Google TV gets a big upgrade

Google announced today that it’s extending all the software features of its new Google TV Streamer to every Google TV device. This includes its smart home control panel, a new sports page, and new Gemini-powered features.

The biggest upgrade for smart home users is the new Home panel. This smart home control panel is accessed via a tile in the quick settings panel and lets you control devices connected to Google Home. You can do things like turn lights on or off or dim / brighten, trigger a Movie Time automation, and adjust your thermostat, all from the remote.

The panel also enables live streaming of connected cameras to your TV, including pulling up a picture-in-picture notification when someone rings your video doorbell. (Only Google Nest doorbells show PIP, but Google says other compatible buzzers will send a notification). You can read more about the panel in my review of the Google TV Streamer.

A new Sports Page in Google TV’s ‘For You’ tab will be a welcome addition this football season. It attempts to collate all your sports content across all your services, including YouTube highlights, and present you with personalized recommendations. (The feature is US only)

Several Gemini-powered AI features announced with the Google TV Streamer are coming to the Google TV ecosystem. This includes summaries, reviews, and season-by-season breakdowns of shows to help you choose what to watch. Ambient mode received an upgrade, adding the ability to create screensaver art with generative AI.

Google says that there are now 150 free channels available with Google TV Freeplay, its US-only FAST option built into the Google TV OS, and an updated channel guide that enables browsing by genre and topic.

Google also revealed that with over 270 million monthly active devices, Google TV is the number one streaming platform globally. It’s expanding the platform to more countries, including Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, and the Philippines, and working with more brands to add the platform to more hardware. This will include Asus smart monitors, projectors from Epson, XGIMI, and Vankyo, and Hisense and TCL art TVs.