NEW: Android TV app for Channels DVR (experimental)

Beta Community DVR Beta
#197

I’ve got a 43XBR800e in my office. I got it for 4k and to have an android target to test with.

The display is amazing for this size (no one makes great small tvs anymore :frowning:). But the cpu is slowww. Its so slow that the UI it shows when changing the volume will sometimes cause Channels to drop frames lol. And it takes about 2 seconds to even show. A fresh reboot can speed it up.

I’m not sure how much faster the 900 series is, but from what I can tell, it’s not fun using what’s baked in. A Shield torches it.

#198

I picked up the XE93 yesterday and have been testing it quite a bit. I agree that the Android TV interface is rather sluggish. It can’t compare with the Apple TV, so I’m going to pick up the new 4K model tomorrow. I hope more UK channels will step up and finally support tvOS!

And I hope Apple have the sense to fix the SDR/HDR switching issue you mentioned in another thread, rather than give their standard ‘it’s a feature, not a bug’ response. It’s ridiculous how resistant they’ve always been to automatic resolution/frame rate switching, and 4K HDR will make it even more painful.

#199

Ok, now that iOS is looking great and remote streaming are working well, Android Tv is ready to be exploited! Other solutions out there just don’t cut it.

I’m ready to help test this one as soon as you guys will focus on it again.

#200

Hi, will you be resuming development on Android TV?

#201

Would also love to see some development.

Currently have it on a shieldTV. Love it better than other solutions for the shieldTV and I really hope it and maybe even Android Apps will come. As far as DVR goes, this is a lot better, even Android fans right now suggest buying an Apple TV just for this app. Sadly though, having to switch devices just for an App is even kludgier than than the current state of the app.

#202

The Channels android app, for live and recorded tv playback, is currently not in the same ballpark as google’s live channels app. The google app is much more smooth - any jittery scrolls or clunkiness i see in the Channels andoid app is completely eliminated in the Google app.

As a DVR service though, Channels is light years ahead.

#203

@tmm1 Any word or insight on getting the Android TV App up to apple tv standards? Thanks! at least a rough ETA on when development will continue.

#204

Probably next year

#205

I don’t use the Android app much myself, so one thing that would be helpful to hear is the top 3-4 missing features you would like to see added.

It took years to develop Channels for tvOS, so bringing all those same features to a new platform/language will take a lot of time and effort. The goal of the first beta was to add playback support so you could use a secondary tv with your DVR without having to buy another expensive Apple TV.

#206

Thanks for the update… maybe the community can help with this. I am building a new home, and at the moment don’t use Channels.I will resubscribe in January and keep you posted. I know the key feature I’d like to see is being able to manage the DVR (set/cancel recordings) (manage series passes).

#207

My preference for new Android features is totally geared to playback.

I’d much rather see the ability to sorting the recordings by name. Currently, I can add/change recording passes via the web interface, however I’m unable to utilize the playback capabilities on some very capable Android devices due to only having all listings by recording date.

An alpha sort/listing is sorely needed (IMO) to be able to see all the recordings to be viewed. The current recordings by date sort only, is tremendously onerous and renders the current Android UI totally useless (especially, if using with a large database of recordings). There is no other workaround available for this omission …using web ui for setup/changes is a totally acceptable compromise, at least for me, until time permits for these enhancements.

#208

I would also love to see some improvements to playback. I’m perfectly happy searching for shows, setting up favorites etc. from the web ui. I like having the grid ui to browse what’s on now and what’s coming up next but don’t use it for scheduling recordings. I was a SageTV user for probably 10 years and did almost all scheduling from the web ui there too.

I am currently using a shield TV with a harmony remote. My personal preference would be to make the right arrow be a 30 second skip forward, the left arrow a 10 second skip back. I would also suggest that the up arrow be the same as a double tap on the fast forward ie skip to the end of the current commercial break. The down arrow could similarly skip back to the last comskip marker. Currently all 4 arrow buttons just bring up the on screen display. The harmony remote works OK but this would make the shield remote far more usable.

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#209

exactly what @dgeezer said. i’m quite content to use my shield for recording and playback only. the recording size has actually been working quite well for me on the shield but the playback is quite buggy. For such a powerful device i still get a lot of jitter and stuttering - moreso on certain channels - NBC on both the prime and connect being the worst offenders (both are rock solid on the ATV and i devices)

admittedly i did buy the shield for it to be a two-in-one device to save a few bucks. i do question now whether i should have gone with another ATV and a NAS.

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#210

That’s strange because for me the playback using Channels on the Shield is excellent. Playback is as good as using Kodi or maybe better. Skipping forward and back works very well even while a show is still recording.

I am running the dvr as a docker on my unraid box. It’s a 4 or 5 year old core I3. I think it originally shipped with windows 8. My system is all hardwired with cat5.

#211

Quick question - I’m using Channels on Android TV (Nvidia Shield 2017) - I am wondering if there is similar functionality for seeking within live tv buffer and recordings and the ability to map buttons discretely to a Harmony 650 (IR) remote on Android. Obviously the shield remote is preprogrammed to do the default 30 second skip etc. But I’m looking to map buttons on my universal remote to give true RW/FF seeking inside of a show. Don’t know if you guys have hit this part of your development curve on Android yet, but I figured I’d ask.

EDIT: Yes, I have a FLIRC for the Shield

#212

What happens currently when you hit the rewind or fast-fw button on the remote?

#213

Basically every directional navigation button brings up the on screen display. This happens using the tiny remote and both the full game controller remote. Just brings up the OSD and from there you have to navigate to the 30 second skip or 10 second rewind. Pretty clunky. Is this how it should behave? Obviously because of this and lack of any knowledge of what keyboard shortcuts (if any?) map to functionality, I haven’t even attempted to try it with the FLIRC and Harmony 650 yet.

The OSD lingers for probably 1.5 seconds too long after a command is finalized too, for whatever that’s worth. :slight_smile:

#214

You might be able to get the media keys to work using flirc. I had an older flirc lying around and tried it this morning with an old ir remote (I dont have a Harmony 650 anymore). I set it up as a keyboard in the flirc software on Windows and programmed in the basic arrow and OK buttons and then set up the media control keys under the keyboard settings. This worked to control the Shield and the skip forward and skip back worked without bringing up the on screen dialog. It was a bit laggy but I only had a few minutes to mess around with it this morning.

I have the simple Harmony hub based remote. It’s set up as a Shield controller and connected with bluetooth. It works very well this way. Play and pause work. Skip forward and skip back also work using the media buttons on the remote. Double tapping on the skip forward button even works to jump to the end of a marked commercial break. None of these commands bring up the on screen dialog box.

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#215

OK this is definitely worth exploring. Can I ask what profile and commands you used under the Flirc? You used full keyboard mode for what device, Nvidia Shield?

#216

I’m trying to remember exactly what I did. I see an old iir remote that originally came with a hauppauge capture card. Most any device profile on the harmony would probably work.
When you open the flirt app on windows the first screen asks you to define the arrow keys, the ok button and the back key. Then I opened a menu item and selected media keyboard and defined the pause, play skips etc.
once the flirc is setup this way you can just plug it into the shield. No settings are needed on the shield.

Also, look at the first post in this thread and there is a link to another forum topic that covers ir commands for the Apple TV. I think this is at least relavent for the shield also.

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