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simbasjungles

simbasjungles/free-my-tv

An open-source, ad-free home screen replacement for Google TV and Android TV that shows trending picks from your own apps, weather, and crypto prices.

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What is it?

Free My TV replaces the stock home screen and screensaver on Google TV and Android TV devices with a launcher that has no sponsored rows, banners or autoplaying promos. The shelf shows the streaming apps you choose, in an order you set on the TV, and the trending picks are drawn only from titles available in apps already installed. Movies and Shows have their own tabs, and a drawer provides an hour-by-hour forecast, sunrise and sunset times, and optional Binance crypto prices.

The app is a plain Android project written in Java with no Gradle and no third-party libraries; a shell script runs aapt2, javac, d8, zipalign and apksigner to produce the APK. Installation uses the TV's own ADB, connecting to the local loopback address with a key generated on the device, and runs standard commands such as setting the home activity and disabling packages. Disabled apps are not uninstalled, and a watchdog restores the factory home screen after repeated crashes.

Setup is done with a config.properties file, through settings on the TV, or by asking Claude Code, which the project is designed to be modified with. Picks rely on a free TMDB API key, and weather comes from Open-Meteo.

Key features

  • 01Home screen and screensaver replacement with no ads or sponsored content.
  • 02Shelf of user-selected streaming apps, ordered on the TV.
  • 03Hourly trending picks from installed apps, with Movies and Shows tabs.
  • 04Weather, sunrise and sunset, and optional crypto prices in a drawer.
  • 05Day and night theme that follows local sunset times.
  • 06One-step switch back to the original home screen; no apps are uninstalled.

Use cases

  • Removing promotional rows and autoplay ads from a Google TV or Android TV home screen.
  • Keeping your favourite streaming apps on a single front-and-centre shelf.
  • Using a Google TV streamer on a TV brand not directly listed, by adapting the app lists with an AI assistant.
  • Studying a small, dependency-free Android launcher written in Java.

Quick start

  1. 1

    Clone the repository

    git clone https://github.com/simbasjungles/free-my-tv && cd free-my-tv
  2. 2

    Install the Android build tools on a Mac

    brew install --cask temurin android-commandlinetools android-platform-tools
  3. 3

    Install the Android SDK platform and build-tools

    sdkmanager "build-tools;34.0.0" "platforms;android-34"
  4. 4

    Build the APK (set your city and TMDB key in config.properties, then run again)

    ./build.sh

Things to know

  • Requires enabling developer mode and USB debugging on the TV.
  • The trending picks need a free TMDB API key.
  • Manual install needs a JDK, Android SDK and adb on your computer; Windows users need WSL.

Topics

#android-tv#google-tv#launcher#home-screen#no-ads#java#adb#claude-code#open-source#tmdb

FAQ

What is free-my-tv?
An open-source, ad-free home screen replacement for Google TV and Android TV that shows trending picks from your own apps, weather, and crypto prices. Free My TV replaces the stock home screen and screensaver on Google TV and Android TV devices with a launcher that has no sponsored rows, banners or autoplaying promos. The shelf shows the streaming apps you choose, in an order you set on the TV, and the trending picks are drawn only from titles available in apps already installed. Movies and Shows have their own tabs, and a drawer provides an hour-by-hour forecast, sunrise and sunset times, and optional Binance crypto prices.
Is free-my-tv free to use? What license does it have?
free-my-tv is open source under the MIT license. Check the license terms before using it in commercial products.
Is free-my-tv still maintained?
Actively maintained. The last commit to free-my-tv was on Oct 20, 2026.
What can I use free-my-tv for?
Removing promotional rows and autoplay ads from a Google TV or Android TV home screen. Keeping your favourite streaming apps on a single front-and-centre shelf. Using a Google TV streamer on a TV brand not directly listed, by adapting the app lists with an AI assistant. Studying a small, dependency-free Android launcher written in Java.
How do I install free-my-tv?
Clone the repository: git clone https://github.com/simbasjungles/free-my-tv && cd free-my-tv Install the Android build tools on a Mac: brew install --cask temurin android-commandlinetools android-platform-tools Install the Android SDK platform and build-tools: sdkmanager "build-tools;34.0.0" "platforms;android-34" Build the APK (set your city and TMDB key in config.properties, then run again): ./build.sh
Where can I get free-my-tv?
The source code and installation instructions are on GitHub: https://github.com/simbasjungles/free-my-tv

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