Channel 4 app finally comes to Android TV [Update]

Damien Wilde | Oct 31 2024 - 7:42 am PT

After years of annoying workarounds, limitations, and frustrations, the Channel 4 streaming app has finally come to Android TV.

Update 10/31: The Channel 4 application is not yet available for Nvidia Shield TV devices, but it is available for Google TV.

Originally branded 4OD, the Channel 4 app has always been available for Android phones and tablets, but it was sorely missing on Android TV systems, which did not have a native application to stream content from the UK service.

To access Channel 4 content on a Chromecast or Android TV system, you would need to use third-party apps such as Freeview Play or utilize the Cast function from the mobile application. While this initially worked well and was a great stop-gap, over the past few years, casting from the Channel 4 application has become rife with problems, disconnects, and overall a bad experience.

The only dedicated app for TV systems has been limited to Amazon Fire TV devices. Because Fire TV hardware runs a forked version of Android, this native application is technically a fully-fledged Android TV application, but with no way to get via the Google Play Store. Sideloading is possible, but it’s fraught with issues and incompatibility.

Over the past few days, the Channel 4 application has quietly been added to the library of applications that you can install on Android and Google TV devices, such as Chromecast, Google TV Streamer. The Nvidia Shield TV is not supported at present, but some users have been able to use the application with zero issues when sideloading. The UI is identical to the app on Kindle Fire TV devices, hinting that this is simply a clean port. You can stream live content where available, making it easier to tune into live events and content.

Top comment by Rik Aindow

Liked by 2 people

Channel 4 is now showing as available for my streamer.

Iplayer still, is not. But, using a workaround i have it working and the BBC channels show on my homescreen, too.

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Channel 4 has also stated that not all content is available within the application yet. However, it will be “available within weeks.”

What’s interesting is that when opening the application on my Google TV Streamer, the framerate dipped to the European 50Hz standard rather than the 60Hz of my TV and Google TV system. This is likely to conform with UK broadcast standards – where 25fps is favored by UK networks. The Channel 4 support pages also have no mention of Android TV at this early stage.

Channel 4 is still missing from the new “Channels” panel, but this change means that it could join the section in the coming weeks now that there is a native application to stream from. So, yes, we finally have an official Channel 4 application for Android TV and Google TV devices. You can download it directly to your devices via the Google Play Store.

Thanks Ben!