In v5.14.1705 beta apk, Auto Play is now available on Android and Android TV.
See https://getchannels.com/docs/apps/usage/auto-play/ and https://getchannels.com/2020/07/24/channels-4-playback-enhancements/
In v5.17.1902 beta apk, the Shuffle feature has been added.
The video player Sleep Timer was also added in this beta.
Thank you for adding this, I can finally dump plex now. A couple of comments/questions though....
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In testing auto play on a Nvidia Shield, it seem to function correctly. However, there were a couple of instances where it pulled up the next episode and skipped head to the 15 minute or 28 minute mark in the next episode. I do have it set to include already watched episodes, but the behavior is confusing to me. I was expecting it to start the next episode from the beginning instead of where it was last left off. I can live with that if it is by design, however, see point 2 below...
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In the case where it skipped to the next episode at the 28 minute mark, that program was already fully watched (it was a 30 minute recording). I would rather "completed recordings" be started from the beginning instead of skipping to that program and just showing the last couple minutes of credits/commercials.
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How does the sleep timer work? I have an OLED TV and my wife likes to leave it on auto play all night. Does it go to a screen that won't cause any potential burn-in? Can you turn the sleep timer off?
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Auto play auto resumes the next episode based on your watch state to pick up where you left off.
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If it resumed, then your episode was not actually marked as watched. Some shows have long credits and even though you’re done watching them, they’re not marked watched because you didn’t watch enough. If the episode was in fact marked as watched, it would have started from the beginning like you expected.
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The sleep timer simply stops playback of the video. What your tv or steaming box does when idle will vary.
Is there any information on the sleep timer (and/or ability to change it/shut if off)? My wife tells me that when it happens the screen turns black, but it shows a logo of the next episode in the bottom right hand corner. It's stuck on the next episode logo with it showing the next episode will start in x seconds, but it just stays on that screen until she backs out. It doesn't trigger any type of screen saver on the Nvidia Shield. Concerns me a little as I have an OLED TV and she falls asleep. It can be stuck on that screen for hours.
That sounds like a bug.
The sleep timer is simply there to exit from the player back to the app. Once the player is exited, the OS will bring up a screensaver or go to sleep as configured.
Ok, thank you. I'll keep an eye out for any future updates and give it another try then.
With v5.20.2323, Stats for Nerds is now available for Android TV devices
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If you turn on Stats for Nerds on a channel and then just channel up/down to another, the box will still be checked but the Stats will be off:
However, if you uncheck it, Stats will then turn on:
It will remain this way until you back out live TV and go back in. I tested this on a TS4K+ with the latest beta.
Also, in HDHR channels, would it be possible to get the signal quality numbers in the Stats?
These features were released as part of v3.5.0
Thanks to everyone for helping to beta test!
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Any chance of having F8 toggle the stats like Netflix?
(I know F4 also toggles stats in Netflix, but I already have a use for F4 in channels.)
i button will do this.
I just accidentally discovered that the Shield TV "Info" command (on Harmony Elite) will also toggle the stats.
(I think this is the first time I've ever seen the Info command do anything in any app.)
Stats for Nerds bug from above is in the full release.
Channels for Android & Fire TV 4.0 was released today bringing almost all of the features from last year's big tvOS/iOS update. Thanks to everyone for helping with this!
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