Stadia on Chromecast TV: What's the Holdup?

Google is clearly working on refining its Stadia experience, but it seems like we're still far from an official launch. Despite several updates and promises, the app's performance remains a disaster, and UI issues plague the gaming experience.

In September of last year, just days before the Chromecast was officially revealed, we took another look at Stadia's performance on Android TV, concluding that it wasn't ready for prime time. Almost eight months later, not much has changed. I've had sessions where everything ran smoothly, but others were marred by bugs and lag.

Games usually play fine, although results vary greatly from user to user. Interestingly, functionality has worked since June 2020 with a Bluetooth controller or the Stadia Controller, albeit with some quirks. Users have also been able to sideload the Stadia app on Android TV devices for months now, playing games without issues.

With the clock ticking and only six weeks left until the deadline to support Google TV, it's unclear what Google plans to do next. When the new Chromecast with Google TV launched in late 2020, it came with a promise that Stadia would be supported in the first half of 2021. Now, we're still waiting.

The lack of progress is puzzling, especially considering the hype surrounding Stadia's potential. For now, fans will have to keep waiting for an official launch and a polished gaming experience on their Chromecast TVs.

Stadia on chromecast tv