Installing the Dongle is easy enough if you have a USB port and a HDMI port on your TV. If you have a smart TV already you don't need an EZcast, but it could come in handy for bringing an older set or monitor online for the big game or whatever. With onsite media it works like a champ just following the instructions. There is an EZchannel that is pretty cheesy in my opinion, but some may like it.
Once installed, you have a wireless display adapter for sure and a smarter TV maybe. Since the WCT runs Android 4.4, it supports a Wireless Display. Just go to Settings, Display, Cast Screen, enable wireless display with the drop down at the right top, then pick the EZcast wireless display which should be available. Once you have EZcast installed, that is all you need for wireless display. No need to load the EZcast app and all that, some times, I will get into that more later. Wireless display though is limited to your device's display resolution. The WCT has a pretty good resolution for a 7" tablet 800x480, but that makes for so so resolution on a larger screen TV. As long as you can enable the wireless display you have a mirror or mirror cast going on. Wireless Display Adapter is pretty boring so mirror casting, casting etc. are the preferred buzz words. As long as your device supports use of a wireless display, EZcast is golden, provided you can live with whatever screen resolution your device, PC, Tablet or phone has.
Windows 7 doesn't support a wireless display. This is where the EZcast app for windows comes in. The app becomes your display driver and you get to play with casting. Windows 7 and DRM protected media do not play well with EZcast. Your videos, pictures, song etc. on your computer will work fine with EZcast, but don't get your hopes up about streaming the latest and greatest from Netflix to your big screen from your obsolete laptop. So far I can get an almost tolerable picture, but since the laptop never was much of a media dream machine, I don't expect much improvement. Windows 8.1 does support wireless displays so you can get so so resolution with that version but to get true HDTV you need the media provider to play well with EZcast. That appears to be a major problem right now for EZcast owners. Chromecast, Amazon's Fire Stick and RUKU along with a few smart TV brands can get true HD, but they aren't really geared for your other media you have collected over the ages. Chromecast has improved in that respect from what I hear, but EZcast is just a touch ahead I believe.
EZcast is fairly well documented and has a good deal of online help groups including a Facebook page. Basic troubleshooting is everything else, USB power, WiFi overload, try reading the instructions before you get into any detail. WiFi solutions can be as simple as moving your device closer to the EZcast and further from other WiFi sources. Most USB service ports on TVs have more than enough power but you might need to use a USB power adapter. Now that I have more USB powered devices I am looking to upgrade my old surge suppressors and power strips to get rid of all the clutter of transformers. There is always internet sluggishness during peak use hours to contend with as well. I only had problems trying to get HD resolution with streaming media and that looks like it will be an ongoing issue and the "some times" wireless display availability.
Nothing much I can do about the HD resolution issue. Since Movies are a big deal with the significant other, I tried movies from Google Play, Amazon and Netflix. Netflix tolerates the wireless adapter so no real problem there other than so so resolution. Unfortunately Netflix doesn't recognize EZcast, so direct streaming to the Dongle for HD viewing is a no go so far. Google Play doesn't even like the Wireless Display so there is no joy in Google Town. Amazon though is a bit different. If you buy a title and have it downloaded to your device, you can use the video feature and get higher quality. All your personal library will play just fine as long as the DRM protection method gets along with EZcast. So you may or may not be able to play any of the newer titles. Netflix doesn't allow downloading so you are stuck with mediocre resolution until they or someone else builds an app specifically for EZcast. I doubt that will happen since there are newer and better devices out and on the way. Snail mail DVD and such will play fine but then you don't really need EZcast for that do ya?
If by some miracle, the EZcast crew can get friendly with Netflix, then an app should let you enjoy real streaming high quality media. With local media you can also use display options in VLC or any of a number of media players where with Netflix and the streamers you are stuck with Silverlight or whatever player they support. Since movie trailers aren't protected I played around with a few options and got excellent sound and video quality. So for $22 bucks you get a pretty good quality wireless display adapter isn't all that bad and could be great with some big media distributor love and a little stream lining.
