Ask HN: I'm fed up with my Chromecast/Google TV. What are my options?
I like the chromecast hardware and the nice remote, but I want a more "open-source"-y solution, something like a chromecast but that allows for custom TV software. What are my options?
A windows thin client with cast-to-screen software installed, replacing the explorer.exe shell. Proprietary Miracast, Chromecast, and Airplay mirroring will work. The UI is your phone. I used this solution for quite a while, and it avoids the headache of maintaining some hacked together open-source Jellyfin/Kodi frontend.
In the long run I don't see anything but open screen protocol actually being competitive. There's dozens of different cast things, but imo it was access to the web & web platform that made Chromecast so capable & powerful, and nothing else is remotely as competent. https://github.com/w3c/openscreenprotocol
There are however little more than tech demos for it. There's still a significant body of unresolved questions. Theres very limited amount of effort going in. But there are some very nice libraries too, such as https://github.com/youtube/openscreen-rs .
Not an answer for most people for today, but if folks are feeling agentic, this is where I would burn my tokens. Your timing is actually quite incredible; I picked up my project again & have been burning the last tokens of my weekly quota on open screen protocol today!
(Don't get me started on what a frelling turd show MatterCast is. Last I checked it was for native apps, and had no means to distribute or find programs, only could work with apps already on the castee. Miserable evil capture-computing shizzle, with zero aspirations to ever allow the just works interoperability that made Cast so amazing. Truly captured device ecosystem, of Official Partners anti-consumer villainy. Vomitously disgusting, makes me feel much worse about Matter in general seeing how wretched that looks.)
What I don't understand is what the actual hardware needed to run on a "regular" TV is. Do I need to buy a Raspberry Pi 4, connect via HDMI and cross my fingers that my TV remote will work with whatever open source TV software is out there? I am surprised that I can't find something more like a complete product for sale with software + dongle + remote.
More like horror movie ads show up for my toddler between watching Zoboomafoo and Little Bear, that was the last straw. I know there are other solutions for that particular problem like DNS ad blockers but I am ready to move on to a completely new and less tracky system.
Your search engine of choice doesn't list anything related to alternative systems? If thats the case then you already know the answer to your question. If not, then you already have yout answer anyway.
There are however little more than tech demos for it. There's still a significant body of unresolved questions. Theres very limited amount of effort going in. But there are some very nice libraries too, such as https://github.com/youtube/openscreen-rs .
Not an answer for most people for today, but if folks are feeling agentic, this is where I would burn my tokens. Your timing is actually quite incredible; I picked up my project again & have been burning the last tokens of my weekly quota on open screen protocol today!
(Don't get me started on what a frelling turd show MatterCast is. Last I checked it was for native apps, and had no means to distribute or find programs, only could work with apps already on the castee. Miserable evil capture-computing shizzle, with zero aspirations to ever allow the just works interoperability that made Cast so amazing. Truly captured device ecosystem, of Official Partners anti-consumer villainy. Vomitously disgusting, makes me feel much worse about Matter in general seeing how wretched that looks.)