This Android TV update has a distinctly Google TV flavour

This Android TV update has a distinctly Google TV flavour
(Image credit: Google)

An Android TV update is on its way which will dramatically change the look and feel of the Google OS, apparently, very much for the better.

Rolling out to Android TV devices across the US, Australia, Canada, Germany and France from today, this fresh lick of paint to the user interface looks aimed at bringing the experience much closer to the Google TV UI which debuted in the Chromecast with Google TV media streamer.

Apps are displayed in a line a the top of the Home page followed by shows which you're currently watching, no matter which streaming service they're on. The big difference appears to be in the Discover tab which, much like the For You section of Google TV, is where Google's cross-service recommendations lie. You can also get a look at what's trending and what's new and it should make finding something to watch much simpler than before.

The big question, of course, is what this means for Google's TV plans going forward? It had looked as if the name 'Android TV' would melt into the background while Google TV took over as the face of the experience. This revamp puts the two much more on a parallel and adds the danger of fractured ecosystem.

Dan Sung

Dan is a staff writer at What Hi-Fi? and his job is with product reviews as well as news, feature and advice articles too. He works across both the hi-fi and AV parts of the site and magazine and has a particular interest in home cinema. Dan joined What Hi-Fi? in 2019 and has worked in tech journalism for over a decade, writing for Tech Digest, Pocket-lint, MSN Tech and Wareable as well as freelancing for T3, Metro and the Independent. Dan has a keen interest in playing and watching football. He has also written about it for the Observer and FourFourTwo and ghost authored John Toshack's autobiography, Toshack's Way.