Device Resolution - M.O.J.O. General

The first thing I see when the Mojo boots up is a message to the tune of change your device resolution. I'm not at all a developer, nor am I well versed in using an android device. I own one cheap Chinese tablet, dragon touch or something similar. Can do the basics, but I mostly use it as a reader. Of course I have a phone, but again I've never gone out of my way to use it for more than a phone. I'm fairly acquainted with Linux so my nephew has turned to me to help him with this. I've the male to male on order to root the system, but I doubt that's much to do with the problem. We have a hard time navigating with certain apps due to the resolution cut off, but mostly not seeing complete gauges in games kind of makes a game machine...a bit crap to say it lightly. For the money one should expect more. I can't find any solution in the setting. When I plug my tablet into my television it handles it with a secondary display GUI popping up and allowing me to choose the setting. Given the Mad Catz is using the TV as it's primary display I wouldn't suppose there'd be a clever way to trick it into thinking the TV is a secondary display? Just the only thing I could come up with I'm not married to the idea. If yous guys know how to help me that'd be great. bonus if this can be taken care of with out getting into terminal, or the android equivalent. Thanks buds.
Oh also, in the mean time while I wait on my cable. Is there a way to install games you've bought on Google Play manually through a usb stick?

Marchegiano said:
due to the resolution cut off
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you mean an overscan issue?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2629396
Basically, you have to google your TV's make model and find how to turn oversan off.
When I use the MOJO on a PC monitor.. the resolutions drops to something like 320x320.. not sure why.. but I remove the HDMI cable, let the MOJO boot up then I plug the HDMI cable in and it's a 1024.
Marchegiano said:
Oh also, in the mean time while I wait on my cable. Is there a way to install games you've bought on Google Play manually through a usb stick?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For free apps, install a google store alternative, ie:
http://joyofandroid.com/24-android-app-store-alternatives-for-those-who-hate-google-play/
I used Aptoide before rooting.
For paid apps, you could try backing up the apk on another device and sideload it on the MOJO.
I wouldn't bother doing either, just wait and root it.

thanks bud
gwaldo said:
Do you mean an overscan....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
bingo jingo bud, thanks a bunch.

gwaldo said:
Do you mean an overscan issue?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2629396
Basically, you have to google your TV's make model and find how to turn oversan off.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you! This is exactly what I needed.

Some televisions will adjust the picture of M.O.J.O. so that the edges are off screen. To change this, you should check the settings menus of your television and look for Aspect Ratio or Zoom options. Every television is different so the exact method for adjusting will differ from model to model. However, if there's a Zoom level option then setting that to 'Full' should solve it. Alternatively, if it's an Aspect Ratio menu then 'Scan Only' is the option to select.
Be sure to update the firmware on M.O.J.O. if you haven't already. The firmware update introduces a modification to the way Google identifies the M.O.J.O. hardware which allows for many, many more games to be listed and downloadable in the Google Play Store. This modification makes it so you don't have to root the device anymore, unless you want to for the other typical customization benefits that root access allows. Rooting won't void your warranty.
If you went through our "Getting Started" walkthrough, you can use "ES File Manager" for accessing any files stored in your Download folder or on a USB.

Related

I need to know HDMI basics o_O *confused*

Hello all... I'm confused by the HDMI capabilities of my Evo. I'm under the impression that when you connect the micro HDMI cable (I just bought), you're able to view your phone's screen on your TV--as thought it were a large monitor. I thought this is what "mirroring" meant.
All I can see with this micrHDMI cable are videos, slideshows and photos--all pointless activities to the way I use my phone, oh! and play a video game or two, which I don't do. I installed two HDMI apps--the only two that I found on the market. The only thing I have not done is flash a different kernel.
Before I flash another kernel, do I have the wrong idea about what mirroring means?
semperlux said:
Hello all... I'm confused by the HDMI capabilities of my Evo. I'm under the impression that when you connect the micro HDMI cable (I just bought), you're able to view your phone's screen on your TV--as thought it were a large monitor. I thought this is what "mirroring" meant.
All I can see with this micrHDMI cable are videos, slideshows and photos--all pointless activities to the way I use my phone, oh! and play a video game or two, which I don't do. I installed two HDMI apps--the only two that I found on the market. The only thing I have not done is flash a different kernel.
Before I flash another kernel, do I have the wrong idea about what mirroring means?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, you don't have the wrong idea. The evo's native HDMI capabilities will only allow you to see certain things on the tv screen, such as youtube, streaming video, the gallery app, etc (as you already noted). There are two apps in the market, both of which I've had success with. Those apps (fullhdmi and hdmwin) both allow you to mirror whatever is on your evo's screen to the tv. Anything on your phone's screen will be mirrored to the tv you have it connected to. I havent used either of the two apps in a month or so actually, but I thought that a custom kernel was no longer required to use either one of them? (although a custom kernel did make things seem a bit smoother, as I believe it enabled hardware acceleration)
So in short, you don't have the wrong idea, and you are indeed able to do what you have set out to do.
EDIT: I just noticed that you said you have intalled both of the hdmi apps on to your phone. I would suggest uninstalling one of them, as they could interfere with eachother. Decide which one you want to use, and then uninstall the other one and reboot your phone, then try it.
k2buckley said:
No, you don't have the wrong idea. The evo's native HDMI capabilities will only allow you to see certain things on the tv screen, such as youtube, streaming video, the gallery app, etc (as you already noted). There are two apps in the market, both of which I've had success with. Those apps (fullhdmi and hdmwin) both allow you to mirror whatever is on your evo's screen to the tv. Anything on your phone's screen will be mirrored to the tv you have it connected to. I havent used either of the two apps in a month or so actually, but I thought that a custom kernel was no longer required to use either one of them? (although a custom kernel did make things seem a bit smoother, as I believe it enabled hardware acceleration)
So in short, you don't have the wrong idea, and you are indeed able to do what you have set out to do.
EDIT: I just noticed that you said you have intalled both of the hdmi apps on to your phone. I would suggest uninstalling one of them, as they could interfere with eachother. Decide which one you want to use, and then uninstall the other one and reboot your phone, then try it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As always, k2buckley is on point. Please note that for the best results, a custom kernel (check my sig for the one I'm using) is better because it will allow the app to work better by allowing certain features and output resolutions to work that will not work without the custom kernel. I use the mirroring feature frequently, so for me it is worth having the custom kernel.
k2buckley said:
EDIT: I just noticed that you said you have intalled both of the hdmi apps on to your phone. I would suggest uninstalling one of them, as they could interfere with eachother. Decide which one you want to use, and then uninstall the other one and reboot your phone, then try it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for your prompt response. Could the problem also be in my TV settings?
This is what I did (Using a 52" Panasonic plasma - w/Vieracast):
1) Installed the app. (Full HDMI by Team Win, uninstalled. Installed FuLLHDMI by orrebmas)
2) plugged everything in (HDMI to HDMI1 port on my tv and micro to the Evo)
3) Selected the input to HDMI1 (using my remote).
4) Results, *Black screen* I didn't see anything until I produced the Gallery, YouTube or videos on my phone which now I'm learning are default.
Other than flashing a custom kernel, I can't imagine what else you'd need to do.
semperlux said:
Thank you for your prompt response. Could the problem also be in my TV settings?
This is what I did (Using a 52" Panasonic plasma - w/Vieracast):
1) Installed the app. (Full HDMI by Team Win, uninstalled. Installed FuLLHDMI by orrebmas)
2) plugged everything in (HDMI to HDMI1 port on my tv and micro to the Evo)
3) Selected the input to HDMI1 (using my remote).
4) Results, *Black screen* I didn't see anything until I produced the Gallery, YouTube or videos on my phone which now I'm learning are default.
Other than flashing a custom kernel, I can't imagine what else you'd need to do.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you open up the FullHDMI app, and click the button that says 'apply and start mirroring' or something to that nature? It doesn't sound like you started the actual app. And if you don't start the app, it reverts to the phone's default capabilitites. Once you start the app, and hit the button that says start mirroring, it should start. If it won't display, you may need to change the output resolution. I believe there were 4 or 5 settings in the app. On my TV, which is a 50" Samsung, only 2 of the settings would work. All of the other settings, my tv would say something like 'format not supported'. I had to mess around for a couple minutes, but was able to get it to work. And it worked rather nicely as well, once I got it going.
You can find trouble shooting tips and even live support via chat on the FullHDMI website here:
http://members.cox.net/lokifish/index.html
As buckley said, once you connect the HDMI cable from your phone to the TV, you need to hit the button that says "Start FullHDMI Service". If you get a black screen, hit the second tab and make sure the resolution is not set to 720p (unless you have the custom kernel). Also, please note that 800x600 is a resolution for computers and not supported by all TV's, so you may want to try PAL or EDTV if you get a black screen. Once you change the resolution, go back to the main tab and hit the start button again. Since it is already running, it will say "Reapply Service" or something like that.
There are many more trouble shooting tips on the site asides from what I mentioned above. I suggest you check it out. Lokifish is pretty good about being on the chat server, so chances are you can get live help there, as well.
Ok, there we go... it's working. The setting my TV will let me use is EDTV. Thanks everyone for all your help.
Now back to stock YouTube
will not work. I have tried disabling HDMwin service already without success.
Also tried uninstalling stock onboard YouTube and re-installing it.
If I disable HDMWin service, shouldn't this be all I need to do in order
to use onboard YouTube without mirroring it?
jdub1234 said:
will not work. I have tried disabling HDMwin service already without success.
Also tried uninstalling stock onboard YouTube and re-installing it.
If I disable HDMWin service, shouldn't this be all I need to do in order
to use onboard YouTube without mirroring it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you're on a Sense rom, the YouTube app should work with the native HDMI capabilities of the Evo. If you're on an AOSP rom, you will have no native HDMI capabilities, and the only way for HDMI to work is with one of the two available apps in the market. If you are on a sense rom, and it's still not working, there could be a few things causing your problem. Such as a bad HDMI cable, a bad HDMI port, or the particular kernel you're on may not support HDMI output.
On on a Sense ROM
Netarchy.
The native HDMI worked prior to flashing Netarchy so I know it's ok.
One thing kind of odd that I noticed with the native YouTube before I
re-installed it. The search function stopped working for some reason.
I have no idea why. So, I uninstalled the native YouTube, re-installed
a new one and the search function is back. I now also have two YouTube
icons, only one of which works.
I have yet to try the new native YouTube for HDMI and will do that today.
I also tried dragging the "old" Youtbube icon off the desktop but it won't
disappear.

