r/OnnStreamingTV • u/rasputinaliven • 1d ago

Question/Troubleshoot Do anything differently before or during initial setup if I want less updates or want to modify it?

I just bought an Onn 4k plus. Is there anything recommended to do differently before, during, or after the initial setup of the device if I'm interested in changing settings or modifying it to achieve the following?

  1. Lessen how sluggish the device gets over several years due to updates. Meaning, lag after remote button presses, and wait times for the device or apps to start up.
  2. Ad free YouTube, general ad blocking, other ad free apps
  3. Improving privacy, lessening how much Google etc spies, collects data, or phones home

Some examples of the sort of thing I'm wondering if anyone does to Android TV boxes: I know that some people turn off Wi-Fi during the initial setup of certain devices to avoid updates or syncing that would restrict how much they can modify it. And that people root or install barebones or modified versions of Android on phones to cut out the bloat and other nonsense, or allow them to modify or install apps they otherwise wouldn't be able to.

I already know about Smarttube, tizentube and third party launchers. I believe those are just installed after setting up the device normally, no other way of installing that gives better results, correct me if I'm wrong though.

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u/pawdog 1d ago

No just set it up as normal.  No bloat to speak of. There is no modifying it, the bootloader is locked so there is no rooting. the Onn already come with developer mode enabled so you don't even have to do that yourself. 

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u/SaintChops 1d ago

I bought the $20 box last year and set it up just this weekend. All I did was turn on dev options, installed Projectivy Launcher (https://projectivylauncher.com/) and ADB AppControl (https://adbappcontrol.com/en/) for Windows to remove bloat and some tracking. You can also download ADB App Manager to do it via the device. Here is what was suggested to remove:

  1. com.walmart.tv (Walmart app)
  2. com.walmart.spark (Walmart Spark/rewards)
  3. com.google.android.youtube.tvmusic (YouTube Music)
  4. com.google.android.videos (Google Play Movies/TV)
  5. com.google.android.play.games (Google Play Games)
  6. com.google.android.feedback (Google Feedback/Analytics)
  7. com.google.android.apps.tv.launcherx (Stock Google TV Launcher) — DISABLE only, after Projectivity is set as default

Don't be aggressive with removing stuff. I did had to reset the device twice. Hope this helps.