I basically gave up on finding a custom ROM for this TV so I’m looking for alternative TV apps to at least change the default app. Do you know if there is an app like this exist? It should work with satellite, I’m not looking for IPTV or streaming services, just something that supports plain satellite TV.
Edit: Currently experimenting with KODI, no luck yet though. If you also have suggestions regarding to it, I’m all ears.
Edit 2: KODI (and so Jellyfin, Plex etc.) needs a backend server for Live TV so add-ons alone won’t work. According to KODI Wiki, currently there are no backends that work on Android. I also tried Google’s older app called Live Channels but Google doesn’t let you to run it because it’s old more useful.
Edit 3: I at least blocked all of those ad streaming domains on pi-hole. Here is the regex I added to my blacklist. Maybe it will be useful for another poor soul who bought TCL TV.
^(.*\.)?(leiniao\.com|b-cdn\.net|now\.amagi\.tv|huan\.tv|rttv\.com|kaltura\.com|cloudfront\.net|plex\.tv|otteravision\.com|ads\.ottera\.tv|sofast\.tv|akamaized\.net|jwplayer\.com|fuelmedia\.io|molotov\.tv|mcncdndigital\.com|evrideo\.tv|aniview\.com|partytymestreaming\.com)$
Stremio
The general consensus seems to be “buy a dumb TV or at least the dumbest ‘smart’ TV you can find and never connect it to the net” and then “buy the media box that behaves the way you want.”
Where I am, cable and satellite TV providers still have you rent a box for their service.
Edit: the lone review on this page suggests there is an “old” TCL TV app. Another but they don’t have good reviews…
I’m full behind of buying a big monitor and plug a mini pc or raspberry pi kind of thing. But my mother wanted to experience smart TVs, no matter what I told. So here I am, trying to reduce the damage. :)
By the way, that first TCL app is still included and it’s way worse than default TV app.
Get her a universal remote, seamless experience
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It’s paid but I use Sideload Channel Launcher. Best customization I’ve seen
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=dxidev.sideloadchannel4
I checked it but it’s just a launcher that changes the UI, it doesn’t replace the default TV app.
It definitely does replace the TV app however…if you have shield you need another app to do that
https://www.mediafire.com/file/kzirqjm1ww73ry4/TDUK_LauncherManager-ATV_1.0.3.apk/file
Found this from a kind soul at reddit who uploaded this their MediaFire.
This works as I use it and I never see that horrible ad ridden tripe.
I checked both apps and all I got is this:
Which is just a launcher where I place shortcuts. I put the TV app on it to show. If there is an app inside this to replace it, I’d like to hear. However I couldn’t find anything like that.
No the default TV app doesn’t go away if that’s what you’re looking for. The launcher bypasses it though. With both of these apps the sideload launcher starts up at boot and you never see the default one. It’s almost like it has been replaced
There are no other options.
That’s what I’m talking about. I want to replace the default TV app, not the launcher. Though it seems the tuner is vendor locked so I won’t find any alternative most likely. And the easiest thing is to get a separate satellite box and plug it into HDMI and use that instead of the built-in one. That launcher manager works great though.
Oh shit I just read this you want to replace the LIVE TV.
Yeah I think those “channels” are pulled from Xumo and Pluto.
You can get the same (but not integrated) experience by installing both
Yes, exactly. The app I have to use to view satellite channels but there are also some bullshit channels inside, and they are a lot, like 20K+. No idea what Xumo or Pluto is but if that’s all maybe it’s possible to block them via pi-hole. Though probably they’ll still occupy the channel list because when internet is not connected those channels still occupy those places.
That’s baked into android. Not going to happen. You could try ADB commands to disable the stock launcher but I highly advise NOT disabling core android functions as there may be unintended consequences.
As what they used to say on the Internet" “there be dragons.”
Yeah it seems so. It sucks that it’s not possible to use it peacefully. I wouldn’t disable the core functions as well. I once disabled the default file manager on a phone and learned surprisingly almost everything is tied to it. :)
Think I use FLauncher, gets rid of ads on the home screen, and Smarttube for youtube. Instead of Netflix etc, I host my own plex server on my gaming pc for whenever I wanna watch some linux ISOs
I wish I could get those Linux ISOs through satellite tuner.
Smarttube
It’s great and already installed.
- Invest in an Nvidia Shield
- Install LineageOS Android TV
I have two of these in the household, one of the best tech investments I made. No more homescreen ads.
I would install LineageOS if it was possible, there are no ROMs. I’m not even sure if the bootloader is unlockable.
I was able to unlock the bootloader and root my Hisense Android TV just fine. I think you can also root TCLs, but I’d check xda first.
I didn’t even need to enable OEM unlocking first to unlock the bootloader. Dumping the boot.img was a different story. Someone did it for me for my model, since my model’s UBoot firmware is missing a lot of functionality. You may have better luck dumping through UBoot using the UART interface, or maybe there’s an alternative. If your TV is a GKI device and you can boot a generic kernel, yhen you can use KernelSU without needing to first dump the stock boot.img (or init_boot.img), then you might be able to upgrade and dump the stock one from the other partition before rebooting
I couldn’t figure out how to get into BROM mode on my TV.
