Google has again given up on competing with the Apple TV and other set-top boxes after discontinuing the Nexus Player. The Asus-made device is no longer available from the Google Store — but this doesn’t mean Android TV is dead.
When the Nexus Player made its debut back in November 2014, it looked like the ideal set-top box, combining content from popular services like Netflix, Hulu, and the Google Play Store with Android apps and games that you could enjoy on your TV.
The Apple TV didn’t offer apps back then, which made the Nexus Player and Android TV even more exciting. But it clearly wasn’t exciting enough to get a successor. Just 18 months after the Nexus Player went on sale, Google has stopped selling it.
You can still buy the Nexus Player from third-party retailers, but it seems unlikely Asus will still be making the device if Google has given up on it. That means that once stock has dried up, you’ll only be able to get second-hand units on eBay and Craigslist.
But this isn’t the end for Android TV. The platform is still being supported by TV manufacturers like Sony, which is installing it on its latest sets, and you can still buy Android TV boxes made by others. Google is also working on an Android N upgrade for these devices.
Android TV isn’t a failure, then, but maybe the Nexus Player itself just wasn’t selling well enough to warrant a successor. Google has confirmed that the box has been discontinued, and it didn’t announce a new model at I/O last week.
Google’s focus now will be on its Chromecast devices, which are big sellers. The little dongles, which sell for under $40 each, where the most popular streaming devices of 2015, according to Strategy Analytics, and have sold 25 million units since making their debut.
Via: The Verge
Killian Bell is a freelance writer based in the U.K. He has an interest in all things tech and also covers Android over at CultofAndroid.com. You can follow him on Twitter via @killianbell.
5 responses to “Google kills its first Apple TV competitor”
wow no surprise there… and we should be expecting a different fate from “Google Home” why?
Most things Google announces, seem to die off or become so irrelevant that you never hear about them again… speaking of which, haven’t heard much about Google Glass in a while.
Add yet ANOTHER device/service to the GAGGLE GRAVEYARD….SMH
As with most Nexus devices, they pave the way. Sony Bravias are now offering Android TV with a much richer experience than the earlier devices. I still have one of the Sony NSZ-GT1, sadly it recently let out the magic smoke, but it was a great device.
Samsung/Google/HTC/LG at their best; make something, throw it against a wall, see if it sticks…..
I hope Google create apps for Apple TV.
I miss so much Google Photos app for Apple TV.