- Stream blockbuster movies and hit shows through Amazon Instant Video, Netflix, M-GO and more. Play the latest hit console video games through OnLive, or crank out your favorite tunes from iHeartRadio and Pandora
- Access to the Best Entertainment: Google play lets you purchase the latest music, movies, apps, and games right from your TV screen
- The Power of Google TV Search: Google TV Search pulls in results from virtually any source - live, local or streaming - making finding exactly what you want easier and quicker than ever
- Touch, Point, and Tap with Ease: The Co-Star universal smart remote looks and feels just as outstanding as it functions, packing a touchpad and full keyboard for easy and intuitive navigation
- Fast Connections Without Wires: With integrated 802.11n Wi-Fi, Co-Star connects easily to your home's wireless network for superior streaming quality and Web access without the unsightly wires
The Co-Star is a pretty small unit, approximately the same size as a couple of decks of cards. The remote is at least twice as thick as a normal remote because it has a keyboard on one side (more about that in a minute). Setup of the unit was very straight forward, although not as fast as a Roku. But then again, the Co-Star isn't a basic device like the Roku; it is much more powerful. Regardless, the setup was pretty easy...it walks you through pairing the bluetooth remote with the box, then adding your cable box, TV, soundbar, etc.
The remote will take some getting used to. Personally, I've had ZERO problem using the keyboard on the back other than the fact that my eyesight isn't great and identifying some keys requires me to put on my glasses. You might read some negative comments regarding the remote not registering keystrokes. My guess is that is because the remote has a built-in safeguard that only registers keystrokes when the remote is held/pointed properly since the remote has keys on both sides. As long as you're holding the remote fairly parallel to the ground, it works fine. If you're kicked back holding the remote like a paperback book, it probably won't work. The button layout on the non-keyboard side is very good...no issues whatsoever. The remote will work about anything; I easily paired it with my Philips TV, a Vizio soundbar, a Tivo HD, and an AC Ryan PlayOn HD media streamer. My only serious criticism of the remote is that it lacks any type of backlight...this coupled with my poor eyesight makes using the remote a pain unless the lights are fully on.
If you're not familiar with what Google TV is, you should probably go watch some videos on YouTube before purchasing. Basically, it's a version of Android--the same operating system used on a number of smartphones. The OS has been highly tweaked for use on TVs, however. Still, you have access to the Google Play store, the Chrome browser is built in, etc. As mentioned earlier, I was primarily needing a device to replace a dying Roku that I used to stream Netflix. The Co-Star has a Netflix app and it is awesome. So for me, as long as just that one feature worked well, I was covered. But Google TV has so much more to offer. First, the Google Music app is available. Google lets you upload 20,000 songs for free (which I had already done). I can now stream all of that to my TV, pumping it through my sound system. I also side-loaded the Amazon MP3 Player app which lets me stream all my Amazon music purchases from the cloud. GoogleTV has an really nice YouTube app that actually makes YouTube on a big screen compelling. There are some cons with the available apps--the app store on the Co-Star is not nearly as good as what you'll find on your Android phone or tablet. There are far fewer apps available and Google has done a poor job with app-discovery to assist you in finding apps that are compatible with Google TV.
One of the big selling points of the Co-Star (and GoogleTV) is the way it integrates with your existing cable/satellite service. It takes the video in from your cable box (via an HDMI cable) and passes it through the Co-Star, then on to your TV via another HDMI cable. This let's you overlay your TV programming with stuff from the Co-Star, use a better TV guide, etc. I don't have cable or satellite; I use an antenna to pull in OTA programming. However, I do run that through a Tivo HD (series 3) box which gives me the HDMI output...it works pretty darn good. If you have regular cable or satellite programming it should be even better for you.
Is the Co-Star a perfect device...no. Some folks will hate the remote control or some other aspects. As much as I like my Google TV, it is not for dummies (like the Roku). Roku devices are ingeniously designed to be dead simple. They achieve much of this by limiting functionality. The Co-Star probably isn't a device I'd give my elderly parents but anybody who is comfortable tinkering around a smartphone will be able to figure everything out without a problem.
