How to control a device running on Android 7.1?

Configuration
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I have this projector, which runs on Android 7.1. I can control the Plex app using the Plex HA integration. That’s great, but I’d love to be able to control the entire projector. Meaning, turn it on. Change the source. Set the volume. Etc. Ideas?

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Still hoping to make this work. Any thoughts?

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maybe try the android tv integration?

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Hmmm… That might be a good idea! I’m an iOS person, and really don’t know anything about Android devices. This projector runs Android 7.1. Is that similar to / the same as Android TV?

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its not the same as android tv no, but i figured it might be worth a shot?

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Even if you aren’t using androidtv you should be able to exercise some control over an android device via abd. Start here Home Assistant Community Add-on: ADB - Android Debug Bridge

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Thanks @dshokouhi and @nickrout! This looks promising. But I guess first I need to figure out how to enable developer mode on the projector. I’ll work on that and keep you posted!

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try going to about phone/device and select build number 7 times. should be the same on all android devices unless they changed that :slight_smile:

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How do you interact with a projector running android. How do you touch a button?

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There are 3 ways on this particular projector:

  • Physical buttons on the projector
  • A remote (IR)
  • A phone app
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OK, that maks sense :slight_smile:

Looking closely at the amazon advert I thought there might be an app.

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Making progress! Repeatedly clicking Android Version brings up a password screen. I did some googling and found that several people have contacted Anker and were given the password. This apparently unlocks the full Google Play store - The projector has a limited App Store by default. I’ll reach out to Anker to see if they’ll give me the password. Thanks again!

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Did it work? Maybe someday someone will make use of the bluetooth commands, seems quite difficult.

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Eh, I got it to work but not the way I was hoping. I was able to get the newer Android version installed on the projector, but I was never able to control it directly through HA. I ended up using a BroadLink remote connected to HA to send IR signals to turn the projector on/off and navigate to change the source to Plex. I kept that for a while, but the navigation and built-in Plex install were crappy and slow, so I connected an Apple TV to it. So now I use a combination of BroadLink, Apple TV, and Plex HA integrations to make it work. Clunky, but it works!

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Tried the same, but my broad link commands didn’t work.
Could you send the power on IR?

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I haven’t touched my scripts for this is a couple of years, so I don’t remember exactly how I got it to work. But here is what I remember -
I have the Anker Nebula projector added within the BroadLink app. I can control power and navigation using the app. Then I created individual scripts in HA for each function, so that I can later easily execute script.projector_on, script.projector_off, etc. here are some of the scripts I created:

projector_ok:
  sequence:
    - service: remote.send_command
      data:
        entity_id: remote.broadlink
        device: anker nebula projector
        command: ok
    

projector_on:
  alias: Projector On
  sequence:
    # Turn on Broadlink remote just in case it is currently off
    - service: remote.turn_on
      entity_id: remote.broadlink

    - delay: '00:00:03'

    - service: remote.send_command
      data:
        entity_id: remote.broadlink
        device: anker nebula projector
        command: power


projector_off:
  alias: Projector Off
  sequence:
    # Turn on Broadlink remote just in case it is currently off
    - service: remote.turn_on
      entity_id: remote.broadlink

    - delay: '00:00:03'
    - service: remote.send_command
      data:
        entity_id: remote.broadlink
        device: anker nebula projector
        command: power

    - delay: '00:00:05'

    - service: script.projector_ok



projector_up:
  sequence:
    - service: remote.send_command
      data:
        entity_id: remote.broadlink
        device: anker nebula projector
        command: up
        

projector_down:
  sequence:
    - service: remote.send_command
      data:
        entity_id: remote.broadlink
        device: anker nebula projector
        command: down
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Nice, i got it working aswel with IR. Could send you my config if you are intrested. Using smartIR with a custom JSon file, and calling sources to set diffrent things. Also creates an media device :slight_smile:

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