I'm Chromecasting! (Updated)

The box arrived this afternoon, and I had a tiny hiccup -- non-transmitting SSID WiFi / password setup -- that actually didn't require me to do anything but to hit the 'cancel' button, leading to the device automatically connecting.  The hardest part was my self-doubt on whether I remembered my WiFi password correctly, then searching to find a piece of paper that I had thought I had written it down on, only to realize that I still haven't written it down, but then realizing that I need to login to my router using direct (CAT5 cable) to my netbook.  In the end, all was for naught because I did have my password correct, and I just needed to hit the 'cancel' button in the setup at the right time.  :P

So here's my deal: my TV has a powered USB port, so I just had to connect the mini-USB-to-USB cord to that, and I didn't have to connect it to the power strip.  As soon as it was attached, the LED turned on and I set up my Chromecast via my laptop.  After adding the Chromecast extension to Chrome on m laptop, I was ready to go.

So, first thing I did was to stream Transformers: Dark Side of the Moon via Youtube, the movie that came with my Nexus 7 last year.  It's streaming at 720p and looks awesome...better than DVD!

People, this is awesome!

---

Update:

Some interesting things to note:

• By tab-casting Chrome tabs, you can watch free Hulu (or any website with streaming video) on the big screen, but the audio is split second off from the video; not as bad as old Kung-Fu movies, but it is noticeable.  Watching it on the laptop and on the TV screen, it's obvious now that there is a 2-second buffer in the video.  I suspect this will eventually get fixed via some future firmware update.
• Yes, you can watch your entire library of ripped videos (mine are wrapped in .mp4 / .mkv), by simply dragging and dropping it into a Chrome tab, then casting that tab.  It also employs the 2-second buffer.  The video is a bit jaggy if you run it at 720p, so I run it at 480p, but it looks really good -- that probably has a lot to do with my TV being plasma.  For what it's worth, my digital video content sits on a network attached hard drive.
• Tab-casting Google Play Music works well, which isn't a big surprise, since it's just audio.  But the point is, that my audio library is about 3/4 ripped and uploaded into Google Play Music, so now I can easily stream it to my Harmon Kardon receiver and Polk Audio bookshelf speakers, and it sounds great!
• After installing the Chromecast app onto my smartphone and tablet, I can cast music from Google Play Music, directly to my TV / receiver / bookshelf speakers from either device, from anywhere I'm at.  This is the easiest method to get music going, and oh, did I mention it's freaking awesome?!?!

Without reservation, I can say that this is exactly what I had wanted. :D