Back at its ‘Breakfast with Pichai’ event, Google unveiled the new Nexus 7, Android 4.3 Jelly Bean and Chromecast. The Chromecast is a unique device that thanks to its usability and cheap ($35) price has sold like hot cakes, until the stocks replenished. Now, in typical Google style, the company is struggling to meet the demands of Chromecast with no estimate as to when fresh stocks for the product will arrive.
In comes CheapCast from Sebastian Mauer, which is a cheaper alternative to the ChromeCast. While Chromecast can turn your TV into a smart media streaming TV, CheapCast can turn your secondary Android device into a Chromecast receiver. The application works exactly like Chromecast, and allows you to cast from any app that was updated to add support for ChromeCasting.
At the moment, the app does not support Chromecasting of Chrome tabs from PCs but the developer is working on it. CheapCast can be particularly useful for folks who own a cheap Android USB stick. They can simply install the app on their stick, plug it into their TV, and then enjoy Chromecasting to it. CheapCast even works on OUYA as confirmed by some forum members, essentially turning the device into an HTPC. Until Google manages to get more stocks of Chromecast, the CheapCast is perhaps the easiest and fastest way to experience the power of Chromecasting in your living room.
CheapCast can be downloaded for free from the Play Store. However, don’t forget to donate to the developer if the app comes in handy for you.