[Q] The touchscreen game compatibility issue

I get why we've ended up with this issue of so many games and apps not being compatible, but is getting the manifests updated really the ONLY way to solve this?
There are plenty of other devices - android sticks in particular - which don't have touch screens either, and yet they have access to far more games and apps on Google Play. I assume they're claiming they do actually have a touchscreen.
Is there a simple way to tell if they are doing this? Is there really a good reason why we can't just have a software update for the MOJO so that it does then look to the Google Play store as if it has a touch screen? That would really solve this problem instantly.
woozle said:
I get why we've ended up with this issue of so many games and apps not being compatible, but is getting the manifests updated really the ONLY way to solve this?
There are plenty of other devices - android sticks in particular - which don't have touch screens either, and yet they have access to far more games and apps on Google Play. I assume they're claiming they do actually have a touchscreen.
Is there a simple way to tell if they are doing this? Is there really a good reason why we can't just have a software update for the MOJO so that it does then look to the Google Play store as if it has a touch screen? That would really solve this problem instantly.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Mad Catz have to work on it really fast or the mojo gonna go into a trash !!!!!
yes they are a lot a very lot of game that are not compatible and the only way to make it work is to use tincore keymapper but the app require root !!!
i love this device but i'm really disgusting of the mad catz work
Or they could just release a way to root the mojo, which will allow us to apply a 30 seconds fix and then install anything directly from the play store (and hide those damn navigation buttons)
I still have 3 days before my return period expires and I'm strongly tempted to do it.
paulatz said:
Or they could just release a way to root the mojo, which will allow us to apply a 30 seconds fix and then install anything directly from the play store (and hide those damn navigation buttons)
I still have 3 days before my return period expires and I'm strongly tempted to do it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes root is the solution for everything on this thing
Is a MCZ staff member who know how to root it ???
Dead-neM said:
Yes root is the solution for everything on this thing
Is a MCZ staff member who know how to root it ???
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It might be AN answer, but it's not the answer. I don't want to root my device, thanks, and I shouldn't have to.
If we get root, we can fix all the issues in minutes. Seriously, that's the only thing holding the MOJO back from being perfect for me. If I had root, I would fake my device, download all the apps I've spent hundreds on, use tincore, and just have fun playing....Like I thought I would be able to do out of the box.
However, if I wasn't knowledgeable about root or familiar with Android....I would have already returned the system as broken. I still have until Tuesday, next week, to make that decision.
Best course of action for MadCatz is to ship these pre-rooted and have a HUGE update and make HUGE announcements and do some HUGE advertising.....Otherwise, I'm really afraid the MOJO will flop in a HUGE way.
Lets just pretend we're all the BETA testers.....Real release to general public hasn't happened yet.
That sort of makes me feel good, but I still think everyone with a current firmware edition MOJO should get a Google Giftcard for all the stress and trouble we've had.....as BETA testers. HA!
ExtremeRyno said:
Best course of action for MadCatz is to ship these pre-rooted and have a HUGE update and make HUGE announcements and do some HUGE advertising.....Otherwise, I'm really afraid the MOJO will flop in a HUGE way.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Right... name a company that sells android products rooted? As in a 'proper' company.
There's a reason why they don't, and fixing this shouldn't take root. If you want root, fine, but that's a different point.
I'd still like someone to answer my question about why other similar devices DON'T have the touchscreen issue.
woozle said:
Right... name a company that sells android products rooted? As in a 'proper' company.
There's a reason why they don't, and fixing this shouldn't take root. If you want root, fine, but that's a different point.
I'd still like someone to answer my question about why other similar devices DON'T have the touchscreen issue.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In fact it's explain by Mad Catz that the most of app have a line code who look like that "device.have.touchscreen=True"
And inside mojo there is nothing tell the google play or app that the device have a screen so you can't see them
The other device (tv box, chinese thing) probably fake a hd screen into the system
woozle said:
Right... name a company that sells android products rooted? As in a 'proper' company.
There's a reason why they don't, and fixing this shouldn't take root. If you want root, fine, but that's a different point.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, I get what you're saying...The MOJO should just WORK the way it was advertised. Fixing it shouldn't take root, you are 110% correct.
However, I believe one of the selling points of the MOJO was that it is supposed to be (as implied by MadCatz on various occasions) unlocked, open, and hackable.
As for the touchscreen issue, MadCatz has stated something along the lines of releasing all their specs to Google so the MOJO is a Google Certified device, or some such, which I assume includes that the MOJO doesn't have a screen. Plus, what Dead-neM mentioned.
ExtremeRyno said:
No, I get what you're saying...The MOJO should just WORK the way it was advertised. Fixing it shouldn't take root, you are 110% correct.
However, I believe one of the selling points of the MOJO was that it is supposed to be (as implied by MadCatz on various occasions) unlocked, open, and hackable.
As for the touchscreen issue, MadCatz has stated something along the lines of releasing all their specs to Google so the MOJO is a Google Certified device, or some such, which I assume includes that the MOJO doesn't have a screen. Plus, what Dead-neM mentioned.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, and I already said that in my original post. And my point was why can't Madcatz do that too? There are plenty of Google certified devices that don't have this problem, so I assume Madcatz haven't tried.
woozle said:
Yes, and I already said that in my original post. And my point was why can't Madcatz do that too? There are plenty of Google certified devices that don't have this problem, so I assume Madcatz haven't tried.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep it's look like they made a noob style console
I just noticed that not even the games in the tegra store, which are explicitly marked as "controller" are not installable. seriously, this is a scam pure and simple. you cannot commercialise something as having access to the entire play store, and then it only support 5 apps out of several millions. even my old Nokia has more games than that s supposed console.
release an official root NOW and it may be saved, still overpriced for an unfinished piece of cheap crap, but at least working. at th moment it's just a glorified dolphin browser set-top box