Make sure there is a reliable way to reflash the firmware in case of a brick. Hisense provides firmware packages that can be flashed from the bootloader without needing to boot an OS.
That’s the initial thing I wanted to do but there seems to be no ROM for this TV yet. I really prefer this to replace the default app.
I just hope there is some work from some developer but currently I don’t know any.
Mine doesn’t have a custom ROM either because Hisense refuses to release the kernel source for my device. Didn’t stop me from rooting anyway. Magisk/KernelSU modules can also do a lot of heavy lifting for replacing things.
Sounds nice. What can I do with rooting though? Since there isn’t a replacement for the default TV app. I know I can remove the TCL stuff, but besides that? Also, now I wonder if shizuku would work too.
Shizuku would absolutely work. I can use adb either wirelessly or through a USB A to USB A cable with the 5 volt line cut (which is also how I interact witth fastboot). Activating developer settings is as simple as tapping build number 7 times, like on every Android device.
Rooting can help you replace built in apks. For example, there is a Magisk module that lets you replace the system’s WebView with an alternative, like the one from GrapheneOS, for instance. App signing is the problem here, so that’s what that specific module helps bypass.
Modules work on top of an OverlayFS, which essentially lets you write to /system without actually writing to /system, similar to rwfus on the Steam Deck.
Also your current TV app is one made by TCL and not a stock Android app. I wonder if it can be substituted with a different one from a different vendor, or maybe an older version of the TCL app. The only issue I forsee is if the app attempts to communicate with hardware in a non-standard way. Alternatively, I wonder if you block internet to the TV app using a firewall if the TV functionality would still work without showing ads. There is AFWall+ if you’re rooted and DNS/Android VPN based firewalls if not. There is also DNSNet, which is a DNS based ad blocker that uses Android’s DNS service.
That’s nice to hear. I wouldn’t mind playing with shizuku to see what can I do.
Modules work on top of an OverlayFS, which essentially lets you write to /system without actually writing to /system, similar to rwfus on the Steam Deck.
I see. So if something goes wrong, I can do factory reset without any problems. I guess.
I actually did another way. I blocked these streaming domains on pi-hole. Now none of those ad channels can connect to internet. I’m assuming the list would also disappear if I factory reset and rescan the channel list, those ad channels wouldn’t get into the list in the first place. Cannot try this right away but will definitely try this.
This is why I recommended a Shield for which there is an actively maintained LineageOS. Yes, it’s an investment, but well worth it nowadays.
Not sure when we’ll fed up but I’ll keep this in mind, barely 2 years passed with this TV.
I’ve never used the tuner/TV part of my sony x900f, only HDMI inputs and apps. Is google pushing ads to live tv now?
Not exactly like that but there are 20K+ ad TVs in the same list with the satellite ones which has only 400 channels. It is possible to switch to satellite only list but it always reverts so you have to do this every time. So I need either a separate app or the modified version of this current one. However it’s possible that TV producers most likely don’t open their SDKs so no one can create an app without reverse engineering.
Oh wow, that sounds highly inconvenient. I wish it was as easy to re-flash android TVs as it is to re-flash android phones. Best of luck, and keep us updated if you find a solution!
Yeah, it is. To be honest, I lost hope for all-in-one solution. Currently the cheapest option seems to be get an HDMI satellite tuner and plug it in one the of the HDMI ports and use that as a TV source instead of the built-in one.
Thank you! If I find an app solution instead of this, I’ll edit my post. I can also try installing a backend for DVB-S on the network and connect the TV and use KODI but apparently that also requires a separate tuner, so the previous one seems easier.
I’m not aware of an alternative TV App for android tv. On my android TV live tv is also wrapped within the android interface but other sources like HDMI inputs are not.
If you can switch to HDMI sources outside the android apps then maybe the best thing to do is get a separate basic satellite tuner device?
It seems shitty that google are effectively hiding your inbuilt tv tuner behind an app with all their advertising and other crap.
Yeah it sucks. I believe it shouldn’t be hard to replace the default TV app but I couldn’t find any alternative so maybe it is.
It is technically possible to use a separate tuner but my mother got this TV because she didn’t want a separate box laying around in the first place. So I don’t think she would want that. Personally I’m a home server guy but I don’t want my mother to use her TV with Google’s bullshit either.
Projectivy launcher.
I don’t have traditional TV service so I’m unfamiliar with what “shit” Google is pushing through the TV app. However, if it’s what I suspect (ads), a possible option would be using a local DNS server (like pi-hole or Unbound) to block Google domains on your TV.
It’s worse. They add “personalized” ad TVs between the normal ones so these clutter the whole list. While it’s technically possible to just use the satellite list, it’s not a default behaviour and always revert to it when you switch to something else. While adding the domain on Pi-hole would solve the streaming part, it wouldn’t solve the cluttering part sadly.
With my android tv I put the main menu in “Apps Only” mode to cut down on the ads… There is still the main screen ad you cannot avoid but thats it.
