Playing with launchers on an unrooted Fire TV... - Fire TV Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

I'm currently using Fired TV on my unrooted Fire TV. But it doesn't have an app drawer, and ordering of app icons is cumbersome.
So, on a whim, I've tried Apex, Trebuchet, Nova, ADW, ... (still looking)
All work. Sort of. Some work better than others. All have some kind of quirk that makes Fired TVs quirks preferably. Is this to be expected because support for these is forthcoming? Or is it to be expected because an unrooted Fire TV is quirky?

Related

[Q] Turn my FTV into just a XMBC / Netflix Player -

i am rooted and have the latest software up and running. i have kodi installed and all set up.
i would like to get rid of as much amazon crapware as possible. i don't want to offend any amazon lovers, its just the only reason i bought this device is to run xmbc (kodi) better than i was on my apple tv. so far i like it a lot better.
i would love to have it boot into a screen with two icons, netflix and xmbc. is this what you would call a Launcher? is the best one for what I'm after here? do you recommend anything else? maybe with some screen shots?
Thanks guys, Cody
Yes, you can do that. You can either do it with the launcher you linked (pretty much makes xbmc the central hub of the fire tv) or this, which I prefer:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2782307
With that launcher you can just show xbmc and netflix and quickly boot into either. Or with the xbmc launcher you can create a shortcut to netflix from within xbmc.

Launcher for latest kodi.

I've been using spmc for all my fire tv's but recently wanted to switch to the new kodi because I notice it can update itself within the app. Is there any launcher builds for it I can use for my rooted fire tv? I know of the xbmc launcher program but does anyone make a launcher version of kodi like they do spmc? Or is it fairly easy to make?

[Q] Just got the ATV fire this morning ....