To do things officially and properly we have to run M.O.J.O. through Google's certification processes, which means we can't claim we have a touchscreen in order to get around the content filtering on the Play store - the CTS test procedure will include tests for every hardware feature you declare and include actual tests for each component. If we declare we have a touchscreen then it will attempt to display an image on said touchscreen and expect some human interaction to confirm it's working. Clearly that will fail at that point and things could go no further.
There are plenty of the controller enabled games in Tegrazone that work fine (and more besides - check the list of games on mojo.madcatz.com). Of those that aren't, both Nvidia and Google are working with developers to change things on top of the efforts that we've been making. Seriously, you will see more and more titles being updated to include support over the coming weeks and months, plus other updates from us that I can't reveal right now.
In the meantime, if you see an app that you think you want on M.O.J.O. then tell the developer and us - we have an email address for this very purpose and it's in the manual - gamesupportrequest[at]madcatz[dot]com.
This is a new category of Android product and support for it is only going to increase this year so keep watching and we'll make sure we keep you all updated with anything new that occurs.
Mad Catz Rich said:
To do things officially and properly we have to run M.O.J.O. through Google's certification processes, which means we can't claim we have a touchscreen in order to get around the content filtering on the Play store - the CTS test procedure will include tests for every hardware feature you declare and include actual tests for each component. If we declare we have a touchscreen then it will attempt to display an image on said touchscreen and expect some human interaction to confirm it's working. Clearly that will fail at that point and things could go no further.
There are plenty of the controller enabled games in Tegrazone that work fine (and more besides - check the list of games on mojo.madcatz.com). Of those that aren't, both Nvidia and Google are working with developers to change things on top of the efforts that we've been making. Seriously, you will see more and more titles being updated to include support over the coming weeks and months, plus other updates from us that I can't reveal right now.
In the meantime, if you see an app that you think you want on M.O.J.O. then tell the developer and us - we have an email address for this very purpose and it's in the manual - gamesupportrequest[at]madcatz[dot]com.
This is a new category of Android product and support for it is only going to increase this year so keep watching and we'll make sure we keep you all updated with anything new that occurs.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok if you go into this way i think you will got into the wall !! I'm sorry to say that but nobody is happy by the mojo on this forum list of app that are compatible is ridiculus!; come on guys listen to us
Make a tool to root the mojo or a big update in the month and let the fan service do their job until you see your mistake !! dam
Mad Catz Rich said:
To do things officially and properly we have to run M.O.J.O. through Google's certification processes, which means we can't claim we have a touchscreen in order to get around the content filtering on the Play store - the CTS test procedure will include tests for every hardware feature you declare and include actual tests for each component. If we declare we have a touchscreen then it will attempt to display an image on said touchscreen and expect some human interaction to confirm it's working. Clearly that will fail at that point and things could go no further.
In the meantime, if you see an app that you think you want on M.O.J.O. then tell the developer and us - we have an email address for this very purpose and it's in the manual - gamesupportrequest[at]madcatz[dot]com.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
And you couldn't respond to that test with mouse input or the controller then? isn't that the point? surely the other methods of input are meant to cover this. You say this yourself in all your marketing blurb - you specifically use the example of Angry Birds and say the controller achieves this.
As for what apps - ok, all of them then? seriously, as the other guys have said, that's not workable. I won't know what app I want until I've tried it. That's HOW this works. Some people not even have other devices - weird as that might sound - and if they can't use an app on MOJO they won't.
The product is OUT now. I just saw it on the shelf in Selfridges. People aren't going to expect to have to wait weeks or months to use apps that they can already use on all their other android devices. Seriously, I've held back so far but I AM hugely disappointed that this is in such a bad state. I've sideloaded some apps, but there are just so many - all the protected apps, and I've bought loads of them on my other devices - that I just can't do that with.
I've used AppMonster to rip a large number of protected apps to sideload to the MOJO. It's inconvenient, but it works. Most of them give me an initial "License Check Failed" the first time I load. I open Google Play, and that clears up.....most of the time. The apps I was unable to get to pass the license check, even after loading up the Play store, I was able to use by selecting the app from "My Apps" and using the "OPEN" button within the Play app. That's the only way I can get PPSSPP and FPSE to properly run.
ExtremeRyno said:
I've used AppMonster to rip a large number of protected apps to sideload to the MOJO. It's inconvenient, but it works. Most of them give me an initial "License Check Failed" the first time I load. I open Google Play, and that clears up.....most of the time. The apps I was unable to get to pass the license check, even after loading up the Play store, I was able to use by selecting the app from "My Apps" and using the "OPEN" button within the Play app. That's the only way I can get PPSSPP and FPSE to properly run.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
But FPSE is available on Google Play for the MOJO, and loads without issues, so I'm not sure what you mean...
With FPSE, I kept getting license errors (and yes, I downloaded directly from Play to the MOJO) but had to open through the Google Play store. Other apps, such as Horn and Paper Monsters which I sideloaded required opening the Play store before I was able to use the games.
ExtremeRyno said:
With FPSE, I kept getting license errors (and yes, I downloaded directly from Play to the MOJO) but had to open through the Google Play store. Other apps, such as Horn and Paper Monsters which I sideloaded required opening the Play store before I was able to use the games.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hm, and there is actually some quirk with Google Play anyway - Riptide 2 refuses to do cloudsaving, insists it needs an update to Google Play Services. Indeed, the version of Google Play Services on there is far from the latest, but I don't know how to force it to update - a number of the Google Play components are older... none of which is likely to be helping.
woozle said:
Hm, and there is actually some quirk with Google Play anyway - Riptide 2 refuses to do cloudsaving, insists it needs an update to Google Play Services. Indeed, the version of Google Play Services on there is far from the latest, but I don't know how to force it to update - a number of the Google Play components are older... none of which is likely to be helping.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi yes the reason is the google play services said is the latedt version but is not search on xda for the real latest

