Why Standard Android Installers Fail on TVs
Most Android installers are designed for vertical touchscreens. When opened on an Android TV or Google TV (like Chromecast with Google TV, Sony Bravia, Xiaomi Mi Box, or Nvidia Shield), the interface fails to support remote D-pad focus, and buttons often fall off the screen.
Universal Installer provides a dedicated 10-foot TV UI designed specifically for directional remote control with high-contrast selection borders and smooth D-pad scrolling.
Step-by-Step: Sending APKs from Phone to TV over Wi-Fi
Universal Installer includes a built-in LAN Sync & Share server that lets you push APKs directly from your phone to your TV over your local network:
1. Install the Universal Installer Android TV APK on your TV (available from GitHub Releases).
2. Open Universal Installer on your TV and select 'Receive via LAN'. A 4-digit pairing code and local IP will appear on your TV screen.
3. Open Universal Installer on your phone, pick any .apk, .apks, or .xapk file, and tap 'Send to TV'.
4. Select your TV from the detected device list or type the pairing code. The file will transfer over high-speed local Wi-Fi and the TV will immediately prompt for one-tap installation.
LAN transfer uses your local router bandwidth, so multi-gigabyte games with OBB data transfer in seconds without consuming internet data.
Enabling Unknown Sources on Android TV & Google TV
On first install, Android TV requires you to grant permission to install unknown apps:
1. Open TV Settings → Apps → Security & Restrictions (or Special app access).
2. Select 'Install unknown apps'.
3. Toggle Universal Installer to 'Allowed'.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Universal Installer support split APKs on Android TV?
Yes! Bundled split APKs (.apks, .xapk, and .apkm) are fully supported on Android TV. Universal Installer detects your TV's display density and CPU architecture (such as arm64 or armeabi-v7a) to install the correct split configuration.
Can I install apps silently on Android TV with root or Shizuku?
Yes. If your TV box has root privileges or Shizuku running via wireless ADB, Universal Installer installs packages in the background without interrupting your viewing.
Try Universal Installer for free
Install any APK, APKS, or XAPK format across your Phone, Wear OS smartwatch, and Android TV. Open source, zero ads, no accounts.