I have a Chromecast with Google TV in the salon for three years and I love it, but it has died of success. Among the system updates, the basic streaming apps (Prime Video, Netflix, Crunchyroll…), and many others that I install to customize it and squeeze itthe device lives permanently drowned. This is what has its biggest flaw: a scant 8 GB of storagewhich in practice come to nothing.
While cleaning, I found an old 1TB hard drive from an old computer that I dismantled. I decided that before it continued to collect dust, I would have a use for my Chromecast. And yes, it is very easy use external memory to expand your storage. These were my steps to achieve it.
Identify the hardware. The first thing was to know what he had on his hands. It was an internal hard drive (HDD) of a desktop PC, so its size was 3.5 inches. When I looked at the connector I found a SATA (not as “relic” as I thought), the interface of the last decade. With this information, I already knew I needed to convert it to an external drive.
Two essential components. The Chromecast with Google TV only has one USB-C port that it uses for food. Therefore, it is not enough to buy a case to put the HDD in: a USB-C Hub was necessary. This hub is key and must have at least one port with Power Delivery (PD) to continue powering the Chromecast, and a USB-A to connect the hard drive.
I bought a case compatible with my drive (3.5″ SATA) and the assembly was as simple as possible: remove screws, fit the hard drive into the internal port, and close it. Here’s a note: if your old hard drive is from a laptop (2.5″) you will save a cable bothering with this DIY tech. The casing will not need an independent power supply, although it is ideal to avoid problems.
Important step: formatting. Here I had two options: connect it to the computer and format it in exFAT or NTFS or to the Chromecast itself. I ruled out FAT32 because of its 4GB per file limit. This would first make it a unit suitable for storing content and thus playing it, but I opted for the second so that my Chromecast could install apps on it. To do this, I connected the entire set (hub, power and hard drive) and turned on the TV.
|
Maximum volume size |
Maximum file size |
Chromecast compatible |
|
|---|---|---|---|
|
FAT32 |
8TB |
4GB |
Yeah |
|
NTFS |
16 EiB (1,845^7 TB) |
16 EiB (1.845^7 TB) theoretical In practice the limit is around 256 TB |
Requires software |
|
exFAT |
16 EiB (1,845^7 TB) |
64 ZiB (6.4^10TB) |
Yeah |
Convert hard drive to “internal” storage. As soon as the device booted up, it detected the new disk. As easy as going to “Settings” > “System” > “Storage” and clicking on “Delete and format as device storage” to leave everything almost ready. This process takes a few minutes and is essential: it prepares the HDD so that Google TV understands it as an extension of its own memory.
You can even use the hard drive to record live content. The Chromecast has it among its options
Result. The change is substantial. I have been able to install heavy apps like kodi with plugins, VLC, and various light games without the repetitive “memory full” warning. The system still uses the internal memory for essential data, but everything “heavy” goes directly to the hard drive.
Extras. Although I stopped at this point, a USB hub provides more possibilities to give more power to the Google Chromecast. Have you bought or have one with a Ethernet port? You can use a cable to avoid Wi-Fi signal problems and never see the buffer of a loading video again. Or you can also use a keyboard to browse the web.
Cover image | Pepu Ricca for Xataka Android
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