Overscan problems

Any suggestions? Is this one of the elusive FIXES proposed in the next maybe update? :-/
Pleiades7 said:
Any suggestions? Is this one of the elusive FIXES proposed in the next maybe update? :-/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
MOJO is outputting in true 1080p whereas most TVs will be applying some scaling - it's usually easily fixed by adjusting a setting on the TV though. What and where that setting is will differ from TV to TV though because they all call it something different. Sometimes it's referred to as a per pixel mode, sometimes it's a PC mode, sometimes it's called Scan Only - usually these options are found in the same menus as the screen format options, sometimes hidden in an advanced menu somewhere.
If you can't find something that adjusts it then let me know the make and model and I'll check out the TV's manual online.
Pleiades7 said:
Any suggestions? Is this one of the elusive FIXES proposed in the next maybe update? :-/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
follow the mojo install guide which shipped on the unit.
Mojorising said:
follow the mojo install guide which shipped on the unit.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The setting can also sometimes be found under "zoom" (at least on some vizios)
solsearch said:
The setting can also sometimes be found under "zoom" (at least on some vizios)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I had this issue on my 42" Viore LED(Cheaper off brand). There is no where in the TV settings that address this issue. So I just hooked it up to my Vizio. Both TVs are native 1080p.
mherma said:
I had this issue on my 42" Viore LED(Cheaper off brand). There is no where in the TV settings that address this issue. So I just hooked it up to my Vizio. Both TVs are native 1080p.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's highly likely to have an option somewhere to do it. For example on the LG that we've got here in the office the setting you need isn't in any of the format menus. Instead what you have to do is hit the Source button on the remote then press right on the d-pad of the remote to change the HDMI channel you're using from DTV mode to PC Mode.
Some TVs don't have overscan adjustment but here what can be done...
mherma said:
I had this issue on my 42" Viore LED(Cheaper off brand). There is no where in the TV settings that address this issue. So I just hooked it up to my Vizio. Both TVs are native 1080p.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes there are some TVs that are set up where either there is no setting to adjust Overscan and Underscan or the setting is only available under certain modes (Such as the Visio VW26L where there is no adjustment under HDMI). Newer mainstream models now include this setting, so just keep this in mind the next time when you shop for you next tv.
As for now, your alt solutions are few. Android builds before 4.3 only address overscan and underscan where it is incorporated into the settings (found on most android sticks) or an app is made targeting a specific device (i.e. EVO, Ouya). You can use an App on the M.O.J.O. called "SecondScreen" on Google Play and change to a slightly higher resolution (i.e. 1280x800). Objects on the left and right will at least come into view, but so far I have been unable to pull in the top and bottom.
Todays stand alone applications manage overscan only for Android Builds 4.3 and higher. I know this isn't the ideal answer you were looking for but I hope you find this information more helpful.

[ROOT] Instructions for Airplay Screen Mirroring / Display Extension on the FireTV

Long time reader, first time posting.
Install requires root.
Squirrel LLC just released an android version of their app Reflector ($7). This app can be installed fairly simply on the FireTV, turning it into an airplay receiver for screen sharing and display extension, not just video or audio playing.
This requires root (instructions here) and the google play store (instructions here- they are for kindle, but work) before you can install this program.
Once you have the play store installed and you are signed in, you will be able to install apps remotely. This is much easier, as the play store is somewhat difficult to navigate on the Fire TV itself. However, Google will think the Fire TV is not compatible with Reflector.
To circumvent compatibility restrictions, download Market Helper and install on your FireTV (sideload instructions here). This will allow you to spoof your device type and install the app. I used the Nexus 7 as the device type. Make sure you've run google play services and signed into the play store before you run this, so it can read your id. The activate buttons are invisible until you are selecting them, so just press down and over until you find what you want.
After setting up your Fire TV to look like a Nexus 7, head back to the play store and set Reflector to install remotely.
From here, you can use any airplay device to broadcast to the Fire TV!
Couldn't you use snappea instead of google play?
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
I wasn't able to get this to work in Extend Desktop mode with my Mac. Since there's only a 15 minute refund period, I already got the refund, so it's possible I was doing something wrong, but the Play description didn't mention Extend Desktop mode. I don't see how I was doing anything wrong though, since the only settings in the app is the Name and the Password (and I didn't set a password). I did remember to turn off AirPlay in my other AirPlay app before trying Reflector.
Prior to this, I was already using AirReceiver to handle IOS mirroring. If all you want is IOS mirroring, I believe it was less expensive. Since it was bought through the Amazon store, it shows up with an icon on main screen (in my Apps and Recent sections). I don't recall if you can buy it on the FireTV or not, but I think so. A Voice search for Air Receiver brings it up.
Thanks!
Hey Guys,
Sid from Squirrels here!
Thanks for the walkthrough and the instructions. We're glad you got everything working!
We've actually submitted Reflector to the Amazon Fire TV store. The approval process is a bit more lengthy and involved than normal Google Play submissions.
As for extended desktop from a computer. It should work alright. I'de be interested in seeing logs from this to see why it didn't work for you. You can email our support team and they'll be happy to get it working!
Thanks again for the instructions.
So why root?? Why not just side load reflector??
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
1975jamie said:
So why root?? Why not just side load reflector??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Reflector is a paid app, and I have no experience sideloading paid apps / getting a signed apk out of one. I found it to be easier to root and install the play store than to bother with that. If you are aware of an easy method to get the APK out of a paid app, I'd love to hear it- I always pay for my apps, but sometimes I need to install them in a dev environment where the play store isn't available, and I'd like to know.
If you're concerned about rooting, I'd consider the advantages. Rooting is a piece of cake now thanks to Towelroot, and it gives you uped duper more functionality than you have without it, especially if you are using this device to run XBMC primarily.
sidneykeith said:
Hey Guys,
Sid from Squirrels here!
Thanks for the walkthrough and the instructions. We're glad you got everything working!
We've actually submitted Reflector to the Amazon Fire TV store. The approval process is a bit more lengthy and involved than normal Google Play submissions.
As for extended desktop from a computer. It should work alright. I'de be interested in seeing logs from this to see why it didn't work for you. You can email our support team and they'll be happy to get it working!
Thanks again for the instructions.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the good customer support. I figured it was the Amazon store's lengthy submission process that was holding things up and not an actual compatibility issue, which is why I decided to hack this together.
I own no other Amazon devices (and probably won't), so it's to my advantage to keep all my purchases within one ecosystem. You may consider adding a little walkthrough on how to use the google play store to run your app on the firetv to your page, if you guys aren't fearful of the wrath of Bezos. I'm sure there are a lot of people like me who bought the firetv for the android, not the amazon.
Taige said:
I wasn't able to get this to work in Extend Desktop mode with my Mac. Since there's only a 15 minute refund period, I already got the refund, so it's possible I was doing something wrong, but the Play description didn't mention Extend Desktop mode. I don't see how I was doing anything wrong though, since the only settings in the app is the Name and the Password (and I didn't set a password). I did remember to turn off AirPlay in my other AirPlay app before trying Reflector.
Prior to this, I was already using AirReceiver to handle IOS mirroring. If all you want is IOS mirroring, I believe it was less expensive. Since it was bought through the Amazon store, it shows up with an icon on main screen (in my Apps and Recent sections). I don't recall if you can buy it on the FireTV or not, but I think so. A Voice search for Air Receiver brings it up.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not sure what happened there for you. Extended display was the default for me. That being said, the other app could have interfered, or maybe your settings in OSX weren't correct. I wish I could help you more, but Airplay is finicky enough as it is, without adding third party software. Maybe get in touch with Sid about that.
If anyone else is interested in this, my brother managed to get airsquirrel to work with reflector on the firetv, but it seemed to be more laggy than with true airplay. I'm not sure if that was the fault of his laptop or the software, so that might be worth looking into if you're a diehard windows user like I used to be.
hotterpop said:
Reflector is a paid app, and I have no experience sideloading paid apps / getting a signed apk out of one. I found it to be easier to root and install the play store than to bother with that. If you are aware of an easy method to get the APK out of a paid app, I'd love to hear it- I always pay for my apps, but sometimes I need to install them in a dev environment where the play store isn't available, and I'd like to know.
If you're concerned about rooting, I'd consider the advantages. Rooting is a piece of cake now thanks to Towelroot, and it gives you uped duper more functionality than you have without it, especially if you are using this device to run XBMC primarily.
Thanks for the good customer support. I figured it was the Amazon store's lengthy submission process that was holding things up and not an actual compatibility issue, which is why I decided to hack this together.
I own no other Amazon devices (and probably won't), so it's to my advantage to keep all my purchases within one ecosystem. You may consider adding a little walkthrough on how to use the google play store to run your app on the firetv to your page, if you guys aren't fearful of the wrath of Bezos. I'm sure there are a lot of people like me who bought the firetv for the android, not the amazon.
I'm not sure what happened there for you. Extended display was the default for me. That being said, the other app could have interfered, or maybe your settings in OSX weren't correct. I wish I could help you more, but Airplay is finicky enough as it is, without adding third party software. Maybe get in touch with Sid about that.
If anyone else is interested in this, my brother managed to get airsquirrel to work with reflector on the firetv, but it seemed to be more laggy than with true airplay. I'm not sure if that was the fault of his laptop or the software, so that might be worth looking into if you're a diehard windows user like I used to be.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have an android phone that I download the google play app to and then use Es file explorer to back up the app. Then sideload it to the firetv.
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Heavily Customized Fire TV Overview (With Video)

