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ESK Tech

TV Pointer · Android TV

Use your TV remote as a mouse.

Web browsers and many Android apps were made for touchscreens. TV Pointer puts a pointer on the screen: the arrow buttons move it and OK clicks.

Download the APKSource code

Free · Android TV and Google TV, Android 8.0 or later · Apache 2.0 licence

Install it on your TV

  1. On the TV, install a downloader app from Google Play, for example Downloader by AFTVnews.
  2. Open it and enter eskey.tech/tvpointer.apk. When Android asks, allow the downloader to install apps, then choose Install.
  3. Open TV Pointer, read the notice and choose Agree and open Accessibility settings. Turn on TV Pointer there.
  4. Open a web browser. The pointer appears in the middle of the screen.

You can also download the APK on a computer and copy it to the TV with a USB stick. Older versions and release notes are on the releases page.

Using it

  • Arrows move the pointer. Hold one down to go faster.
  • OK clicks. Hold OK for a long press.
  • Push the pointer against an edge of the screen to scroll.
  • Back closes the on-screen keyboard first, so what you typed stays on the screen.
  • Menu switches the pointer off and on in the current app. You can choose a different button in TV Pointer’s settings.

The pointer only appears in the apps you choose; common browsers are already selected. TV Pointer’s settings also let you open apps that have no tile on the TV’s home screen, such as Firefox.

Precise taps (optional)

Most TVs don’t let accessibility apps tap the screen, so TV Pointer presses the button or link under the pointer directly. A few things can’t be pressed that way, for example Firefox’s search box. Precise taps fix this by sending real taps through the TV’s own debugging service.

  1. Turn on Developer options: on most TVs, open Settings → System → About and press OK on the build number seven times.
  2. In Developer options, turn on USB debugging (on some TVs it is called network debugging).
  3. In TV Pointer’s settings, turn on Precise taps. When the TV asks whether to allow the connection, tick Always allow and choose OK.

The connection never leaves the TV. While debugging is on, only approve connection requests you started yourself.

TCL TVs

TCL’s TCL Guard app can stop apps from starting in the background. If TV Pointer’s settings say the service has been stopped, allow TV Pointer to start automatically in TCL Guard, then turn it off and on again in Accessibility settings.

Privacy and source code

TV Pointer has no accounts, analytics or ads, and collects nothing. Details are in the TV Pointer Privacy Policy. The source code is on GitHub under the Apache License 2.0.

Questions or problems: email [email protected] or open an issue on GitHub.