Google TV just announced support for user profiles this week, but it seems that feature is already getting special treatment. The maker of Google’s reference design remotes for Google TV and Android TV just revealed that the option is there for Google TV remotes to have a shortcut for user profiles.
TW Electronics revealed on Twitter that the G20 reference design it produces for Google TV OEMs supports three different options for the button we usually see as “Bookmark.” The three options include:
- Bookmark/Watchlist
- User Profiles
- All Apps
These three options are designed for the three different versions of Android TV OS. The first, bookmark, is meant for “Watson,” the standard Android TV we’ve known with its latest “Discover” homescreen. The second, profile, is for Google TV and its up-and-coming user profiles option. Finally, the apps shortcut is designed for Operator Tier devices.
We do suspect, though, that Google TV devices will have an option for either the profiles or bookmark buttons, as the recently launched TCL TVs use a different remote design that have the same bookmark shortcut, but with Google TV instead of Android TV. From the looks of it, though, future devices with Google TV may ship with a profile button on the remote, which would certainly be a handy feature.
We went hands-on with the G20 and the G10 earlier this year, praising the remotes for their great layouts, tactile buttons, and thoughtful designs. While you can’t officially buy these remotes directly from the manufacturer, it’s great to see that the design is still evolving to best suit every sort of device maker.
More on Google TV:
- Realme beats the Chromecast to India w/ new $55 Google TV stick, remote has a YT Music shortcut
- Google TV now offers integration with Spanish-language streaming service Pantaya
- Google TV starts rolling out user profiles next month on Chromecast, televisions from Sony, and TCL
Author: Ben Schoon
Source: 9TO5Google