I was lucky enough to purchase a rootable Amazon Fire TV and have customized it to be quite the awesome device, thanks in part to the wonderful XDA community for providing all sorts of hacks. I wanted to show off what this little device can do so here is a video showing my setup, including the hardware I use and all the customizations I've done.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1nf2ffZT3s
HARDWARE
-----------------------------------
First off, I want to discuss hardware. Here is what I have connected to my FTV.
Insignia Powered USB HUB
(http://www.insigniaproducts.com/products/computer-speakers-accessories/NS-PCH5431.html) - Without a powered USB, I wouldn't be able to do much. This one was cheap at Best Buy and is working flawlessly.
Logitech K700 Wireless Keyboard (http://www.amazon.com/Logitech-Wireless-Keyboard-Controller-Google/dp/B004VD4F1W) - I bought this several years ago to use with my old HTPC. It works well with the FTV, but not all the buttons function as it was designed for the Google TV. The keyboard itself works great, as does the trackpad and the navigation controls. This does function in CWM to, so I don't need a wired keyboard.
Motorola Bluetooth Mouse - Just a simple BT mouse that works.
Logitech F710 Game Controller (http://gaming.logitech.com/en-us/product/f710-wireless-gamepad) - I've had this for use on my PC games, but it works well for the FTV. More about game controllers below.
Ouya Game Controller (http://shop.ouya.tv/products/ouya-controller) - This works well with the FTV, both as a controller and as a touchpad. More about game controllers below.
MODIFICATIONS
-----------------------------------
I followed many guides on http://www.aftvnews.com/ to modify my FTV and get it to do what I wanted. Here are a few. I won't go into details about them, you can get that on AFTVNews. But I wanted to list what I've done.
Root (http://www.aftvnews.com/how-to-root-the-amazon-fire-tv/)
Custom Boot Menu (http://www.aftvnews.com/how-to-install-a-kernel-boot-menu-on-the-amazon-fire-tv/)
ClockworkMod (http://www.aftvnews.com/recovery/)
Pre-Rooted Stock Update (http://www.aftvnews.com/roms/)
Customized Menu Items (http://www.aftvnews.com/menu-item-remover-mod-updated-with-51-1-4-0-compatibility/)
Mount System and Data to USB Drive (http://www.aftvnews.com/how-to-use-a-usb-drive-as-the-fire-tvs-internal-storage/) - This was a must for me. Once I was able to have virtually unlimited memory, it allowed all the customizations and extras to happen.
APPLICATIONS
-----------------------------------
SPMC [XBMC/KODI] (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.semperpax.spmc&hl=en) - An awesome media player with tons of addons. There is plenty of discussion over this on the XDA forums.
Google Play Store Install (http://www.aftvnews.com/how-to-install-the-google-play-store-on-the-amazon-fire-tv/)
Google Plays All Apps! (http://www.aftvnews.com/how-to-trick-google-play-store-into-allowing-all-apps/) - Make the FTV more compatible with apps on Google Play
OUYA Framework (http://www.reddit.com/r/ouya/comments/2d6byk/turn_any_device_into_an_ouya_tutorial/) - Turn your FTV into an OUYA.... sort of. Once installed, this sort of messes up the home button, taking you to a messed up OUYA system screen instead of the Amazon Launcher. I found a work around to allow the OUYA games to still function, but not mess up the system. Install this alternative OUYA launcher then disable the OUYA Launcher using Titanum Backup. (http://ouyaforum.com/showthread.php?4436-BAXY-Custom-Launcher).
NOVA Launcher (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.teslacoilsw.launcher&hl=en) - My launcher of choice. It works well with the remote.
Wallpaper (http://forum.xda-developers.com/fire-tv/themes-apps/background-t3029985) - The FTV has system wallpaper turned off, making most custom launchers only have a black background. This hack turns it on.
ISSUES
-----------------------------------
Game controllers - The short, not all controllers work with all games. This is a hit or miss area with some buttons not working on certain games. One issue I did find was that having my keyboard connected seems to mess up certain games. For example, Shadowngun. When it's connected, the L2 and R2 buttons do not work on either of my controllers. I do not know if this would be the same with the Amazon Controller. If I unplug it and reboot, the L2 and R2 works. My suggestion, if you have a wireless keyboard, test games without it plugged in first. A BT keyboard might not have this issue though.
OUYA - Having the OUYA framework is wonderful for increasing the available games. It's downfall is that it screws up the home button functionality. A work around is to disable the OUYA Launcher using Titanium Backup, and have the alternative OUYA Launcher (BAXY) installed. This gives games access to the OUYA framework without screwing with the default launcher.
I hope this helps people see the capabilities of the Fire TV and unlocks it for those lucky enough to have a rootable FTV. My future goals are to mess with the game controllers to see if I can figure out why some games work and others don't. I want to get an Amazon controller and see how that works with the OUYA framework. unfortunately they're on backorder at the moment.
Lots of useless junk too. You even point to the fact that a lot of the games you have installed do not work, so why not uninstall them? It just seems like your setup is over doing it. Not tryin to be rude just stating my opinion. The thread is good and I like that you would point people to where they can find tweaks, but the video is horrible.
xm41907 said:
I was lucky enough to purchase a rootable Amazon Fire TV and have customized it to be quite the awesome device, thanks in part to the wonderful XDA community for providing all sorts of hacks. I wanted to show off what this little device can do so here is a video showing my setup, including the hardware I use and all the customizations I've done.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1nf2ffZT3s
HARDWARE
-----------------------------------
First off, I want to discuss hardware. Here is what I have connected to my FTV.
Insignia Powered USB HUB
(http://www.insigniaproducts.com/products/computer-speakers-accessories/NS-PCH5431.html) - Without a powered USB, I wouldn't be able to do much. This one was cheap at Best Buy and is working flawlessly.
Logitech K700 Wireless Keyboard (http://www.amazon.com/Logitech-Wireless-Keyboard-Controller-Google/dp/B004VD4F1W) - I bought this several years ago to use with my old HTPC. It works well with the FTV, but not all the buttons function as it was designed for the Google TV. The keyboard itself works great, as does the trackpad and the navigation controls. This does function in CWM to, so I don't need a wired keyboard.
Motorola Bluetooth Mouse - Just a simple BT mouse that works.
Logitech F710 Game Controller (http://gaming.logitech.com/en-us/product/f710-wireless-gamepad) - I've had this for use on my PC games, but it works well for the FTV. More about game controllers below.
Ouya Game Controller (http://shop.ouya.tv/products/ouya-controller) - This works well with the FTV, both as a controller and as a touchpad. More about game controllers below.
MODIFICATIONS
-----------------------------------
I followed many guides on http://www.aftvnews.com/ to modify my FTV and get it to do what I wanted. Here are a few. I won't go into details about them, you can get that on AFTVNews. But I wanted to list what I've done.
Root (http://www.aftvnews.com/how-to-root-the-amazon-fire-tv/)
Custom Boot Menu (http://www.aftvnews.com/how-to-install-a-kernel-boot-menu-on-the-amazon-fire-tv/)
ClockworkMod (http://www.aftvnews.com/recovery/)
Pre-Rooted Stock Update (http://www.aftvnews.com/roms/)
Customized Menu Items (http://www.aftvnews.com/menu-item-remover-mod-updated-with-51-1-4-0-compatibility/)
Mount System and Data to USB Drive (http://www.aftvnews.com/how-to-use-a-usb-drive-as-the-fire-tvs-internal-storage/) - This was a must for me. Once I was able to have virtually unlimited memory, it allowed all the customizations and extras to happen.
