Jordan O'BrienGoogle Play will now play host to a range of 4K content, ideal for getting the most out of the company’s recently launched Chromecast Ultra. Unfortunately, as of right now the Ultra HD content is restricted solely to those whom reside in the US or Canada.
Gradually more 4K content is being made available to the public as new TVs flood onto the market. Google Play’s initial range of 4K movies includes recent releases such as Ghostbusters, Star Trek Beyond, Captain Philips and The Secret Life of Pets.
While Google is far from the first company to get involved in the 4K streaming marketplace, the company is utilising its own technology to stream the content. The VP9 codec was initially released by Google in 2012, and promises lossless compression with support for video resolutions beyond Ultra High Definition video
In the US and Canada, users are able to get access to more than 125 movies in 4K resolution. The movies can be purchased on either an Android device or the web, but they can only be streamed on a set number of devices. Those devices currently number three – the Chromecast Ultra, Sony Bravia’s Android TVs or the newly-launched Xiaomi Mi Box 3.
The most surprising hold-out in terms of the devices supported has to be the Nvidia Shield TV – which was the first dedicated 4K streaming box to run on Android TV. Nvidia Shield TV users already have a place to get 4K content from however, Netflix.