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I own two Logitech Revues and was eager to upgrade to a newer Google TV with a faster processor and more RAM. Unfortunately, what I received was a half-baked device with hardware and software malfunctions. I am in the process of returning it and going back to the Revue, which had its issues, but were fewer and farther between.It was easy enough to setup. The same process as my Revue. Unfortunately, after finishing the setup process I was presented with a blank screen. I left it on for a few minutes guess that it was booting up still. Eventually I had to unplug the unit and hard reboot. It turned on and immediately prompted me to install a firmware update. Sure! Low and behold, after the update finished I was presented with another blank screen. I unplugged/replugged and the box booted up as normal (note: I haven't had the blank screen issue since, aside from when it freezes after about 24 hours of uptime).
I quickly noticed three things:
1) Vizio did to Google TV what cell phone manufacturers have done to Android phones: They put their own UI on it. Keeping in line with expectations, their custom UI is not nearly as full-featured or snappy as the stock Android Google TV experience (owning two Revues, I can say that confidently). For example, the settings menu is not nearly as full as the normal Android settings. I still can't find out where it shows my used & available storage on the device.
2) The remote was not going to cut it. The remote was one of the more attractive parts of the Co-Star compared to the Revue when it was first announced. One side is your standard TV/DVR remote; the underside is a QWERTY keyboard. Using an accelerometer (I think), it knows which side is facing up so you don't have accidental button presses. The problem is that the accelerometer is very sensitive . So when I have the remote held at a slight angle, the buttons don't work. It, basically, needs to be flat one side or the other. There is also no "Cancel/exit" button on the remote. Say you type in the wrong channel number and want to back out. There is no way to do so. The two "Back" buttons will change you to the previous channel. It's strange and a big oversight.
3) I missed the Harmony features of the Logitech Revue. For the most part, I could customize any button on the keyboard of the Revue to a specific function. With that device, the first thing I did was change the "Fast Forward" to "Skip Ahead." I couldn't make any kind of changes to the Co-Star remote. Whatever it downloaded as the keys for my devices was what I was stuck with.
The Co-Star Box: It is super tiny. I wondered how they were able to cram all that hardware into such a tiny form factor. It didn't take long to figure out that the form factor would lead to constant overheating and freezing of the device. Vizio's advice (indicated below), was to turn off the box at night. No offense to the energy savers, but a Google TV is not a device meant to be turned off mainly because it just takes so long to boot up. No one wants to wait 60 seconds for their TV to turn on (this isn't the 70's). There are no lights and no on/off switch/button. It is very utilitarian.
The Remote: As I said above, the two key downfalls to the remote are the remote not working at certain angles, and not being able to customize the keys. It really was nice to have a smaller remote. But I also felt (compared to the Revue) that having to flip the remote over and over to switch from mouse to keyboard was getting extremely tedious. It was a great idea, but not a great result.
Random gripes:
There is no way to switch the input, so I can't change my receiver to anything with this remote.
There is no way to turn off the system sounds (like a chime when selecting something in a menu).
The interface "ghosts" at times you push a button and nothing comes up but you can't push any other buttons. It happened a lot pressing the bookmarks button. I push it and nothing happens, but I can't do anything else until I press the "back" button. The device thinks that the bookmarks are showing, and I could even blindly pick one.
It is bad with switching between audio outputs from my receiver. So, when watching TV it is outputting in Dolby and sounds fine. Then switch to stereo when a commercial comes up there is a good 1 second hiccup for the Co-star to adjust to the stereo input. Then, a 1-second hiccup again when the Dolby comes back.
PROS:
Chrome browser is quicker.
Small remote compared to Revue.
Quiet (no noise, really).
At a $200 price point, this could have been the best Google TV hands down. With a bit more time put in to the interface (or just using what Google gave us!) the gripes I had with the UX would have diminished. At a $200 price point, they could have afforded the "cooling fans" that my Vizio rep so defensively stated it does not have.
