Chromecast bug when losing internet

[ravenlost]

Hello,

This is more to report a (kinda annoying) bug with the Chromecast. Here are the details to reproduce:

1. Open your TV / chromecast and load a KIDS profile: for convenience, set the allowed viewing time to minimum value as to lock the screen when this time is reached.
2. Lose your internet connection.
3. At some point, you will not be able o stream i.e. youtube kids, etc.
4. Let the viewing time timeout kickin to get the locked screen for kids.

Actual Results:
When trying to unlock the screen, it will fail to do so, because it seems to try and authenticate on the internet!

Expected Results:
Unlocking screen should NOT be dependent on internet connectivity!

In my case scenario, sometimes we lose our internet connection while my kid is watching youtube.. (okay, sometimes it'll be ME that blocks the internet with FW as to force-stop my kid from watching **bleep** stupid youtubers, but that's my thing to deal with :p). We want our son to at that point stick with PLEX and only stream stuff from my NAS which is adapted to him. But then, he'll timeout at some point and can't even stream on Plex because of this bug preventing unlocking the screen.

Thanks.
Patrick

[Byteguy]

The problem is that you are trying to run without an internet connection.

Chromecast devices require an internet connection at all times.  Even when you are streaming from Plex or mirroring local content on your phone.

That's how they were designed; as soon as they know they have lost the internet (and run out of their buffer), they stop and require you to restore that connection.

[ravenlost]

Hello. Thanks for your reply.

However, I'm sorry, but this makes no sense to me! I recall having been able to turn on and use my Chromecast WITHOUT internet connection. In no way should it depend on internet connectivity just to unlock the screen! If it wants to complain about no internet while trying to stream from youtube, etc. then yeah, that's fine! But the device is made to also stream from local network, i.e with Plex, Kodi, etc. and that should always work!

I never saw a mention on the package's box saying "Requirements: internet connection at all times". To me, that is unacceptable and should definitely be fixed by Google. If Google says they want to hear feedback, and they don't listen, then they are just all show and my esteem takes a serious hit! But again, I'm just a nobody....

[Byteguy]

Google has never made a Chromecast device that didn't check the internet and stop if it couldn't connect to the outside world.

Yes, you can stream local content, but the device still checks and stops when it isn't available.   That's how it has been since the first generation Chromecast.

There are other streaming devices that may not require internet.  Miracast is another standard.  But, some of those also require internet while some do not.

The box does say that it requires a WiFi Network.  Yes, I would prefer it says "WiFi Network with Internet Access", personally.

Keep in mind, you are NOT talking to Google here. This is an open forum and we are users who are volunteering to help other users. We do not work for Google and we do not speak for Google.

[ravenlost]

I get that this is not an official Google bug reporting platform. I searched for one, but all I found were instructions on sending feedback FROM Chromecast / Google home app.

Would anyone know how / where I could submit bug report for Chromecast? I'd also like to submit suggestions regarding parental control (i.e. we can block youtube channels from phone devices or desktops, but NOT from chromecast youtube app... I would just LOVE to be able to block a few idiot youtuber's channels - but that's another subject and is probably youtube's responsibility to adapt the app in chromecast I'd assume?)

Anyhow, thanks for your time and responses.

[Jeran]

Thank you for helping out on this thread, Byteguy!

Hey there ravenlost,

You can submit feedback via Google Home. You can submit any bugs you've encountered as well as any feedback you would like to pass up. We take all feedback seriously, and the more feedback we receive regarding a specific bug or feature, the more likely we are to prioritize it.

Let me know if you have any more questions. Otherwise, I'll go ahead and lock this thread in 24 hours.

Best regards,
Jeran