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Cloudcast - Quick Start
- Install Cloudcast in two or more Android devices
- Pair devices using pairing keys in the devices menu
- Browse the web for entertainment
- Play videos in full view to launch the cast menu (in Android 4.3 and earlier)
- Start videos to launch the cast menu (in Android 4.4 and later)
- Select the device to cast
- Press play in the remote and voila!
- Cloudcast to any paired device in the world!!
Cloudcast - Help & FAQs
Why should I cloudcast? What do I use it for?
Does Cloudcast work with Chromecast?
What is the difference between Cloudcast, it's UNLIMITED & ULTIMATE versions?
Can someone cloudcast to my device without my permission?
Can I cloudcast YouTube playlists?
Why do I have to refresh the remote each time to get the player information?
Can I manually control the player when a cloudcast is in progress?
Why is there a delay in the player response?
While using the remote, I get error messages asking me to retry, why?
Why does it play the video even if my phone is locked?
Can I play music instead of videos?
Do you collect any information on what is being cast?
What video formats does it support?
Why do I have to press the full view icon in some websites to get the cast menu?
Can I cast videos stored in my phone?
I receive too many cloudcasts from my friends. Can I block them all?
Loop control doesn't work in my device, why?
The video continues to play in the browser even after launching the remote, why?
I see the upgrade button even after upgrading to the UNLIMITED version?
In the free version, does the 10 minute time limit apply to the browser or only to the player?
What features does the browser support?
What can I look for in future releases?
What is Cloudcast?
Cloudcast lets you play online entertainment from one device to another device, from anywhere on the planet! The device could be your child's tablet in the next room or a loved one's on the other side of the world! Unlike Chromecast, Cloudcast is NOT limited to your Wi-Fi network and you can stream content from ANY website in your device!
The process of casting through the cloud is called 'cloudcast'. Yes, it's a verb and we invented it! So the term 'Cloudcast' not only refers to the app or the service but also the process itself. Ok, nuff geeking, let's get to the fun parts.
Pairing two devices is very easy. There is no account signup, just enter a pairing key from one device into the other. Browse and play online videos in the web browser and cloudcast them using the remote to any paired device.
Once you start cloudcasting you can pause, rewind, skip, seek, loop, mute or adjust the volume just like you would using a TV remote. You could use Cloudcast to play videos from your phone to a TV using an Android stick even if you're nowhere near the TV! Please note that not all videos in the web are in high definition, so they might not look the same on your HD TV as they look in a small screen.
Depending on your device's Wi-Fi sleep policy you will even be able to wake the device up and play the media. Cloudcast comes with the necessary controls to block devices when you don't want to be disturbed or prefer to get a notification instead of playing the video directly. Yes, if you're pulling pranks on your friends with Cloudcast they could block your device!
You can cloudcast entire YouTube playlists! You can skip forward and backward between videos in the playlist as well. A great way to keep kids entertained even if you can't be right next to them.
Think of Cloudcast as a more powerful Chromecast for the cloud! Cloudcast requires the latest version of Google Play and YouTube apps. It runs on Android 2.2 and above.
Check out the Cloudcast demo here:
Why Cloudcast?!
Cloudcast was born out of frustration with Chromecast. Google released Chromecast in the summer of 2013 but did not allow independent developers like us to publish apps for it. Since we spent months writing code for their "preview" SDK, we did not want all our work to go to waste. That is when the idea of Cloudcast was born - why not use any Android device as a player instead of Chromecast and not be limited to the Wi-Fi network!
That said, we're always thankful to Google for inspiring us in so many different ways. We can't wait to see what other innovations they have in store for us! Thank you Google!!
How do I cloudcast?
Cloudcasting is easy and fun! Please follow the steps listed in the quick start section above.
Why should I cloudcast? What do I use it for?
To have fun, of course! Imagine a world where you can play a video from one phone to another half way across the world! Surprise that someone with a video you found on the web. Entertain a child even when you are not right next to them. Control your TV when it is connected to an Android device from anywhere in the world. Share a laugh with a friend while watching a video with them even if you're in two different places!
Does Cloudcast work with Chromecast?
No, Cloudcast only works in Android devices. One device acts as a remote, which casts the video and the other device acts as a player that plays the video. You could plug an Android stick or any tablet with HDMI output to your TV and cloudcast videos from your phone to your TV. Please note that not all videos in the web are in high definition, so they might not look the same on your HD TV as they look in a small screen.
