There is no direct app, but you can tell the Google Assistant "Show me my photos" or be specific, "Show me my photos from Friday" or "Show me my cat photos", etc.
tl;dr it's a Chromecast first, Android TV second. Photos need to be curated. No one wants to see all your selfies and nudez on display.
I agree it's weird that a device with an app store has no app for a service that's advertised on the box....but this is first and foremost a Chromecast. Google Photos has been compatible with Chromecast for years. Before this version of Chromecast, the only way to use Google Photos on your Chromecast was to cast from your phone or browser. The same goes for all those other services listed on the box. You can cast all of those from your phone or browser, but now you can also use the included remote to access most of those services. If the device was called Android TV (or Google TV) with Chromecast, expectations might be different, but the emphasis here is still on the Chromecast.
Personally, with Google Photos specifically, I prefer that there is no full blown app. Photos can be private, my TV's STB is a little less so. When -- in non-pandemic times -- it is reasonable for me to have guests over and to be able to trust them with the remote to pick something to watch on my TV, but that doesn't mean I would want that to mean I am agreeing to let them see every single picture I have ever taken or my wife has ever taken (we use the shared library feature and have autobackups enabled). Similar reason why I don't want Gmail on my TV.
Now, sure, I have used my Chromecast and Shield TV to occasionally show photos from a vacation to family and what not, but it is much safer to browse photos on your phone and pick the ones to cast rather than having to scroll through your entire library on the TV and risk any potentially embarrassing photos from being visible. This allows for live curation of content while Ambient mode allows you to use specific albums for a curated display.
I'd like the option of having the Google Photos App.
Only all4 app missing then
Hope this has a good sale during Black Friday/Christmas
Hijacking this to ask a question.
Bit of background. Over the last few years I've went from no Google products to a whole bunch. I've been introducing my mum to the world. Bought her a Google home mini last Christmas and she got some plugs. I've now got her a Nest Hub for this year.
And I'm thinking of getting her one of these. She doesn't really have a real smart TV device or anything. She has access to my Plex server and a Netflix and Amazon prime account. Will this device only show her shows and movies on those two streaming services or will it flood it with content from other apps like disney+?
You can cast photos from your phone via Google photos. Also set up changing wallpapers from your Google photos album
I live in the UK and love it. Just wish it had Apple TV+ integration for starters. It is a great device. The only issue so far is buffering on my 4K Plex movies.
I wonder whether the lack of support from Sky, Channel 4 and presumably the BBC's tight publicity rules, meant that the Google Photos app just fills up the space on the box?
The amount of supported apps looks very small in comparison to Australia, for example.
Do you get iplayer app?
Weirdly I can't cast either YouTube or Photos to mine. I can cast other apps but not those, it only shows other devices in my house
Too many people take too many nude/sensitive photos using their phones. Google knows this. A living room app giving open access to that area off your life is dangerous, no matter how many safe guards you put in place.
Does anyone know if this works with crave tv?
It's under ambient mode. You also have to set it up in Google Home under the settings for the Chromecast... works well.