Google has quietly decided to end support for its beloved original Chromecast marking an end for an era, around a decade after the streaming stick launched in 2013. The news was brought to light by a notice on multiple Google support pages stating, "Support for Chromecast (1st gen) has ended." Users were informed that these devices will no longer receive software or security updates, and technical support will no longer be provided by Google. As a consequence, users may experience a decline in performance.
The end of support seems to have taken effect in late April, coinciding with the last update made to a support page that listed firmware versions for each Chromecast model. While it is unlikely that existing first-generation Chromecasts will immediately cease to function, their functionality is expected to gradually degrade as the surrounding ecosystem evolves and moves forward.
The technology fans are bidding adieu to the gadgets. Saddened by the news a user lamented, “Farewell to the best sub-30 USD gadget in the history of tech. Whoever came up with the idea of chromecasts should receive a special award, seriously.”
It is worth noting that Google had not been actively updating the first-generation Chromecast in recent times. Reports from 9to5Google indicate that the most recent update for the device was released last November, marking the first update in over three years.
This is not the first or one of the first few products which the Pichai-led firm has decided to pull a plug on. Over the years, Google has had a lengthy and ongoing list of products killed by the Mountainview based company.
But Google is not the only one among the big tech companies to kill its products. Amazon execs have been vocal about Amazon’s “fail fast, fail often” culture. While CEO Jeff Bezos has created a dominant global online retailer and cloud computer, he’s led the creation of many duds, too. He famously called the e-commerce giant “the best place in the world to fail” in his 2016 shareholder letter. At Amazon, multiple products came to an end, some due to slowing sales and the rest due to the company’s shift in focus.
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