Future platforms

Most devices (including the Fire TV ones) support HDMI-CEC, so you can continue to use your TV's remote to navigate your third-party streaming device.

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I actually chuckled reading that as someone maxed out at 15 devices on my hub remote. :wink:

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Easy to do I have a Sofabaton that can have 15 devices ... but I set it to to control devices in any room I am in. That Includes TV's FireTV Shields soundbars etc... I got tired of trying to find remotes in other rooms.

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I am maxed out on my Harmony hub at 15. When I get something new, I have to delete a device. First world problems. :slightly_smiling_face:

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Not having native Samsung & LG TV apps is missing a huge part of the market. I realize there is added expense, however 1) this represents a huge number of current & future customers and 2) having anything but a power cord and a network cable attached to a TV is rapidly becoming passé. [Needless expense, complexity, and mess (unless you are a zip tie and bracket ninja).]

[I am apparently going to have to decide in 30 days whether I really want to buy more Apple TV boxes. I (probably) do not, and I do not want to add any other new devices to my home.]

[[Edit: even having the network cable is old school; I like the stability of having video on a wire for fixed viewing locations saving bandwidth for wireless devices.]]

Maybe the higher cost smart TVs have slightly better processors and performance, but after 1-2 years most of my smart TVs' built-in apps are borderline unusable because of how slow it is. Clearly the devs have determined that trying to maintain more apps for more platforms isn't worth their time.

If you don't want to buy more Apple TVs because of the high cost, you could go with Android TV-based sticks (Chromecast w/ Google TV, TiVo Stream 4K), or Fire TV Stick 4Ks.

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And maybe Channels could do a Free Chromecast/google TV with annual subscription?! That could probably be a successful campaign for new and current subscribers on the fence because of their current system?! Just a thought.

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I’m sure anyone in the non US market will feel very left out of that idea, as international shipping wouldn’t be worth it.

Back to the Samsung idea app, I can completely understand why they wouldn’t, I have a Samsung smart TV, and the smart aspect hasn’t been used in years, Netflix last I checked was a sluggish pointless mess, I primarily run Amazon fire sticks now powered by the TVs own USB slots.
I don’t know how more modern smart TVs fair these days, but over the past 6 years, I’ve watched most of the smart premium features disappear from my TV including voice control, social integration and games.

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If we are rehashing old threads about future platforms. I may as well join.

I upvote if LG WebOS

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Upvote as well for webos

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I think adding any additional platforms would be a support nightmare that would only take time away from developing good stuff that benefits everyone. Buy/borrow/steal a supported streamer.

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Apparently WebOS has the same limitation as Roku and requires the use of their system video player. (At least, that's the word over at the Silicon Dust forums.) if that's genuinely the case, then it's not going to be possible.

I rescind my vote for other platforms.

Can I just get all features on my android. I invested to heavily in shields to go buy apple.

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This is the answer. Many Smart TVs don't even support newer apps.

It's easier to upgrade a $50-$150 box than an entire TV.

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Please reconsider creating a native Samsung Tizen App (which I think would be a port of your Android App). Samsung maintains the second highest CTV use in the US while Roku is #1. Samsung has just started licensing Tizen and thus likely to see an increase in Tizen Streaming devices soon.

Roku keeps 50% share of North America CTV market in Q1 2022 (pixalate.com)

This is never going to happen from a team as small as ours. We can’t afford to develop and maintain an app of our size for platforms that routinely sunset their hardware like smart tv manufacturers do.

For anyone that’s reading this, unless you see us announce something, nothing you say in a forum post is going to convince us otherwise. This is our plan, and nothing in the industry has changed to change this for us.

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Why don't you guys just buy a Chromecast with Google TV? It starts at $29.90 and it works so great. Every single TV in my house has one.

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sarcasm
All I heard is we need to grow Channels DVR member base. So you earn more money and can hire more staff.

@Everyone go buy extra subscriptions you dont need. NOW! 1 subscription isnt enough. Buy 1 per TV.

Also @Everyone_Else go right 69 reviews for channels all giving 5stars. Do it now!

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What I heard is that Channels is not going to adapt to a changing market and ultimately go the path of Blockbuster Video, Kodak, and so many more that fail to adapt.

I would like to see Channels grow and expand. This is the best app and OTA service I have used.

All the apps we need are on Tizen except Channels. Many in my household prefer using the native Tizen apps despite having the Apple TV (or some other streamer) to use the Channels App. I am just saying there is a big market for this app on Tizen.

Regarding all of these calls for additional platforms:

  • Tizen is Samsung's proprietary Linux-based OS that is only used for their non-WearOS watches and TVs. It shares no real connection to any other toolkit or platform, and therefore would have to be wholly developed from scratch. Additionally, its base OS is not regularly updated, and has many security issues.
  • Roku may be the largest streaming device platform in the US, but that is simply because they sell cheap hardware and commoditize users' viewing metrics. Their own proprietary platform (BrightScript) is a pain to code for, and everything is essentially a webpage that serves their own proprietary video player; this is an environment that makes developers cringe.

In short, Tizen and Roku are crap to develop for. If you truly want to see Channels on those platforms (or others, such as LG's WebOS), then you need to take the initiative to reach out to the development team for API endpoints to develop the clients yourself or pay for someone else to. In short, put your money where your mouth is.

Otherwise, I stand with the developers to limit the clients to Apple and Android.

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