Google TV is getting some performance improvements in a bid to offer a faster and smoother experience. Formerly known as Android TV, Google TV is the operating system powering a number of popular streaming players and smart TVs. The OS is most commonly found on Google’s own Chromecast with Google TV, but Android TV on various other devices has also been upgraded to Google TV. As more devices are released in the future, the footprint of Google TV will continue to expand.
With this being a re-envisioning of an existing operating system, it is still new in the grand scheme of things, and this can also mean that some users encounter issues. Performance is a common one with Google TV, and one that Google is now looking to improve on. Specifically, Google’s announcement says that it has made various CPU optimizations and improvements to cache management to improve how quickly the Google Home screen loads up after turning on the device. The company has also looked to make the navigation experience smoother in general as well.
Essentially, scrolling down one of the tab pages or switching between the tabs should be better now. These speed and smoothness improvements also extend to switching between profiles, including to and from Kids profiles. Continuing with the performance-related improvements, Google also says that Google TV now uses less RAM than it did before. The idea here is that once someone actually starts watching something, they can expect the streaming experience to be more reliable and consistent than it might have been before.
Another important change that Google has now confirmed is improvements to the way Google TV-powered devices handle storage. One of the main issues with devices like the Chromecast with Google TV is that they are quite limited on storage which inevitably means they are limited in terms of how many apps can be installed on the device. While Google can’t magically increase the storage capacity, it can find ways to better manage the existing capacity and that’s exactly what the latest changes look to do. One such way is the introduction of a “Free up storage” option in the Settings menu. With this option, the user will be able to more easily clear cache and uninstall redundant apps, helping to free up space.
Google also says that it has now made some other behind-the-scenes changes that will automatically help to free up space for users. This is in addition to improving the app installation process as well. According to Google, some of these features have already rolled out to Chromecast with Google TV devices, while others will be coming soon, and all of them are also due to make their way to other Google TV devices in the future.
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