Google says it has stopped manufacturing the audio dongle. Another day, another dead Google product. Today, Google is discontinuing the Chromecast Audio. The company told Android Police it has stopped manufacturing the audio-only version of the Chromecast, so when the current stock runs out, the product will presumably be gone forever.
The official reason Google provided for discontinuing the Audio line was that they already had many products for users to enjoy their music and podcasts. They informed customers the Chromecast Audio would still be supported but no longer manufactured.
A redditor in the UK originally reported that the Chromecast Audio order that they placed over the holidays was cancelled. Google Support reached out to say that this cancellation was because the Chromecast Audio had been discontinued and thus no more stock would be coming in.
Why is Google discontinuing the Chromecast audio dongle?
And that’s why it’s such a shame Google is discontinuing the dongle today. The company provided The Verge (and Android Police, earlier) with this statement: Our product portfolio continues to evolve, and now we have a variety of products for users to enjoy audio. We have therefore stopped manufacturing our Chromecast Audio products.
What happened to chromecast audio?
Since its release in September 2015, the Chromecast Audio has been a quick and easy way to add smart functionality to standard speakers. Unfortunately, after being on the market for just over three years, Google is discontinuing the product.
What happened to the Chromecast Audio?
We will continue to offer assistance for Chromecast Audio devices, so users can continue to enjoy their music, podcasts and more. While the Chromecast Audio has indeed been discontinued, it is still in stock in most countries’ Google Stores, United States included.
Being able to simply ask Google to “play Bill Withers on the stereo” and fill the living room with the soothing sounds of ‘Lovely Day’ certainly made things easier. But now the Chromecast Audio is dead. And I have to hope mine never gives up the ghost.
The Chromecast Audio was Google’s audio-only version of the Chromecast, and by plugging it into the auxiliary jack of a speaker or stereo system, it allowed users to beam music from their phones to their speaker system effortlessly.
Is Chromecast Audio worth $35?
I didn’t want to buy completely separate speakers just for streaming audio. And the $349 Sonos Connect is a tough sell. But at just $35, the Chromecast Audio was a tenth of the price. I immediately bought one for myself.
In this week’s IRL, Senior Editor Terrence O’Brien sings the praises of Chromecast Audio, which Google killed off in January. But that doesn’t mean he’s giving up on it. On the contrary, it’s now more precious to him than ever. Google has killed a lot of products over the years. Some of them are sorely missed ( Google Reader ).
Should Google add the Chromecast Audio to the Home Mini?
If Google simply added the cool combination 3.5mm/optical jack from the Chromecast Audio to the Home Mini they’d have an addition to Home lineup even better than the Echo Dot. If you have a regular Chromecast connected to your television, you can use it similarly to the Chromecast Audio and beam music to it.
I don’t throw a ton of parties (I’m an old man and a dad now), but the Chromecast also makes “DJing” a gathering much easier. I can tweak a playlist, take requests and generally just act on my musical whims without having to walk away from my guests.
Can you connect a Chromecast to a powered speaker?
Since late 2018 you can group the regular Chromecast into audio groups for audio playback so you could connect these up to an audio receiver using HDMI or to a HDMI audio extractor for use with regular amp or powered speaker. Possibly the next gen Google Home speakers will have 3.5mm output.