Then i sideloaded SmartTube, which is youtube but it skips the ads for you.
I also have a Plex server i stream from.and update by torrenting shows to the server separately when theyre interesting enough. This takes more time and effort but is definitely worth it to have control over your media.
There are no ads in the UI (thanks to launcher) but the problem is not the ads. There are ad TVs in between the TV channels list, which you can switch to satellite list to lose them but it’s not a default behaviour so every time you had to do this, which is not convenient. I also sideloaded SmartTube but was hoping to find an alternative to default TV app as well.
Oh sorry for misunderstanding. Its difficult to fathom watching scheduled programs anymore, but old habits do die hard. Best of luck to you.
Yeah they do. :) Personally I don’t watch TV at all when I’m alone but this is my mother’s TV. Also no problem! And thanks!
By “default app” I assume you mean the launcher. Just google for “android tv launcher”.
If by “plain satellite TV” mean using one of the input sources on the TV (like HDMI, component, RF etc.)… this is unrelated to the launcher and would still work regardless of which one you used.
No, I’m not looking for a launcher. For example this is FLauncher but it doesn’t change the default TV app, it just changes the UI.
This is a built-in TV app along with the other apps where Google pushes things I don’t want to see.
What “TV app” is this exactly? I’ve never seen or heard of that before, and none of my google/android TVs or dongles have anything like that.
Also what make and model TV is this?
They basically hid the satellite tuner behind this with an app and it’s plagued with Google stuff. Now I have checked the app details and it says
com.tcl.tv. It didn’t occur to me before since I don’t know any other Android TV, so thanks for this. That’s nice to know. So what is the default TV app on standard Android TVs?The TV is TCL P635 by the way.
By satellite do you mean like a dish physically plugged in with a cable? I wasn’t aware of any “app” used for that on any TV… I just switch the input with the remote to like HDMI/component/RF/etc. and the normal android tv interface goes away completely.
Exactly. The DVB-S tuner is included in the TV. There is indeed input switch that includes HDMI 1,2,3 and AV and yet they made the TV input only accessible through an app.
Sounds like this might be specific to your brand of TV. I have a Sony and there’s a bunch of Sony junk on there that I disabled a long time ago. But my TV app doesn’t have any ads in it yet. I’m guessing your manufacturer added ads to their TV app and made a deal with Google to use them as the ad provider. Unfortunately, those apps are relatively proprietary since they are supposed to be primarily just a simple UI for the tuners and so mostly hardware specific. Not saying there aren’t replacements, but likely that would require someone to reverse engineer some of of the hardware firmware’s APIs rather than web APIs that most apps interface with and aren’t guaranteed to be the same across models. Those are only available if you own an actual TV, so it’s less likely to exist.
Anyway, my point is that your searching probably needs to focus on the TV rather than the Android/Google TV platform as a whole. Look on forums devoted to the TV brand. You may have more luck.
The other alternative might be to block the ads on your router, but that may or may not work or cause some unintended inconveniences. For example I have Google’s DNS blocked and my wifi constantly drops and reconnects even when I only want to watch locally hosted content because the TV thinks it’s offline and needs to fix the connection.
I actually checked XDA but there seems to be no ROMs currently. Maybe it’s possible to unlock the bootloader, I saw an OEM unlocking option while wandering developer options. But without a ROM it’s useless. Maybe someone will make a ROM but no idea.
I’m guessing your manufacturer added ads to their TV app and made a deal with Google to use them as the ad provider.
Yeah, it’s most likely this. And that’s why vendor locked it as well it seems.
The other alternative might be to block the ads on your router
Heh, I actually did this and will edit the main post for what I did.
Not sure about that launcher as I use Projectivy launcher, but I have the ability to hide certain apps. On it, my home screen only has the apps I use, nothing else no ads no “suggestions”
Launcher is not the problem here. The built-in TV app is the problem, as you cannot watch satellite without it and I couldn’t find alternatives for it. So it’s not possible to remove those “suggestions” from the whole TV list.
I think you need a different hardware solution entirely. If your goal is satellite, get a dedicated satellite box and feed it directly to you air gapped TV, and switch HDMI like the olden days.
No android box that supports streaming (with associated DRM and therefore bullshit) will offer true privacy. If you don’t care about streaming and want to integrate satellite into your own selfhosted content, try mini PC with an openELEC variant that supports multiple input, or use an AVR to feed multiple sources into it.
Well, technically it’s my mother’s TV and I’m trying to find a solution for the useless and infuriating parts of it. I installed SmartTubeNext for Youtube for example. But this default TV app is plagued with Google’s bullshit. The older TV had a satellite box and at least it didn’t have these problems. I suggested a custom Android box previously where I was gonna install a custom ROM but she didn’t want it, so I have to improvise.
Satellite TV is transmitted as DVB-S. Normally the TV itself does not decode it, but an external box.
How is the Satellite signal getting to your TV?
Yeah, the older TV had a separate box for it but that’s included in this one. Just plugged into the cable that connects to satellite dish.