APPLICATIONS
-----------------------------------
SPMC [XBMC/KODI] (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.semperpax.spmc&hl=en) - An awesome media player with tons of addons. There is plenty of discussion over this on the XDA forums.
Google Play Store Install (http://www.aftvnews.com/how-to-install-the-google-play-store-on-the-amazon-fire-tv/)
Google Plays All Apps! (http://www.aftvnews.com/how-to-trick-google-play-store-into-allowing-all-apps/) - Make the FTV more compatible with apps on Google Play
OUYA Framework (http://www.reddit.com/r/ouya/comments/2d6byk/turn_any_device_into_an_ouya_tutorial/) - Turn your FTV into an OUYA.... sort of. Once installed, this sort of messes up the home button, taking you to a messed up OUYA system screen instead of the Amazon Launcher. I found a work around to allow the OUYA games to still function, but not mess up the system. Install this alternative OUYA launcher then disable the OUYA Launcher using Titanum Backup. (http://ouyaforum.com/showthread.php?4436-BAXY-Custom-Launcher).
NOVA Launcher (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.teslacoilsw.launcher&hl=en) - My launcher of choice. It works well with the remote.
Wallpaper (http://forum.xda-developers.com/fire-tv/themes-apps/background-t3029985) - The FTV has system wallpaper turned off, making most custom launchers only have a black background. This hack turns it on.
ISSUES
-----------------------------------
Game controllers - The short, not all controllers work with all games. This is a hit or miss area with some buttons not working on certain games. One issue I did find was that having my keyboard connected seems to mess up certain games. For example, Shadowngun. When it's connected, the L2 and R2 buttons do not work on either of my controllers. I do not know if this would be the same with the Amazon Controller. If I unplug it and reboot, the L2 and R2 works. My suggestion, if you have a wireless keyboard, test games without it plugged in first. A BT keyboard might not have this issue though.
OUYA - Having the OUYA framework is wonderful for increasing the available games. It's downfall is that it screws up the home button functionality. A work around is to disable the OUYA Launcher using Titanium Backup, and have the alternative OUYA Launcher (BAXY) installed. This gives games access to the OUYA framework without screwing with the default launcher.
I hope this helps people see the capabilities of the Fire TV and unlocks it for those lucky enough to have a rootable FTV. My future goals are to mess with the game controllers to see if I can figure out why some games work and others don't. I want to get an Amazon controller and see how that works with the OUYA framework. unfortunately they're on backorder at the moment.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well I really liked it and I envy that screen! It looks pretty clear even from the camera.
Just 2 random things I noticed...I used nova launcher with xposed but probably wouldn't have reverted back if I got it looking the way you did. I played around with it on my phone awhile until I tried Google now with a few exposed tweaks. But I'm always on the lookout for a good launcher. Lots of people using nova but haven't found many good tutorials.
The other was fast reboot. I had this installed but the one persistent bug I have dealing with cec wasn't fixed by fast reboot. It needed an actual reboot. Then I read that those types of apps aren't always good for android. They included other "memory boosting" type apps as well. It didn't scare me but since it didn't help much I just uninstalled it. Then again, at the time I wasn't using a launcher so getting to the app was too tedious to make it worthwhile. Do you have any thoughts on that? Heard it might not be good for the device?
I enjoyed the video. Very impressive setup! Thanks for sharing!
porkenhimer said:
Lots of useless junk too. You even point to the fact that a lot of the games you have installed do not work, so why not uninstall them? It just seems like your setup is over doing it. Not tryin to be rude just stating my opinion. The thread is good and I like that you would point people to where they can find tweaks, but the video is horrible.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That is because many of them I have not tested out yet to see which work well and which do not. Sort of a mass install of games over the last two weeks and I've not had the time to sort through them all. Many will be uninstalled I'm sure, but frankly, that doesn't concern me at this point. They don't take up resources beyond hard drive space and I have 320 gigs worth. I've not even touched 10% of available space yet. The point of the video is to show what the FTV is capable of, not to show a well polished and final system.
The video isn't great because I'm on a projector, lighting is difficult. Too much light and the screen is washed out. Too little and the camera sensor suffers.
KLit75 said:
Well I really liked it and I envy that screen! It looks pretty clear even from the camera.
Just 2 random things I noticed...I used nova launcher with xposed but probably wouldn't have reverted back if I got it looking the way you did. I played around with it on my phone awhile until I tried Google now with a few exposed tweaks. But I'm always on the lookout for a good launcher. Lots of people using nova but haven't found many good tutorials.
The other was fast reboot. I had this installed but the one persistent bug I have dealing with cec wasn't fixed by fast reboot. It needed an actual reboot. Then I read that those types of apps aren't always good for android. They included other "memory boosting" type apps as well. It didn't scare me but since it didn't help much I just uninstalled it. Then again, at the time I wasn't using a launcher so getting to the app was too tedious to make it worthwhile. Do you have any thoughts on that? Heard it might not be good for the device?
I enjoyed the video. Very impressive setup! Thanks for sharing!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the support. I've been using both NOVA Launcher and Fast Reboot for about three years now and on multiple devices. I like how simple NOVA can be, yet is very customizable. Having it work well with the FTV remote was a big reason I went with it though. A more graphically pleasing look would be nice, but this does what I want it to do. I've read up a lot on the various memory clearing apps. Fast Reboot is simple and doesn't muck around in the weeds. I've been nothing short of happy with using it for several years now. It doesn't fall into the "memory boosting" apps, that try to tweak the system. Simply a quick way to clear memory cache.
xm41907 said:
That is because many of them I have not tested out yet to see which work well and which do not. Sort of a mass install of games over the last two weeks and I've not had the time to sort through them all. Many will be uninstalled I'm sure, but frankly, that doesn't concern me at this point. They don't take up resources beyond hard drive space and I have 320 gigs worth. I've not even touched 10% of available space yet. The point of the video is to show what the FTV is capable of, not to show a well polished and final system.
