Google's upcoming Android TV dongle could be called 'Chromecast with Google TV'
The price could be as low as $50
by Ryne HagerThis story was originally published 2020/08/31
4:33pm PDTon Aug 31, 2020 and last updated 2020/09/12
1:03pm PDTon Sep 12, 2020.
Pricing for Google's upcoming Android TV dongle may have leaked courtesy of retailers, including Home Depot, Target, and Walmart. Based on leaked pricing, the new device could run between $50 and $60 when it lands, and come in three colors: Rock Candy, Como Blue, and Summer Melon.
Images from Home Depot's internal systems, via 9to5Google.
Right now, we have two different numbers in the wild. There are the $50 values currently in Home Depot's inventory system, and other retailers like Walmart and Target are promoting a $60 price. One of these must be a placeholder (or some retailers are getting some great launch-day deals), but we don't know which. Also note: The "Abbey" name in the listings above is for the bundled remote, so that will be included with your purchase price.
Either way, Google would be foolish to charge more than competitors like Roku or Amazon do for the Streaming Stick or Amazon Fire TV. $50-60 brings it to about parity with the market's other offerings, and less than the Chromecast Ultra — for those invested in the Google ecosystem, that could seem down-right competitive.
We don't know precisely which shades these three leaked colors could be; while "Como Blue" is clear enough, Summer Melon and Rock Candy could be similar to shades offered in Nest speakers, or something else. There's also a "Snow" that appears in at least one other system — potentially a white colorway.
A release date still isn't known, though details regarding the dongle have been leaking, and it did just cruise past the FCC. I expect we'll hear more whenever Google takes the wraps off the Pixel 5 and 4a 5G — probably at the anticipated yearly Made by Google event, which usually happens in October.
Update 1: 2020/08/31 5:27pm PDT by Ryne Hager
$50 or $60?
Details from other retailers have also leaked, with venues like Walmart and Target disagreeing with the Home Depot price. Sabrina could end up costing $60. (Walmart also has it listed as "Hard Candy," which is hilarious.)
We've updated our coverage with this additional information.
End of Update
Update 2: 2020/09/12 1:03pm PDT by Corbin Davenport
New name, pricing
We have received screenshots from an internal database for the retailer Target, which now displays the Sabrina dongle with the name "Google Chromecast with Google TV". There were rumors earlier this year that Google could rename Android TV to Google TV, matching the name of the company's previous TV platform. As a certain Cylon would say, "all this has happened before, and all this will happen again."
Target's internal systems show the same color variations as the previous Home Depot leak: Rock Candy, Summer Melon, and Summer Blue. Interestingly, the price is listed as $49.99, again matching the Home Depot leak. That would undercut the current Chromecast Ultra by $19, if it is the final MSRP.
End of Update
Source: 9to5Google