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Goodbye GoogleTV, hello Android TV?

I've used GoogleTV via a low-cost 808 Android box and it's a nice alternative to broadcast TV or DVDs.

These days however, the android box sits in a box in the wardrobe -- superseded by the Raspberry Pi running XBMC.

Unfortunately, the Pi has gotten a bit flaky of late -- XBMC becoming corrupted and requiring a complete reinstall on several occasions. This reinstallation process is a pain in the backside because it requires hooking the box up to a hardwired network and HDMI monitor while it re-downloads all its various files and components.

I suspect the problem is that my USB-style power supply just isn't quite delivering the required current to ensure reliable operation of the Pi when doing heavy HD video work. To try and resolve this, I'll be repurposing an old PC power supply which can churn out 5V at 10A all day long.

However, Google is apparently about to release its own box tentatively labeled "Android TV".

Yes, Google already has the Chromecast dongle but that isn't a stand-alone way to get video onto your big-screen TV. Chromecast is more of a relay box, reliant on other hardware (such a a tablet or smartphone) to really deliver its full potential.

Android TV is looking as if it will be a bit of hardware very similar to AppleTV and will be purpose-built to deliver a full "entertainment experience" to TV users.

While the little Android-based GoogleTV box did the job, it was always little more than a repurposed ARM-based Android box that was forced into the role. Android TV will be designed from the ground-up to be a Net-TV, gaming and media box.

To he honest though, it's hard to see how Android TV will be that different to GoogleTV and the limitations intrinsic to that concept.

Perhaps Google is simply playing a "me too" game with Amazon, which has recently announced its own FireTV box and service.

What Amazon has going for it is ready-access to some good quality content and it's content that sells entertainment hardware, not features or bullet-points on a webpage.

Google's Android TV will almost certainly have apps for Netflix, Hulu and other content services but it's hard to see how Google will make its usual fist-full of money if they're simply selling boxes without taking a clip on the ticket of the content that is watched.

Even the concept of an Android-based gaming system is nothing new and hasn't really been successful in the past.

So which way from here?

Is the future to be built around high-powered games consoles (such as the PS4 or XBox) which can also deliver streamed HD movies and TV to the living room?

Or is it going to be dominated by media boxes such as the Amazon Fire and Google's Android TV that can also play games?

I'm picking that cross-over (ie: boxes that attempt to be all things to all people) isn't going to be a big feature.

Most folk will opt for a decent media box PLUS a decent games console, as separate and therefore individually useful and upgradeable units.

I doubt anyone will really care about the hardware that delivers their fix of Netflix -- just so long as it's affordable and works reliably.

Google may find they're an "also ran" in this market -- being a little too late and delivering too little when compared to the others.

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(Sorry, forums are stuffed at present)

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