Casting your Google Chrome browser to other devices is about to become a lot more simplistic. First reported by SlashGear, Google is testing out a new feature in the Chrome beta that forgoes the need for the Google Cast extension.
The Google Cast extension on Chrome has made it possible for users to connect and send their content to Chromecast or other devices that support Google Cast. Chromecast allows you to play and show content from the Internet on your TV.
The new feature coming to the Chrome browser takes away the Google Cast extension and replaces it with a built-in option to start casting. You’ll be able to right-click on any webpage, hit “Cast…” and start casting to your device.
Through the beta version of Chrome, you can enable the Cast feature via the chrome://flags page and start playing with it now. Enabling the new cast feature will remove Google Cast from your extensions, which you’ll be able to re-install after disabling the feature.
According to Chromium, the open-source web browser project that Chrome draws its source code from, beta updates typically roll out to the standard, stable browser every six weeks.
Chromecast, which plugs directly into the HDMI port of any TV, originally launched in 2013, and an improved second generation model followed in September 2015. Along with casting your browser to a TV, Chromecast gives you access to over 200,000 TV shows and movies, as well as apps like Hulu, Netflix and Watch ESPN. Not all the content is free, and services like Netflix retain their standard subscription prices. You can also cast from your Android device with the Chromecast app.