Razer launches Android TV box for gaming

Android TV made a splash at CES 2015, finding its way into Sony, Sharp and Philips TVs. Razer, the PC gaming company, also announced an Android TV product called Forge TV. It is a small box for Android and PC gaming.

Forge TV with Android TV
Razer’s Forge TV runs Google’s Android TV operating system. It is only the second media box running the system, but unlike Google’s Nexus Player box the Forge TV is intended for gaming. And not just Android games, but also PC games.

The small box has hardware that compares to modern high-end Android smartphones, including a quad-core Snapdragon 805 processor, Adreno 420 graphics, 2GB of RAM and 16GB of storage. That should be enough to run even the most demanding Android games.


However, the box can also stream games from a PC using Razer’s Cortex Stream service that is a kind of remote play system that streams the game from your PC onto the TV screen via the Forge TV box. The service is said to provide a virtually lag-free experience in 1080p. For this you need Razer’s keyboard+mouse product, Turret Keyboard, which is also being announced at CES for $129. It is basically a homemade keyboard and mouse plate that you can use on your lap.

Doubles as Android TV streamer
Still, Razer’s box is fundamentally an Android TV box, proving that the TV platform can do many things, including PC game streaming. It will feature all the other apps such as Netflix and YouTube as well as the Google Play TV store. Because it runs Android TV it also has built-in Google Cast.


We had expected to see more Android TV-based media boxes at CES, but we guess Google wanted to promote the system first and foremost in Smart TVs, but gave Razer a go because of its heavy focus on gaming.

Razer’s Android TV box will be available in the first quarter for $99 or $149 with a game controller. Get ready for much more Android TV stuff in 2015.