Now for the "sometimes" issue. I have to say I am pleasantly surprised at how well the WCT and EZcast get along other than the "sometimes" where it is hard to tell who is causing the issue. Inconsistent or intermittent problems can be a real bear. As long as EZcast is on air the WCT recognizes it as a wireless display. There isn't any real good reason why you shouldn't be able to direct connect without going through all the EZcast set up which is just connecting to a wireless display. This fairly involved setting up is a "feature" that should fade into the background after you have used it once or twice. Sometimes the EZcast dongle allows direct connection without loading the EZcast app, sometimes not. What is really a pain is that to use the wireless display or Mirror, the app sticks you in a mirror only loop which requires you to go through the settings loop if you want use any of the other features. That is pretty cludgy. The app should have easier navigation and should drop a few "features" that they recommend not using anyway like Mirro + AP. The more stuff EZcast does in the background the better in my opinion. A simple drop down menu would make it much more user friendly.
Since I installed the EZcast and started writing this they have a new firmware upgrade. That is nice to know. At least for the near future you can expect support and with still developing protocols that could mean most of my gripes will be resolved to some extent.
Now that I have an idea of what EZcast and the WCT can do together, I have an old LCD monitor that I can use for a spare display. That is going to require a HDMI to VGA adapter since the monitor is pretty old, but it might be fun to play around with for the security camera or putting out on the patio where I don't want to risk something more expensive. Since VGA monitors are dinosaurs, tailor made display adapters are a bit pricy. Thanks to Ebay you can get an HDMI to VGA adapter with audio for less than ten bucks which is about all I am willing to invest in the old monitor.
A quick note on battery performance. If there is anywhere that corners will be cut on the World's Cheapest Android Tablet it is the battery. The specs indicate that my WCT came with a 2100mah battery which is on the low side for a 7" tablet. Since there are a lot of folks competing for the World's Cheapest Android Tablet, check the battery capacity before you buy. Bigger is definitely better with anything over 3000mah being a bit rare for cheap tablets. The display is the largest battery draw normally and it looks like WiFi is running a close second. A full length movie runs close to two hours and can drain the battery with both streaming in and broadcasting out with the display on during the process. Since the EZcast seems to work best as a wireless display, you have to keep your tablet display active to see the movie adding to battery drain. If you want to extend your battery life you will need to keep the tablet plugged in to prevent too many draw downs.
EZcast would be a much better buy if did the smart TV thing better. Then it would be doing all the online work and the WCT would just be a smart remote. As it is, for straight streaming you are better off getting a tablet with an HDMI port and building your own EZier caster. Any TV with a quad core processor and 64 GB of memory should qualify as a smart TV and all the media vendors support KitKat. Hardwired the display is "secure" or at least should be so even Google Play should work.
Upgrading the battery in the WCT kind of defeats the purpose, but is an option. A replacement battery runs from $10 for a cheap low capacity to about $20 for an upgrade, so somewhere between a quarter and half the cost of the WCT. Replacing the battery is a bit of a PITA since it is soldered in and you have to pry the case apart pretty carefully to get to it. I don't mind having the tablet plugged in, but part of the fun of the tablet can be passing it around to pick the next video or slideshow. Since you can also play games, you may be passing it around or having a couple of tablets working at the same time. There are a few battery minder apps I have noticed so battery life appears to be a common concern.
On another note, there are apps that claim to allow you to adjust your screen resolution. I looked at a couple and they require complete access to everything and have lots of nasty looking adware. If you want to play with your WCT resolution to improve the EZcast mirror quality I recommend extreme caution.
I am pretty happy with the EZcast/WCT combo, but if I was a diehard streaming video devotee I would have gone another route. Plus if you are a wanna be gamer a bluetooth keyboard/game controller with the HDMI port would make you smile at least for a while.
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