The video isn't great because I'm on a projector, lighting is difficult. Too much light and the screen is washed out. Too little and the camera sensor suffers.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was not talking about the quality of the video, I meant that the video in general was horrible. The video capures what a lot of people do wrong when they post video of their devices. For one, you have too much going on in the video. If you wanna show us your setup, fine, but why do you have to show us every gadget you have? I for one think people that post videos about their device and for no reason show us 20 other devices are laughable. It takes away from what you are supposed to be showing us. Plus you have a lot of apps that you make no mention of. Like when you open up your utilities folder, you show the folder and do not say the names of any apps inside or what you have them installled for. I am not trying to say you did a bad job, cause like I said, the thread is nice, maybe you could go through your apps and tell us what they are and why you have them. You opened some games and showed off your launchers, but you should have gave us some more info on what your installed apps are. I will use the utilities folder as an example again, I like utility apps so I am sure others do too, but you have an awful lot of utility apps to not give us a simple rundown of what some of them are. Its different if you have a folder full of games that we can identify by looking at the icon, but when you have a folder full of apps that we cannot recognise then you should give us some input. Also, not everyone uses their Fire TV to play games or play with XBMC, so maybe you could show us something else besides launchers, SPMC and gaming. You have the important stuff listed on this thread, which is awesome, so you probably could have just made a video sayin to visit your thread for all info on the mods you have installed, maybe even showed them off a little, then got to the other less graphical non cool type of apps you have installed. Like I said its just an opinion, but the video really did seem like it was for show and nothing technical. Maybe you can make a part two and show us some of the other apps you have, and tell us what they do. People are into discovering new apps so maybe you can help someone discover something new besides something media or graphic driven. The video kinda reminds me of the unboxing videos where someone spends more time focusing on the cool accesories they have rather than the device itself.
porkenhimer said:
For one, you have too much going on in the video. If you wanna show us your setup, fine, but why do you have to show us every gadget you have? I for one think people that post videos about their device and for no reason show us 20 other devices are laughable. It takes away from what you are supposed to be showing us. Plus you have a lot of apps that you make no mention of. Like when you open up your utilities folder, you show the folder and do not say the names of any apps inside or what you have them installled for
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I humbly disagree with your take on my video. My intention was to show you what modifications I have done with my system and I did just that. The specific devices I have are key to these modifications. I will give you that showing both a bluetooth mouse and a wireless keyboard/trackpad are slightly redundant, but if you're going to nitpick something like that, then just move on. I did not show every installed app, because again, it was to show you what modifications I have done, not to show you recommended apps I have installed. I believe you have completely missed the spirit of my post.
porkenhimer said:
You opened some games and showed off your launchers, but you should have gave us some more info on what your installed apps are. I will use the utilities folder as an example again, I like utility apps so I am sure others do too, but you have an awful lot of utility apps to not give us a simple rundown of what some of them are.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The vast majority of apps in my Utility folder are stock apps on the FTV that I put into the folder because I have no need for them. Such as the Game Circle, Superuser, etc. If you want a video of me explaining what apps I have, I can do that, but that does not fall in the spirit of my post. The apps I mentioned were the key apps necessary for my mods. Others are insignificant to the modifications.
porkenhimer said:
not everyone uses their Fire TV to play games or play with XBMC, so maybe you could show us something else besides launchers, SPMC and gaming.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Again, I did not post this for people to copy my setup, but to show functionality of mods.
porkenhimer said:
but the video really did seem like it was for show and nothing technical.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Correct. If I were making a tutorial video on how to accomplish these mods, then it would have been a totally different type of video. It was simply to show some of the mods that can be used on the FTV with a little bit of personal experience using them.
porkenhimer said:
Maybe you can make a part two and show us some of the other apps you have, and tell us what they do. People are into discovering new apps so maybe you can help someone discover something new besides something media or graphic driven. The video kinda reminds me of the unboxing videos where someone spends more time focusing on the cool accesories they have rather than the device itself.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I did spend a fair amount of time today weeding through the apps I have installed and maybe I will do an app video to accompany my setup. In a sense, you are right that this video is more of a unboxing video. My intention was to provide a glimpse into the modifications available for the FTV. A "modifications of" type of of unboxing video. I provided the links to many of the various modifications so that if someone wanted to achieve a function that I have, they would have the means to follow the tutorials that I followed.
Your setup is soooooo decent...thanks for the share!
Do I install Titanium and kill the AFTV launcher to use Nova as my main launcher? how do you go from Nova to Aftv back to Nova so easy? Now that i can do backgrounds I'll certainly like to use Nova instead of another custom one i'm using
nickyb003 said:
Your setup is soooooo decent...thanks for the share!
Do I install Titanium and kill the AFTV launcher to use Nova as my main launcher? how do you go from Nova to Aftv back to Nova so easy? Now that i can do backgrounds I'll certainly like to use Nova instead of another custom one i'm using
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Honestly, it's been a little while so I don't recall exactly how I got it functioning. I was toying around with lots of things and stumbled upon getting it working. Here's what I believe got it to work right. There isn't a function to set NOVA as the default launcher like on most android devices. Instead, you have to do some fiddling. Here is basically what I did.
Installed FiredTV Launcher - I used this for awhile before using the Llama app
Installed Nova Launcher - Froze KFTV Launcher using TB. This worked but I lost Amazon movies
Froze FiredTV Launcher and unfroze KFTV. This seemed to do the trick. I also have the Ouya framework installed, but with the Ouya launcher frozen or else it takes over.
Thanks for the video. I had given up on FiredTV and never got any launcher working right but you showed it could be done, so I went looking and found my answer.
Through the Xposed framework, I loaded a module which intercepts the "home" key and lets you define a launcher. I still use the fire tv stock launcher when absolutely required, but I launch it from within nova and when I press Home, I'm back to Nova.
I wanted to ask you about the USB drive. I had a flash drive and used the hack to mount data (or whatever it was) to the flash drive. Everything was SLOW -- unbearably so. I have a USB hard drive coming, so wanted to ask if you find the speed acceptable with the hard drive. I believe some of the tweaks from tvaddons.ag for xbmc were actually part of the problem. I ended up just starting over at one point.
ractar28 said:
Thanks for the video. I had given up on FiredTV and never got any launcher working right but you showed it could be done, so I went looking and found my answer.
Through the Xposed framework, I loaded a module which intercepts the "home" key and lets you define a launcher. I still use the fire tv stock launcher when absolutely required, but I launch it from within nova and when I press Home, I'm back to Nova.