What is the difference between Cloudcast, it's UNLIMITED & ULTIMATE versions?
Cloudcast comes in 3 flavors - free, UNLIMITED and ULTIMATE:
- The free version contains ads and can only cloudcast for 10 minutes at a time.
- The UNLIMITED version has no time limits and contains no ads.
- The ULTIMATE version lets you organize devices in groups and cloudcast to all of them at once.
The ULTIMATE version is currently in the works and will be available soon. So stay tuned!
Can someone cloudcast to my device without my permission?
No, you will have to pair the devices before you can cloudcast. It involves entering a key from one device into the other, so owners of both devices have to allow each other to cloudcast. You can block or delete a device at any time.
How do I pair two devices?
In the devices menu, use the 'plus' button to generate the pairing key in one device and enter that key in the other device. Enter a friendly name for each device in the other device. From the devices menu for each device, you can choose to block cloudcasts, request notifications instead of playing directly or hide the controls while playing.
Can I cloudcast YouTube playlists?
Yes, when you play a video from a YouTube playlist page you will get the option to play the entire playlist at the bottom of the remote. Check the box next to 'Play YouTube playlist' before pressing the play button, this will cloudcast all the videos in the playlist starting from top of the playlist. You can skip forward and backward in the playlist. If there are any videos in the playlist that were removed by the publisher, you will notice error messages but it will continue to the next playable video in the playlist.
Why do I have to refresh the remote each time to get the player information?
Cloudcast uses the Internet (loosely referred to as the cloud these days) to communicate between the remote and the player. It would be a drain on the devices and network resources to poll the player constantly to update the seek bar. Instead you can hit the refresh button at the top right corner to get the latest player information when needed. The player information is immediately updated when you press any active button in the remote.
Can I manually control the player when a cloudcast is in progress?
Yes, you can manually control the player without interrupting the cloudcast. When you refresh the remote on the other end you will be able to view the updated player information. If you close the player it will immediately refresh the remote.
If you don't want the player to be manually controlled on the other end, select the 'Hide on-screen controls' option for your remote in the player's devices menu.
Why is there a delay in the player response?
It's the cloud! Cloudcast uses the Internet to send commands to the other device even if it is right next to you. You might experience delays due to network traffic and wireless carrier restrictions. Please make sure the app is responsive enough in your devices and networks before upgrading to a paid version.
When using the remote, I get error messages asking me to retry, why?
When sending commands between the remote and the player, sometimes we have trouble connecting with Google's servers, which we notify back to you in the form of popup messages. We let the user decide if they want to retry the command instead of retrying ourselves.
When I cloudcast, what happens if the player is in sleep mode (screen off) or powered down completely?
If the player's Wi-Fi sleep policy (in Android settings) is set to 'always ON' then Cloudcast will wake the device up and play the video. If the Wi-Fi sleep policy is set to 'never ON' then Cloudcast will play the video once the device's screen is turned on. Similarly if the device received cloudcasts when it was powered off, Cloudcast will play the video once you power on the device.
Why does it play the video even if my phone is locked?
The idea here is to instantly share a video or reach someone even if their phone is asleep. If you don't like to be disturbed by cloudcasts then please use the 'notify before playing' or 'do not disturb' options in the settings screen. Also, please be mindful of the player's surroundings before turning up the volume!
Some videos do not play, why?
Not all video websites work in all versions of Android devices. For instance, YouTube videos might not play in older phones (like Froyo or Gingerbread). Please make sure the videos sites you frequently use work before upgrading to a paid version.
Can I play music instead of videos?
Yes, if the website provides a direct link to the music file you will be able to cloudcast music. If the website is using a plugin to stream the music (like Pandora) then you won't be able to cloudcast that stream.
Do you collect any information on what is being cast?
No, we do not collect any information about what is being cast. You can be confident that Cloudcast does not employ any usage analytics either! We would like to know how much fun you are having with this app so please share your Cloudcast stories with everyone in this forum. We'd like to hear from our users but their business is their business!
What video formats does it support?
It plays all video formats supported by Android: 3GP, HTML5, MKV, MP4, WEBM (Android 4.0+).
Why do I have to press the full view icon in some websites to get the cast menu?
