I bought a 50" TCL Android TV around Black Friday to replace a dumb 40" on our covered patio that had a Roku and 2nd gen Chromecast attached to it. Obviously, I no longer needed either of those peripherals with an Android TV—or so I thought.
While I've been generally pleased with the operation of apps, the built-in Chromecast has been terrible. Streaming almost always freezes for a split-second every 5 seconds or so. The problem is definitely w/the built-in CC because I'm always able to stream the same thing to the CCWGTV in our living room w/o any kind of freezing. And it happens no matter what device I cast from—phone, tablet, or PC.
On top of that, the Google Photos ambient mode on the built-in CC won't let you get rid of the dark shading on the bottom of the screen, on which is highlighted on the left portion "Chromecast built in" or something like that. (Yeah, thanks for letting me know, duh...).
I've since reattached the old 2nd gen CC, and have been able to stream w/o the split-second freezing problem—and see my photos w/o the annoying garbage at the bottom of the screen. Because that all works fine now, it's not worth putting in a warranty claim. But part of the point of getting an Android TV was to have casting built in. Is this an issue that anyone else has had, specifically with TCL?