As we reported in January, Google TV was getting an update to offer much better support for wireless headphones with easy switching and quick pairing. And now the update promised in the latest system update for Chromecast with Google TV (4K) has arrived.
The update, which brings Fast Pair to the Chromecast for compatible headphones (including many of the best wireless earbuds and headphones, including those from Sony) two years after its initial announcement, is now launching with the usual collection. of bug fixes and performance improvements. Once installed, you should find that the new features work automatically.
How to get the Chromecast update with Google TV (4K)
The update should automatically deploy to your hardware, but if the new features don't appear, you can perform a manual check by going to Settings > System > About > System Update. The update is 169MB, so it should be a pretty quick download if you have a good internet connection.
The benefits of Fast Pair are quite obvious, as they speed up the pairing process between the headphones and the TV. When you open the case of a compatible pair of headphones, for example Pixel Buds Pro, you should see a pop-up window in the top right corner of the screen letting you know that your headphones are available. Selecting it will take you to the Connect screen to switch to that audio output.
The new audio switcher is potentially very useful because it solves a minor but annoying problem where simply switching between different audio outputs meant navigating through seemingly endless settings screens. That's gone, replaced by a new Audio Out tile along with the screen saver, Wi-Fi, accessibility, and Bluetooth. The tile shows the currently selected audio device, whether it's your TV speakers, your sound bar, or your headphones.
Now that it's difficult to switch to headphones, many people may find themselves using this option if they want to watch something without waking up the family, or perhaps just to be able to hear better when there's noise in the house if you have a pair. of the best noise canceling headphones or the best noise canceling headphones.
The new features are also coming to Google TVs: The new audio switcher feature was demonstrated on a TCL QM8 TV at the CES trade show and should be integrated into new Google TVs launching this year.
