Google just staked its – third, fourth? – claim for the living room with the Nexus Player. The search giant announced seemingly out of the blue on October 15 that its Android TV-based set-top box will be available for pre-order starting October 17.
Despite previous leaks of what was then known as Android TV (that's just the name of the platform), the now-confirmed Asus-built box is actually more like a round puck. The all-black, matte plastic device is a 120 x 120 x 20 mm (W x D x H) cylinder powered by a 1.8GHz, quad-core Intel Atom chip supported by and Imagination PowerVR Series 6 GPU.
Ouchies for Ouya (and everyone else?)
Sadly, Google likely just rung the death knells for the crowd-funded Android gaming box with one simple announcement. Google will sell the already-leaked Nexus Player game controller, also made by Asus, separately for a currently undisclosed price.
This move also puts extra pressure on the likes of Amazon; it's Amazon Fire TV is capable of playing any Android game released through its proprietary app store, which is decidedly smaller than Google Play. Apple, with only its AirPlay technology via its Apple TV puck, seems to also be square in Google and Asus's sights with this feature.
Google hasn't said a peep about how much the Nexus Player – and the sold-separately controller – will cost. This is particularly interesting, given that pre-orders start October 17, and the device hits major retailers come November 3. Stay tuned, as they.
- What about that PlayStation TV?