What's worse? I paid $110 for the device ($10 shipping). Now to return it I have to pay for shipping and a 10% ($10) restocking fee. So, $10 to receive, $10 to send back, and $10 for them to put back on the shelf. $30 to rent this for 30 days. If I had only waited 4 more weeks I could have gone through Amazon and paid nothing to receive or return the device. A $30 mistake. Vizio has really lost any future purchases from because of this whole experience.
Here is an excerpt from the transcript with a Vizio representative on my chat to return the Co-Star. Notice that he admits the device will overheat, but that it's not a design flaw:
Brett: Why are you wanting to return your CoStar?
Robert Alexander: It overheats and freezes, and the interface does not work correctly.
Brett: Afre you turning off the CoStar when you shut off your TV?
Brett: Are*
Robert Alexander: No.
Robert Alexander: Because then it takes an additional 60 seconds just to watch TV.
Robert Alexander: Waiting for it to boot up.
Brett: Well, because of the form factor of the CoStar there are no colling fans and if left on for extended periods it will overheat and freeze and not work correctly.
Robert Alexander: I understand; to me that is a design flaw, though.
Robert Alexander: It was not worth making such a small box at the compromise of overheating.
Brett: There is a 10% restocking fee and you're responsible for shipping costs
Robert Alexander: I currently own a Logitech Revue and do not have these issues with that box.
Robert Alexander: I understand. I am willin gto pay that although the device is defective.
Brett: No, the device is not defective.
Read Best Reviews of VIZIO Co-Star Stream Player With Google TV Here
I've owned the Co-Star for about 2 months.Initially I thought it was a neat gadget to try out to see if I wanted or needed Google TV on the next big screen TV I would purchase. I also wanted to find that 1 tech device that will control everything (tired of having multiple remotes, etc.) I also figured that since these are on back-order (lack of supply) that I could resell it easily if I didn't like it.
Install and overview:
Co-Star took about 5 to 10 minutes to install and sync with everything, and has worked flawlessly since. It connects and controls everything in my entertainment system with no issues. Great device, the software keeps updating and getting better (my Co-Star is receiving software updates automatically from Google). The layout of the apps, and the navigation is better than the typical Vizio TV apps (for those of you that are familiar with the Vizio Apps layout). The new layout / navigation takes some getting used to just like any new technology. And like every new technology, it can use some software improvements. However, for $99 this far exceeded my expectations.
The issue concerning the Co-Star remote control:
The best thing about Co-Star is that I finally have a device / remote that consolidates and commands EVERY product that is hooked into my entertainment system. This is a huge plus! The Co-Star remote has a high degree of programability. It controls my Toshiba TV. Controls my Samsung Time Warner cable box.. full DVR control, access the guide, settings, search, schedule recordings, ff/play/rev, scroll in every direction, everything on the cable box! Controls my LG Blu-Ray surround sound system. XBOX 360.
The layout / design of the remote is probably my only "complaint" about the product. The Co-Star remote is similar to every other Vizio TV remote... which are not backlit. My brain is just too wired into the button layout of my Time Warner cable remote that I have always used.... I can navigate the Time Warner cable remote if I were blindfolded, wearing mittens, while in a straight jacket. So not being backlit is the reason it is difficult for me to use the Vizio remotes in the dark. However, I downloaded the free app called ABLE REMOTE. This app turns your cell or tablet into a remote, it has bigger buttons, is much more intuitive, and is easier to use. It is so much easier to navigate than using the Co-Star remote's touchpad. It also allows you to program favorite channels, websites, etc. Honestly the ABLE remote app is better than my Time Warner cable remote. It's better than the Google Remote app too!.
As for the big 4 items that I typically use:
Netflix & Pandora work just like they should. Netflix layout is better with Co-Star than a typical Vizio TV apps.
YouTube is very intuitive, & I like the Co-Star's YouTube layout / functionality. You get used to it very quickly, and you can scroll through 'related' videos amazingly quick. Again better than Vizio TV apps.
