Google takes on the Apple Store. Photo: Google

The world’s first Google-branded store has today opened its doors in London.

Officially dubbed The Google Shop, it’s an Android lover’s alternative to the Apple Store, offering Android-powered phones and tablets, Chromecasts, and Chrome OS notebooks and desktops — as well as a variety of courses and events.

VLC just lost its beta tag on Android, almost three years after making its Google Play debut, and it’s about to get a whole lot more useful. With an upcoming release, the popular media player will get the ability to stream all of your videos straight to your TV via a Chromecast.

Cuuuuute! Photo: Xiaomi

Isn’t that just the cutest little media streamer you’ve ever seen? It’s Xiaomi’s new Mi Box mini, and believe it or not, there are more than 280 components packed into that tiny little thing, which hopes to compete with devices like the Chromecast for a spot in your living room.

Google takes on AirPlay with Cast. Photo: Google

Google today announced a new Apple AirPlay competitor called Google Cast, which lets you stream audio from a whole bunch of popular apps to Cast-compatible speakers. The search giant has teamed up with a number of popular services for its launch, including Pandora, Rdio, and NPR One.

Chromecast mirroring is now available on more devices. Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Android

Google has updated its incredibly popular Chromecast to add a new guest mode that allows anyone in the room to stream content to your device without having to connect to your Wi-Fi network. The Chromecast companion app for Android has also been given a Material Design makeover, while its screen casting feature is now officially in beta with support for a wider range of devices.