One advantage Fire TV has long had over Google TV is its broader support for cloud gaming apps. On Fire TV, depending on your device, you can download Amazon Luna, GeForce Now, and the Xbox app. On Google TV devices, however, without sideloading anything, your only real option is GeForce Now, since Xbox, arguably the biggest cloud gaming platform, still doesn’t have a native app for Google TV.
Back at CES 2026 in January, there was renewed hope that Google TV would soon be getting the Xbox app, as TCL announced that its newest flagship TVs would be the first Google TV devices to support Xbox Cloud Gaming. However, the announcement came off as a bit strange at the time, since Microsoft had never acknowledged or confirmed it. But now, almost nine months after CES 2026, that’s finally changed.
In a recent Xbox blog post, Microsoft confirmed that the Xbox app will launch on select TCL smart TVs “in the coming months.”
Microsoft didn’t say exactly which TCL TVs would get the Xbox app first, but at CES 2026, TCL said it would initially launch on its X11 series of TVs, all of which run Google TV. That means a native Xbox app for Google TV could finally launch before the end of the year.
Quiz
Google TV trivia
challenge
How well do you know Google’s smart TV platform?
From its origins to its quirkiest features โ put your Google TV knowledge to
the ultimate test.
HistoryFeaturesHardwareStreamingAndroid
In what year did Google officially launch Google TV as a replacement for Android TV?
Correct! Google TV was unveiled in 2020 alongside the Chromecast with
Google TV. It replaced Android TV as Google’s primary smart TV platform, bringing a more content-forward
interface built around recommendations.
Not quite. Google TV launched in 2020, debuting with the…