Amazon VOD took some getting used to, because Co-Star does not use the standard Amazon "app". Co-Star essentially takes you right to Amazon's website through the Chrome browser, then you navigate to your Amazon playlist / watchlist just like you would typically do on a laptop. So, this is very different from what everybody has been used to with the Amazon "app" on Roku or Vizio TV's. The upside of using Amazon VOD on the Co-Star is that you can utilize Amazon's Watchlist functionality, and browse / search for titles much more thoroughly. However, I do wish that in addition to the full Amazon VOD website, that Amazon would have a simple "app" interface that had just 4 items: Purchases, Watchlist, Prime, and "go to full website". This would simplify the process of watching the movies I've already purchased or that I want to watch (instead of having to navigate to it through the browser).
Other than the big 4:
Inernet. It's a full Chrome browser. Syncs with all of my Chrome settings and bookmarks on my other devices. Works and looks the same as using my laptop. Using the included Vizio Co-Star remote isn't the easiest way to type and search the web on your TV.... so download the free ABLE remote app to your cell / tablet and you can type on your phone / tablet just like you currently do while using your TV as the display. It's 100% easier to browse the web this way.
Google Play Music. Very nice feature to have on the TV screen. Google Music has been around for awhile, but I never really used it.... it was simpler to just use a playlist on Pandora through my entertainment system. Now that I've got the Google Play Music on the TV screen, I'm listening to my own playlists and the 1000 or so albums that I've actually purchased in my life, instead of always just using Pandora playlists.
Google Play Movies. app works and integrates with all other devices. Also, Google Play Movies is very specific and lets you choose between buying a movie in SD, or buying in HD. It shows the price for either side by side, and lets me choose if I want to spend extra money for the HD version. Amazon could take a lesson here.
Google PrimeTime. Nice to see what else is on TV that I might want to watch. This is somewhat like the suggestions you get from Netflix (Netflix suggests what you like based on how you've rated past titles)... Google PrimeTime is suggesting movies / shows that are currently (or coming on in next 1/2 hour) on your cable TV that you may want to watch (just like Netflix... on Google TV you have to start rating movies and tv shows for this to work well). Hoping for the ability in future software update to select my own "categories" instead of the standard "New", "Comedy", "Drama", etc categories that are currently used. ...just like I can customize the categories and the viewing order of my Google News sections..
Google PrimeTime also allows you to search for a movie, and it will show you all the places you can watch the movie (On your own cable TV, Netflix, Amazon, Youtube, etc) and if you can rent it, or buy it, and the costs associated for each. This is a very nice feature, avoids the time involved with searching through my own Cable system, then searching Netflix, then searching Amazon to see where and how much a movie is that I want to see.
I think the Google PrimeTime app has a ton of future expandibility. It's been updated once or twice since I've owned my Co-Star. They could link it with Google Drive, then essentially you have full TiVo / DVR capability. Again, this is at a $99 pricepoint all in, while currently Time Warner charges $10 / monthly rent per cable box. I'm interested to see what the Google software developers can do with the PrimeTime app.
M-Go... still waiting to see what this is.
OnLive... I don't play video games, so no opinion.
Other apps?? I haven't really used anything else, but there's a bunch of other stuff there.
Syncing to cell phone / tablet:
The coolest thing about Co-Star is the ability for it to sync with my Android cell phone and tablet. I'm just learning how to use this, but it seems that the possibilities will explode very quickly. While using certain apps / features on my cell phone or tablet, I can hit a "share" icon on the phone's screen and the TV will display whatever is on my phone's screen. Photo's, slideshows, etc. When I'm using YouTube on my phone or tablet, I can hit the "share" icon on the phone / tablet and the video instantly starts also playing on the TV. I can then search and add more videos to the "view on tv queue" on my phone without interrupting the video that is currently playing on the TV. I think that this sharing functionality is part of the most recent update, and it is very neat. I'd hope that very quickly every app on my phone / tablet will allow this.
