If it has a screen, you might want to take a screenshot at some point. This is possible on cell phones, on the PC, on smartwatches with Wear OS and also on TV. Today we tell you how to take screenshot on Android TV.
Android TV is the version of Android optimized for TVs, TV Boxes and similar devices. Not all devices with Android TV are the same, so the way you take screenshots may vary. To ensure success, we tell you three ways to take screenshots on Android TV.
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The easy option: with the remote control
Before installing apps, enabling development modes and USB debugging, it’s worth it test if universal screenshot mode on Android works also on your device with Android TV: press two keys at the same time.
To do this, press at the same time power button and volume down button on the remote and wait to see if the animation and sound indicating that a screenshot has been taken is displayed. Sometimes these buttons are quite far apart, so the position is not very ergonomic.
If this method works, congratulations, you don’t need to install anything or mess around to take screenshots, although you still do. an application to be able to send the captures to another device such as a PC or a mobile.
The captures you make with this method are saved in the Pictures / Screenshots folder and you can retrieve them with any application to send files from television, como Send files to TV, File Commander o Easy Join Go TV.
The reliable option: with Button Mapper
Button Mapper is an application for Android TV with which you can assign actions to remote control buttons. Its potential for customization is enormous, although the most important thing is that one of these actions can be precisely to take a screenshot.
You can download it directly from Google Play to TV and the first time you open it you need to activate it as an accessibility service. To do this, you must go to the Android settings, in the accessibility section and activate the box with the name of the application.
Then it’s time to remap the buttons. The application allows you to modify the actions of the start button and those of the volume for free, being able to configure a different action during a double or long press. This way, you can continue to use the volume button as usual for volume, but take screenshots by long pressing.
After choosing the button you want to customize – you can also configure others, in Add buttons– you have to choose what type of keystroke you want to configure and, finally, the action. This is where you have to choose Screenshot, for this button to take screenshots.
From there, every time you press the button you remapped, the screenshot will be taken and it will be saved internally. You must again use an application such as Send Files to TV, File Commander or Easy Join Go TV to send screenshots to your mobile.
The universal but complicated option: by ADB
If none of this worked for you, you can always try taking a screenshot the old fashioned way, connection to TV via ADB. The process, if possible, is not much different from connecting to your mobile using ADB.
You’ll have to activate developer options on television, like on mobile: enter the parameters, go to Information and press repeatedly Build number until a message indicates that they have been activated. Take advantage of the fact that you are on the information screen to enter the section State and write down the TV’s IP address.
Go back and you will see that you now have a new section with the options for the developers. Here you should Enable USB debugging
At this point you already have the TV ready, but you are missing the other part: on a PC. You will need to install ADB and connect to the TV using the IP address you wrote down before. This is the command you should use, changing la_ip
by IP address.
adb connect la_ip:5555
If all went well, you can take screenshots as you like from the other device, without having to press any complicated buttons. To do this, you must use the following command, indicating each time a different name for the file, otherwise it will be overwritten (we called it captura.png, but it can be any name).
adb shell screencap -p /sdcard/captura.png
The advantage of using ADB is that you can complete the whole process with commands, without having to send yourself or access the captures with other apps. This way you can use ADB pull
for send the capture you just made to the PC, with the following command:
adb pull /sdcard/captura.png /captura.png
It’s not the most comfortable way to take screenshots, but connecting to the device via ADB allows you to do everything remotely, without touching the remote, which has its advantages. In addition, by connecting to the Android TV device by ADB, you have the advantage of being able to do other steps, such as installing apps or change the interface to Google TV.