that can operate without a smartphone. Neither's particularly wrong, just different.

Design

It's fair to say that the Chromecast is the least obtrusive media streamer that we have ever seen. It plugs directly into one of your TV's HDMI ports (an extension cable is provided in the box to avoid the streamer blocking other devices) and is powered via USB directly from your TV.

The Apple TV is a small square box, which is still very neat, although you will need to find room to place it next to your TV. While the Chromecast is controlled entirely via a smartphone over Wi-Fi, the Apple TV ships with a remote control. This means that you need to place it so that its IR receiver is in line-of-sight to where you're sitting.

While the Chromecast has only an HDMI port, the Apple TV has HDMI (a cable is provided in the box) and an optical S/PDIF output, so you can hook it up to an older amp for better sound.

Networking

Apple's the hands-down winner for flexibility here. With 802.11n (dual-band 2.4GHz and 5GHz) and Ethernet, the Apple TV is the most flexible media streamer of the two, connecting to any network. In contrast, the Chromecast has an 802.11n adaptor that will only connect to 2.4GHz networks. It's not a massive problem, but the cleaner 5GHz band suffers from less interference and is our preferred choice of wireless networking for media streaming.

Interface and local apps

Chromecast doesn't have an interface as such. In fact, it's really just a 'dumb' box that you send content to (called Casting, see the next section for more information). This means that it requires a smartphone or tablet to work. Apple TV, on the other hand, is a complete media streamer in its own right, running an OS based on iOS 7.1. Although there's no app store available, it ships with several pre-installed apps, so you can use it without the need for a smartphone or tablet.

There's a good range of apps including Netflix, Sky News, Sky Sports Now TV (day-pass required), Flickr and YouTube. In addition, you can access all of your music and videos stored on your home computer via iTunes Home Sharing, and all of your Apple TV, movies and music via the cloud. It even integrates with iCloud, so you can view your Photo Stream on the TV.

As we've come to expect from Apple the interface is both extremely simple and smooth. A remote control ships in the box with just a cursor pad and buttons for select, back (Menu) and Play/Pause. Alternatively, the Apple Remote app lets you control the media streamer over your home network using your iPhone or Tablet. Using the app also means that you can use your tablet or phone's touch keyboard to enter text into search boxes, which is much easier and quicker than using the remote and on-screen keyboard.

Airplay vs Casting

Take the Apple TV's built-in apps away and both it and the Chromecast work in a similar way, letting you use a smartphone or tablet to beam content to them. Apple calls its technology AirPlay, while Google calls its Casting. Both technologies are conceptually the same. When using a supported app (audio or video), you can tap a button and select the Chromecast or Apple TV that you want to send the content to. Rather than streaming it from your phone or tablet, you pass over the information of where the original stream is, letting the Chromecast or Apple TV take control directly. With this method you can use your handheld device as normal for other tasks, without interrupting the stream. Crucially, both technologies still allow you to control playback from your device. So, you can play/pause, and scrub through an audio file or video.

Platform and app support

As AirPlay is an Apple technology it is only supported in major apps by Apple devices. You can get AirPlay apps for Android devices, but these are limited to apps that can stream local music and video. AirPlay devices include MacBooks and iMacs, which can use AirPlay to mirror their screens, as well as sending content from iTunes. You get the best support through an iPad or iPhone. As well as supporting mirroring your device, AirPlay is supported through the OS, including letting you send your photos and home videos to an Apple TV.

Third-party app support also isn't bad. There's no Netflix support, as this is built into the Apple TV, but you get Amazon Prime Instant video support, too. BBC iPlayer lets you watch catch-up TV, but there's no ITV Player, 4oD or Demand Five support, nor can you get Sky Go. BT Sport is supported, but Sky's Now TV is not. It's good to see that Spotify has AirPlay support, too.

Chromecast has much better cross-platform support from apps that support the technology: if you can Cast from Android, you can Cast from the equivalent app on iOS. In addition, there's a Cast extension for Chrome, which lets you send content from your browser to your Chromecast. Chromecast also supports mirroring of Android devices (the most recent devices are supported, but not all Android phones and tablets are). Via the Google Cast Chrome extension you can also mirror your entire desktop (Mac, PC and Chromebook), although this feature is still very much in beta.

App support isn't too bad, with Netflix, iPlayer and BT Sport the big stand-out names. There's no Amazon Prime Instant Video support, ITV Player, 4oD, Demand Five, Sky Now or Sky support, though. At the moment, the Apple TV is just the winner.

US Netflix

One trick that Netflix lovers are fond of is spoofing their location, so that they get access to US Netflix from the UK and its larger content collection. With the Apple TV you can easily do this, as you have access to the necessary network settings - see how to get US Netflix on the Apple TV.

With the Chromecast, Google completely locked down the system, denying access to the required settings. It is possible to override the Chromecast, although any changes you make have to be network wide and you have to have a router that supports certain advanced functions. See how to get US Netflix on Chromecast for more information.

DLNA media server support

If you want to stream video from your local network you can do, although neither devices support DLNA media servers directly. Instead, you need an app that will stream from your local media server that also supports AirPlay or Chromecast. You then select the media with your phone or tablet and then beam it to the media player.

Neither the Chromecast nor the Apple TV support many video file formats, with H.264 videos the main codec. This may mean that you have to convert your videos. Our guide on how to convert videos for Apple TV will work on both devices. For Apple devices and AirPlay we recommend that you use 8player (see how to connect your Apple TV to a DLNA server). Sadly, this app doesn't support Chromecast. GoodPlayer will do the job, although it's not a patch on 8player. Android users can use BubbleUPnP.

If you don't want to convert your videos, both support Plex. With a Plex server you can transcode video on the fly, so you don't need to convert any files to start with. Read more with our guide on how to use Plex with Apple TV and Chromecast.

Conclusion

It's not as simple, unfortunately, as saying which device is best, as it really depends on what you want. If you've got mainly iOS devices and want a more flexible media streamer that you can use standalone, the Apple TV is the best choice. It's also easier to hack into playing US Netflix from the UK. If you've got a mixture of iOS and Android devices (or just Android) and want a cheap and simple way to make your TV smarter, the Chromecast is a great buy.