Chromecast home screen may get weather info and photo update

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., April 9 (UPI) -- Google is planning to add enhancements to the home screen of its popular video-streaming dongle Chromecast, including weather information and custom wallpapers.

Currently, the Chromecast home screen displays only the time with alternating Chromecast wallpapers in the background. News of the update came from a Reddit user, named asjmcguire, who found multiple references to weather forecast and PNG, an image format, in the HTML source of Chromecast home screen.

While the PNG images are currently blank, the Reddit user suggested that "presumably this means we could at some stage get the weather natively on the screen."

asjmcguire also found blank photo descriptions and locations of photos, suggesting that Google could allow users to display more pictures or wallpapers from online libraries.

"We're always experimenting with new features, but have nothing new to announce," said a Google spokesperson when asked by Gigaom about the company's plans to add new features.

[International Business Times] [Gigaom]