Within the next 6 months, I don't see the need for specific Google TV apps for things like Facebook, Twitter, etc. It feels that Android capability to link your cell phone / tablet to the Co-Star is going to solve the entire issue and make it simpler than anybody imagined.
The devices sync using your home wifi.
Conclusion:
My current 50" TV is 6 years old and works well. I bought it before all the new gadgets were invented, so I've used ROKU, Blu-Ray players with apps, and now the Co-Star to make my old TV much more functional. Roku and Blu-Ray player were both very simple and basic, but VERY limited and maybe 1 or 2 software updates over the years. The Co-Star was the least expensive, and best performing, and IMO has the best ability for ongoing software updates.
The Co-Star is not perfect, it doesn't yet do everything in the world that all the technology reviewers are dreaming of... but it is getting software updates that have eliminated most of the initial complaints and improving the apps. So make sure to read the date of any reviews you have read. My review is as of today, Dec 20, 2012.
It doesn't wash your car, cook your meals, take out the dog, have every app in the world, etc... so if you're dreaming about and waiting for THE DEVICE that does everything you want specifically for your own preferences and likes, then you're probably going to need to win the Powerball and hire your own engineers to build it for you.
For $99 Co-Star is a great device for anybody that wants to use or try out internet capabilities, and begin using unified Android phone / tablet / TV capabilities on THEIR CURRENT TV set, prior to spending $1000 to $2000 for a new TV that will become outdated within 12 months. I believe that within 6 to 12 months, simply having the Co-Star communicate with your cell, laptop, or tablet will trump the idea of building the hardware into a TV set or some other gadget.
And, for $99 it is a flat out great device with a lot of current capabilities that will only improve because Android keeps evolving and getting updated.
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Having owned a Logitech Revue for about a year, I was in love with the Google TV platform but knew there were many bugs with the software. The other problem with it was that there was no guaranteed upgrade path for the Revue since Logitech abandoned the product. Anyway I purchased a Co-Star the moment they went up for pre order. It is the most feature packed streamer on the market right now by far. Here is a run down of the features:1. Play StoreThe Co-Star is a full Android device with access to a wide variety of Apps that can enhance the viewing experience. A couple of apps I really enjoy are Plex, and Redux. Plex indexes movies, TV shows, music, and photos on my PC and then streams them to the Television Via the Co-Star. For TV, Movies, and Music Plex will automatically provide metadata and info such as descriptions and artwork which is really nice. It also automatically Trans codes (converts) files on the PC that are incompatible with the Co-Star which is nice if you work with obscure video files. Redux provides a curated YouTube experience based on Channels. Editors find video based on certain categories and it gives you a new way to watch TV.
2. Chrome BrowserThe Co-Star comes loaded with a fully featured Chrome browser with Flash support. This is particularly useful if a certain content provider does not provide a compatible app in the Play Store. Services Like HBO Go and MLB at bat are compatible. It can also be useful for doing a quick status update if your phone is not nearby or if you need to do some quick look up of something.
3. SpotlightSpotlight utilizes Chrome to provide the user with several Web applications for various content providers such as TBS, Crackle, HBO Go, Amazon Video on Demand, Etc...
4. Live TV integrationThe Co-Star has HDMI pass-through for Live TV. This means if you have an HD cable box you can plug it into the Co-Star and Google TV software overlays over your live TV. the advantages to this are listed in the next two points. Google TV also allows for Picture in Picture if you want to quickly browse the web or go into an app like IMDB during a commercial break.
5. TV and Movies AppThis app is an Awesome way of discovering TV shows and Movies. As you rate content it recommends more content to you. If you select a movie it will tell you How you can watch that movie. Right now it will tell you the next time it will be on live tv, if it is on youtube for rent or purchase, Amazon, Netflix, Crackle, or HBO go. Television shows also work the same way just it shows you how to get individual episodes. The other feature of this app is the ability to browse Live TV. Based on your ratings it will recommend shows based on genre or category and then tune your cable box to that channel in order to watch it.