Videos have to be played in full view in order for Cloudcast to get the video information and send it to the other device. Depending on the Android version, some websites might play the videos in an embedded view within the web page, like YouTube in Android 3.0 and above. In those websites you'll have to press the full view icon (4 arrows at the bottom right corner) to launch the cast menu.
Also, the cast menu will only launch if you have at least one paired device.
Can I cast videos stored in my phone?
No, you cannot. You can only cast videos that are available online and both devices should have access to the Internet.
I receive too many cloudcasts from my friends. Can I block them all?
Yes, you can block all incoming cloudcasts or set to notify in the settings menu. You could control these individually at a device level in the devices menu. If you don't want to receive cloudcasts from someone after you have paired with them you could delete their device altogether from the devices menu.
Loop control doesn't work in my device, why?
Auto-loop feature might not work in some devices. In the auto-loop mode, the media player might just pause and wait at the end of the video. Please use the refresh and seek buttons to restart the video after it ends. If you run into this issue, please email us your Android version, device make and model. It will help us in improving the service.
The video continues to play in the browser even after launching the remote, why?
In some tablets the emebedded view continues to play even after launching the remote. In that situation, pause the video in the embedded view before pressing the full view icon to launch the cast menu. Then continue to use the remote.
I see the upgrade button even after upgrading to the UNLIMITED version?
Please close and reopen the app to refresh the purchase information. If that doesn't work then close the app again, open the Google Play app and select the Google account you used to purchase the upgrade. Reopen the Cloudcast app for the purchase to take effect. You'll see the upgrade button if you don't have Internet access. Once you regain network access the app will refresh the purchase information and the upgrade button will disappear.
In the free version, does the 10 minute time limit apply to the browser or only to the player?
The 10 minute time limit only applies to the player. You will get a chance to upgrade the player at the end of 10 minutes. There are no time limits on the browser. You can browse and watch videos locally for as long as you want. To remove ads at the bottom of the browser you have to upgrade the browser. If you are using the same Google Play account for both the browser and the player you will only have to upgrade once. After upgrading, close and reopen the app in all your devices for the purchase to take effect.
What features does the browser support?
Cloudcast web browser comes with the following features. If you like these features, please check out Split Browser, which offers plenty more!
- Toolbar
- Address input supports free text search using Google.
- http:// is optional for web addresses.
- Ctrl + Enter key inserts "www." and ".com" when using keyboards.
- Autocomplete address input from bookmarks and history.
- Press and hold an autocomplete entry to open it in a new tab, or in the other half, among other options.
- Navigate backward, forward and refresh web pages when available.
- Press and hold back/forward arrows to view tab history and jump to a page in the list.
- Progress bar indicates the speed of webpage download.
- Tabs
- Starting a new tab opens a web page set in the preferences.
- View tabs that are open in the background, open, replace bookmark or close them.
- Bookmarks
- Add the current web page as a bookmark using the 'plus' button in the bookmarks menu.
- View, open, edit or delete bookmarks.
- Open bookmarks in a new tab.
- Browser
- Open links and images in a new tab.
- Copy links to clipboard or bookmark them.
- History
- Manage history across all tabs in one place.
- Items are sorted reverse chronologically showing the time of last visit.
- Bookmark links from history.
- Delete individual items or the entire history.
- Settings
- Set do not disturb or turn on notifications for incoming cloudcasts.
- Set the start page and new tag page.
- Restore previously open web pages and tabs upon restart.
- Open a new tab when launching to view links from other apps.
- Turn off hardware acceleration to handle display issues.
- View pages in desktop mode.
- Remove controls to widen the address input during entry which is useful in phones to autocomplete.
- Adjust maximum zoom out level effective in most devices.
- Show or hide zoom +/- controls in Android 3.0 and above.
- Remember form data.
- Remember passwords.
- Clear cache, history, cookies, form data and passwords.
- Clear cache, history and cookies when exiting.
- Upgrade to UNLIMITED & ULTIMATE versions (when available).
What can I look for in future releases?
Look for these features in upcoming releases:
- Queue cloudcasts to play later without interrupting the one that's currently played.
- View a log of all cloudclasts received and play them again in the UNLIMITED version.
- Send and receive text messages along with videos in the UNLMIITED version.
- Organize multiple devices in groups and cloudcast to all of them at once in the ULTIMATE version.
How do I contact support?
Please send an email to appestry@gmail.com with your questions and feedback. All emails will be responded typically within 24 hours.