and I have now installed Kodi on there. What it is I would like though is to revamp the homescreen with a few apps I would like, Western Digital MyCloud plus the 'must have app's' . When I connected the box initially the software was updated so I don't know if that means I ruined any possibility of getting the full potential from the device as I read from several sites yesterday that Amazon have included an update that will brick these boxes if they have been rooted. Can these box still be rooted 'SAFELY' when they've been updated?
I installed Western Digital and also another app but I ended up removing both as it seemed I either needed to have a touch screen device or a mouse, is there a way to use your phone for this or the remote for that matter to control apps?
Yes there is an app called remote mouse which works with the FTV (http://www.amazon.com/Remote-Mouse-for-Fire-TV/dp/B00S4MU62I/?tag=aftvn-20). Also, I would suggest using FiredTV launcher so you can have your apps on your (alternative) homescreen. This may not suit if you are an Amazon Prime customer and like to have their content on your homescreen too.
Just for a moment a sense of relief and excitement came over me when you mentioned I could use my phone, then upon following and reading the link it would seem I need an Android phone....alas I have a iPhone 6+, I'm I buggered before Ive even began
I see that there is a Logitech K400r Wireless Touch Keyboard which is meant to work well with the AFTV, but to be fair I want less clutter around me so really want to squeeze every bit of potential from the AFTV and my phone in this particular instant.
I've installed FiredTV Launcher which works well but is there a way to have it so it's the default home screen without having to root the device?
sony007 said:
Just for a moment a sense of relief and excitement came over me when you mentioned I could use my phone, then upon following and reading the link it would seem I need an Android phone....alas I have a iPhone 6+, I'm I buggered before Ive even began
I see that there is a Logitech K400r Wireless Touch Keyboard which is meant to work well with the AFTV, but to be fair I want less clutter around me so really want to squeeze every bit of potential from the AFTV and my phone in this particular instant.
I've installed FiredTV Launcher which works well but is there a way to have it so it's the default home screen without having to root the device?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, there's a setting you have to change in FiredTV launcher which enables/disables home button detection. Also, I would suggest using Llama to link an app you don't or won't use on your home screen to launch FiredTV launcher if the "proper" home screen launches. That's what I've done.
Here's a guide from another post (thanks to original poster for this):
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2782307&page=27
D33H said:
Yes, there's a setting you have to change in FiredTV launcher which enables/disables home button detection. Also, I would suggest using Llama to link an app you don't or won't use on your home screen to launch FiredTV launcher if the "proper" home screen launches. That's what I've done.
Here's a guide from another post (thanks to original poster for this):
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2782307&page=27
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That was great m8, I've now got FireTV to launch on bootup using AFTV Launcher Helper which works great for other applications also like Kodi. I haven't worked out how to disable home button detection as yet though.
So are you aware of any app for IOS that will allow to navigation on the amazon tv like a keyboard & mouse? I've got Amazon Fire TV remote on my iPhone but that does not really work with mouse control so there are app which I would like but unable to control correctly.
sony007 said:
That was great m8, I've now got FireTV to launch on bootup using AFTV Launcher Helper which works great for other applications also like Kodi. I haven't worked out how to disable home button detection as yet though.
So are you aware of any app for IOS that will allow to navigation on the amazon tv like a keyboard & mouse? I've got Amazon Fire TV remote on my iPhone but that does not really work with mouse control so there are app which I would like but unable to control correctly.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Practically everything you could want to know about the FireTV can be found at:
aftvnews com
Personally I had some inconsistent performance with decoding x264, DTS, and other odd issues (such as connecting to an NFS share via ethernet) with my FireTV; I returned it and purchased an Chromebox instead. and installed OpenELEC on it... it's been on for months, and have only had to reset after updates; -couldn't be happier! If you plan to use this device primarily for Kodi, I would recommend looking into using a Chromebox.
sony007 said:
Just for a moment a sense of relief and excitement came over me when you mentioned I could use my phone, then upon following and reading the link it would seem I need an Android phone....alas I have a iPhone 6+, I'm I buggered before Ive even began
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The author just recently released an iOS version of the app with the same name in the App Store. I have it loaded on my iPhone 6 and it works great. You will need to sideload the android server portion on the Fire TV for your iPhone to be able to control the Fire TV.
Jedis said:
The author just recently released an iOS version of the app with the same name in the App Store. I have it loaded on my iPhone 6 and it works great. You will need to sideload the android server portion on the Fire TV for your iPhone to be able to control the Fire TV.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah just installed on my phone and on the FireTv and it works great, if only it had an integrated keyboard , but great work by the developer/s not to forget about IOS devices.:good:
customcarvin said:
Practically everything you could want to know about the FireTV can be found at:
aftvnews com
Personally I had some inconsistent performance with decoding x264, DTS, and other odd issues (such as connecting to an NFS share via ethernet) with my FireTV; I returned it and purchased an Chromebox instead. and installed OpenELEC on it... it's been on for months, and have only had to reset after updates; -couldn't be happier! If you plan to use this device primarily for Kodi, I would recommend looking into using a Chromebox.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Indeed. Chromebox/openELEC is the best. Gigabit ethernet, HD audio. I happily use my FTV for Netflix, and Amazon Prime Videos and Music.
you should pick up the FAVI FE02RF-BL Mini 2.4GHz Wireless PC / Tablet Keyboard/Touchpad. It comes with a USB dongle you plug in the AFTV, and it works without having to pair it. Just turn it on, and you're good to go. It has a backlit keyboard, and a working touchpad. It also has a working Home button, and menu button.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0090BTY8Y/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
---------- Post added at 12:19 AM ---------- Previous post was at 12:16 AM ----------
Also, there's an app in the app store called FIRE TV for ios. I believe it has a working mouse and keyboard. I'm not positive though. Give it a try.

5.2.1.0r2 with root, Home button change

Hey gents!
Been scouring every nook and cranny for an option. I've got a Fire TV 2 5.2.1.0r2 rooted in the bedroom. I've got an nvidia shield in the living room, and I'm obsessed with the leanback launcher in comparison to the drab dark and gloomy fire tv home. I'm looking to replace it with HA Launcher and access prime content via the same prime launcher app I use on the shield. Don't much care for the music.
Has anyone found a way to utilize the home button to open a different app? It seems it would be reasonably easy to utilize a root app to reassign the home button on the remote to do this, but I am not sure. I do have the prerooted 5.2.1.0 installed so it does have adb already - and firestopper's single home click does not register. I am aware the double click certainly does not work at this time (or likely ever as development has stopped). With that said, has anyone found an alternative way to remap the fire tv home button?
Any suggestion is appreciated, savvy enough to figure it out from whatever app or tutorial may be provided.
I believe rbox's firetv mods "alternate launcher" will still allow you to make firestopper the default launcher on the most recent firmware, and then you can remap the home button through the firestopper settings. It works great for me as I can totally circumvent the amazon launcher this way, although I'm still on 5.0.5.

Leanback launcher 4k Firestick??

Is there a way to get leanback launcher working on the 4k amazon firestick with root or without root. I've tried lean back launcher with FTVLaunchX and it just goes to the standard home screen.
wondering if anyones got it working.
MeetBillLOL said:
Is there a way to get leanback launcher working on the 4k amazon firestick with root or without root. I've tried lean back launcher with FTVLaunchX and it just goes to the standard home screen.
wondering if anyones got it working.
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