6. SearchGoogle Is the king of search. Searching on the Co-Star will search through Live TV, TV and Movies app, YouTube, and the web. It makes finding content really quick.
7. YouTube Lean backThis is by far the best YouTube experience. You can browse through subscriptions, live content, other channels that people have created. Once you select a channel it just keeps playing related video. It works really well.
8. OnLiveThe OnLive service allows for streaming of games to the Co-Star. This means that if you have the OnLive controller you can play a wide variety of PC games right on your TV for a small fee (cannot recall what it is). You can also watch others play games on the service for free.
As great as the Co-Star is, it is not without its flaws.
1. For starters it is still based on the Android Honeycomb platform which brings some Lag and other bugs. This will hopefully be fixed with Google TV version 3 rumored to be coming out soon.
2. Another Flaw is the lack of support for certain services, namely Hulu Plus and Vudu. Without Hulu Plus (which according to hulu.com is coming) many people that would get this to cut the cord will not benefit from this.
3. Services like Amazon, and HBO Go do not have dedicated apps. Both of those services default to the standard website for browsing content and it is not as fluid as a dedicated app would be. Hopefully those will come soon. At least services like Crackle have customized websites for Google TV.
4. The Remote while somewhat large is actually pretty good. The Problem with it has to do with how it handles IR. Since Google TV can control your TV, Cable set top box, and Receiver it needs to be able to send IR codes to those products. With other Google TV Devices (Logitech and Sony). The IR is on the box itself. On the Co-Star it is on the Remote itself. This makes it more difficult to deal with 3rd party remote apps for my phone. I have to make sure power saving mode is off on the remote then I need to place it in a location that keeps it pointing at my home theater devices. This can drain the battery on the remote quicker and be a hassle.
Overall I have really enjoyed my time with the Co-Star and hope that it gets speedy updates to fix the minor issues i have with it (i know the remote issue cannot be fixed). I am rating this 5 stars because in my mind there is no better set top box on the market, with only Roku and the new Boxee coming close.
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We bought the CoStar while it was in pre-release. That said, I think several of the negative reviewers here have failed to mention that they were using a pre-release unit. While the hardware of the pre-release units is the same as the current full-release units being sold here, the firmware is not.Upon receiving our CoStar, we had some of the difficulties mentioned in other reviews... HOWEVER, these units have been updated several times to fix those issues.
TODAY, we are thrilled with our purchase of the Vizio CoStar. It does exactly what we wanted it to do; it streams our digital files (video, photos, and music) wirelessly from both of our computers, it also has popular apps built-in such as Netflix. There are plenty of other apps available (free and paid) to play music, movies, and viewing photos.
In short, I don't know what sort of magic box others thought they were buying but this is a content delivery device. Meaning it delivers content you already have such as cable, digital video files you already own, music from your computer or cloud service. There are a lot of helpful things built right in, like the "Search" function; it works great, just enter a movie or TV show you want to watch then it shows you the options from Google Play, Netflix, Cable, etc. If you use an Android phone or tablet, the Google Play store is here with lots of apps (not every app is available in TV format but a great deal of them are here.) and you can also purchase music and video from Google Play. There is a quick link for Amazon Video-on-demand that takes you to the full selection of Amazon Video in the Chrome web browser. I wish Amazon would just build an app for GoogleTV but I'm sure they have some kind of licensing muckery with the networks and studios they work with. For now, the Chrome browser works just great for viewing Amazon Video.
As for some of the networks blocking the GoogleTV Chrome browser, who cares? If you are using cable, you can watch it on their channel; if you're not, watch something else, it's their loss of viewers and ad revenue. You have plenty of choices to watch.
To sum it all up: I would recommend this unit for anyone that is capable of working a smartphone. My grandma? No, because you DO need to understand how to use things like apps and browsers. I would also recommend that your HDMI cable is up-to-date with the latest protocols. The Amazon Basics cable is fantastic and only about 6 bucks.
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