I wanted to ask you about the USB drive. I had a flash drive and used the hack to mount data (or whatever it was) to the flash drive. Everything was SLOW -- unbearably so. I have a USB hard drive coming, so wanted to ask if you find the speed acceptable with the hard drive. I believe some of the tweaks from tvaddons.ag for xbmc were actually part of the problem. I ended up just starting over at one point.
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You're welcome! That is why I wanted to post a video and provide links. Are you refering to Rbox's Xposed module? I installed that too, but completely forgot about having it.
As for the flash drive, I tried one at first, it was horribly slow. Many others have had similar experiences. It's reference in one of the guides I posted. After switching to my external hard drive, it was just about as fast as stock. I was actually surprised, because my drive is a WD Passport, no external power supply. I simply used a powered hub and it works great. I would like an SSD, but not going to spend the money on one now.
The tweaks from tvaddons would only affect XBMC. They shouldn't have any affect on the FTV itself.
Yes, the addons only impacted kodi, BUT, kodi was the app I used the most at the time. I know kodi has a pretty small footprint for an android app, so for it to become painstakingly slow, pretty much ruined my fire tv experience. Of course, I was also using gotham "customizations" on kodi, which was also possibly a contributing factor.
Is a powered hub required for an external hard drive? I had purchased one powered hub and tried it with fire tv and it could no longer see my flash drive through the powered hub. With a powered hub, can the fire tv (via stickmount) see multiple storage devices?
ractar28 said:
Yes, the addons only impacted kodi, BUT, kodi was the app I used the most at the time. I know kodi has a pretty small footprint for an android app, so for it to become painstakingly slow, pretty much ruined my fire tv experience. Of course, I was also using gotham "customizations" on kodi, which was also possibly a contributing factor.
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I still doubt it was anything with kodi. FLash drives are known to be very slow for this.
ractar28 said:
Is a powered hub required for an external hard drive? I had purchased one powered hub and tried it with fire tv and it could no longer see my flash drive through the powered hub. With a powered hub, can the fire tv (via stickmount) see multiple storage devices?
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I first tried using it without a hub and the FTV didn't even register it was connected. Once I got a powered hub, all was well with the world. I just picked one up at Best Buy.
xm41907 said:
I was lucky enough to purchase a rootable Amazon Fire TV and have customized it to be quite the awesome device, thanks in part to the wonderful XDA community for providing all sorts of hacks. I wanted to show off what this little device can do so here is a video showing my setup, including the hardware I use and all the customizations I've done.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1nf2ffZT3s
I hope this helps people see the capabilities of the Fire TV and unlocks it for those lucky enough to have a rootable FTV. My future goals are to mess with the game controllers to see if I can figure out why some games work and others don't. I want to get an Amazon controller and see how that works with the OUYA framework. unfortunately they're on backorder at the moment.
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im glad to see two of the modifications that i posted to good use. The Ouya Framework that i pulled from my madcatz mojo and freezing kftv launcher using titaniumbackup. the way that i got ouya to boot was i used autopilot to launch it at startup and when i need to exit i would simply hit the home button.
mejdam said:
im glad to see two of the modifications that i posted to good use. The Ouya Framework that i pulled from my madcatz mojo and freezing kftv launcher using titaniumbackup. the way that i got ouya to boot was i used autopilot to launch it at startup and when i need to exit i would simply hit the home button.
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Click to collapse
Have you looked into the BAXY launcher for OUYA? Withe the normal OUYA launcher, it was hijacking my home button. I couldn't play the OUYA games unless it was active, but freezing it and running BAXY worked.
xm41907 said:
Have you looked into the BAXY launcher for OUYA? Withe the normal OUYA launcher, it was hijacking my home button. I couldn't play the OUYA games unless it was active, but freezing it and running BAXY worked.
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I have not used baxy, matter of fact i only own one fire tv left, i mostly changed to nexus player and im slowing getting rid of all my legacy boxes and making room for the razer forge tv.
i loaded the tv launcher so once autopilot booted into the ouya launcher i would install all the ouya apps and just go back to the tv launcher and launch the apps from that screen instead. im not really a gamer so all this was more for a proof of concept.
BTW, have you seen my thread of configuring IPTV on your fire tv? if not i would really look into it.
mejdam said:
i loaded the tv launcher so once autopilot booted into the ouya launcher i would install all the ouya apps and just go back to the tv launcher and launch the apps from that screen instead. im not really a gamer so all this was more for a prove of concept.
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That works too, but the OUYA framework would still hijack my home button at times, no matter what launcher I was using. Perhaps I might be able to keep that from happening with autopilot. I've just not taken the time to bother with OUYA stuff much once, games are installed, I haven't needed to go into the OUYA menus.
mejdam said:
BTW, have you seen my thread of configuring IPTV on your fire tv? if not i would really look into it.
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I played with it and have it working some. I have been really busy with a different project, until last Saturday. Now I've got some free time to fiddle more. I have some controller things I'm going to fiddle with first.
Awesome customization.. but wud be great if you could post some instructions to newbs like me on how to setup the NovaLauncher/Live Wallpaper and the external
HD for storage. I know it's a long list but hoping you could put some instructions down. (Or) @aftVNEWS if you happen to look at this post please try to put something if you can.
Cheers !
ncube2 said:
Awesome customization.. but wud be great if you could post some instructions to newbs like me on how to setup the NovaLauncher/Live Wallpaper and the external
HD for storage. I know it's a long list but hoping you could put some instructions down. (Or) @aftVNEWS if you happen to look at this post please try to put something if you can.
Cheers !
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Click to collapse
Thanks. Did you not see all the links I posted below the video? They're there. Well, minus the Nova Launcher setup, but look at post #9.
Nice video, thanks for the info, checking out setting up the live wallpapers & nova launcher.
I have an Amazon Game Controller for the AFTV and I don't have a problem with compatibility with any games like I did using my Xbox 360 controller & a PS3 controller i have. Glad I picked one up.
Shadowgun HD 2.5 is what I have and it works great with the AGC. You can program which keys are what and it works with the shoulder buttons (tops ones, didn't try the bottom ones).
I do want to point out that the 2 shoulder bottom buttons don't work with many games unless they are program to use an analog steer & analog break (or at least something like that, forget what the games that see them call it).
And as for loading up a ton of games to check out later, I'm down. I've done the same thing. Most are crap or the ones the would be fun just don't work, but you know, it's the journey, right?

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