If you have a Google Home, you have been enjoying this feature for a long time now. You could resume your latest Netflix series or play your favorite Spotify list. No other iteration of the Google Assistant could do this. But as in the last week, Google finally lets you cast content with your phone.
It works with both music and video. You can specify the Chromecast by name or simply saying “my TV.” If you don’t have default music or video provider, the Assistant will prompt you to set one up. After this, you can use commands like: “play my favorite music on my TV” or “play a video on my Chromecast” to see it on the big screen. But that’s not it, you also get playback support. You can “skip this one,” “play the next,” or “raise the volume to 100% on my TV” without even looking at your phone. As always, you can do this manually with the Google Home app. You can go as specific as requesting a playlist, an artist, or a song; Netflix series will resume where you left it off.
If you have a HDMI-CEC enabled TV, you can go as far as turning your TV on and off. The Assistant will understand “turn off my TV” but if you feel like saying something else like “good night” you can set up a shortcut to the Assistant’s settings and achieve the same effect.
I also recommend you to try “let’s get spooky” as a Halloween easter egg.
Now we just have to wait patiently for that Plex support.
