Lenovo has announced one of its first TV products. Lenovo Cast is a small device that you can connect to your TV via HDMI, allowing you to mirror your smartphone or tablet screen onto the TV.
Lenovo Cast announced
Lenovo hopes to take on the likes of Chromecast with its small box. It does not work the same way but it accomplishes some of the same tasks.
By using either Miracast or DLNA the devices can mirror your smartphone, tablet or PC screen onto the TV. It works with Android (4.3), and select Windows 8.1 and iOS devices, according to the company. It has built in WiFi and supports up to 1080p resolution. Lenovo says that it has less than 200ms latency.
Whereas systems such as Google Cast (on Chromecast) and Airplay (on Apple TV) can hand off the stream link to the device in the HDMI port of the TV, Lenovo Cast will typically – but not always – have to keep a constant mirror stream from your mobile device active. It will allow you to mirror most things, including video, photos, and apps, but in these instances it will drain your battery, fast.
Lenovo Cast will be available worldwide in August for $49. More specifications are available here.
