Google TV's Home Panel Rolls Out Widely to Chromecast and Other Devices

Smart Home Control Now Available Directly from Quick Settings on Google TV

Google has begun rolling out the Home Panel feature widely to Chromecast with Google TV and other Google TV-powered devices, following an earlier Public Preview phase. This smart home control panel brings faster access to connected devices like lights, thermostats, cameras, and speakers — all directly from the TV’s Quick Settings menu.

The feature, originally available on the Google TV Streamer at launch, had been limited to Public Preview users on Chromecast devices. However, as of the last 24–48 hours, the Home Panel is now broadly rolling out to a wider range of users, including owners of Hisense and other Google TV screens.

Home Panel: Key Features

Upon launching their device, users will receive a pop-up prompting them to set up the new Home Panel. The guided setup even enables Nest Doorbell notifications on the TV, mirroring features seen on the Google TV Streamer.

The Home Panel enables users to:

• Control smart devices such as lights, thermostats, plugs, locks, vacuums, speakers, and TVs

• View live feeds from security cameras and receive doorbell notifications

• Quickly access controls directly from the Quick Settings panel

The interface design mirrors the Favorites tab in the Google Home app, offering a familiar and intuitive user experience.

Requirements for Home Panel Access

• Devices must be associated with an active Google Home profile.

• Users must be owners or members of a Home within the Google Home app.

• The feature is not available for Kids profiles.

• No Home Panel option will appear if no smart devices are linked to the Google Home account.

While the Home Panel rollout isn’t strictly tied to a software update, the latest Chromecast with Google TV units running build number STTL.241013.003.12571383 have received access to the feature.

Despite Chromecast with Google TV being classified as an end-of-life product, Google has confirmed that it will continue to receive feature updates — with the Home Panel representing a significant enhancement to the Google TV experience.