They say you can't trust everything you read on the internet. And while that advice holds true far too often, sometimes there's someone out there who actually know what they're talking about.
This time, that honor belongs to Variety, who reported last month that Vizio would partner up with Google to build a new range of smart TVs that ditch traditional controls and hard-to-maintain operating systems for something a little more pragmatic.
The firm announced this morning that its upcoming SmartCast P-Series Ultra HD HDR Home Theater Displays would indeed integrate a souped-up version of Chromecast directly into the panel, offering a more egalitarian operating system for its customers.
Every new TV in the P-Series, which comes in 50", 55", 65" and 75" variations, will also include a 6-inch Android tablet that will allow you to stream content from apps like Amazon Instant Video, YouTube and Netflix on your mobile device directly to your big screen.
The tablet remote will come pre-installed with the VIZIO SmartCast app, which the TV manufacturer says will display curated content from YouTube as well as traditional streaming services. The tablet features a Full HD (1080p) resolution screen, Android 5.0 Lollipop for the operating system, an octa-core processor and 16GB of storage.
Vizio isn't restricting the remote to a streaming device, however, which means you're free to enjoy games and other apps from the Google Play Store on the device.
The biggest draw for the P-Series is that the Chromecast technology built directly into the TV will support 4K HDR content as well as movies in Dolby Vision, something the $35 streaming dongle currently can't do.
The move to integrate a Cast-enabled device directly into the TV makes sense. Mobile apps are updated far more frequently than apps on the fragmented TV market, not to mention that Cast functionality comes built into millions of devices already in our pockets.
The new line of "Chrome TVs" (my name, not theirs) are available starting today for $999.99 (about $701, AU$1,310) on the panel purveyor's online store and retailers around the country.
