Frequently Asked Questions

Welcome to the FAQ page of SmartTube. We want you to have the best YouTube experience possible, so we’ve prepared some useful tips and solutions for you. You can browse through the FAQ topics below and find the answers you need. If you still have any questions or issues, don’t hesitate to contact us through our support page. We’ll be happy to assist you as soon as we can.😊

• Why can’t I play AV01 videos and why are VP9 videos lagging on my device?

• AV01 is a very new codec that most TVs and TV boxes don’t support yet. Without hardware support, your device won’t be able to play AV01 videos at all. VP9 is another codec that requires hardware support for smooth playback, especially at high resolutions. Some cheap TV boxes may struggle with 4k VP9 videos even if they claim to support them. Your device may still play VP9 videos without hardware support, but it will need a powerful CPU to do so. We might be able to make AV01 work without hardware support in the future, but it’s not a priority and it may not be very effective.

• How to cast videos from your phone to your TV using SmartTube?

• SmartTube lets you cast videos from your phone (or other devices) to your TV, but you need to link them first. Unlike the original YouTube app, SmartTube does not detect your TV automatically when you are on the same wifi network. Here are the steps to link your phone and TV:
  • open SmartTube on your TV and go to settings.
  • select “Remote control” and note the code displayed on your TV screen.
  • open the YouTube app on your phone, go to settings > watch on TV.
  • tap on connect using TV-code and enter the code from your TV.
  Remember, you need to launch SmartTube on your TV before you can cast videos from your phone; SmartTube cannot turn on your TV by itself.

• How to enable Voice Search?

• You can use your voice to search for videos on SmartTube, but you need install Amazon Bridge app for that. This app makes your device open SmartTube instead of the original YouTube app when you use your voice. But you need to remove the original YouTube app from your device first. We know this is not convenient, but you can always reinstall it if you want. The Amazon Bridge app will not appear on your screen and you cannot start it yourself; it is only used by your device when you use your voice. On some devices, you need to say “YouTube” before what you want to search (for example, say “YouTube funny dogs” instead of just “funny dogs”).

  The steps are not the same for different devices:

  On Amazon Fire TV:
  • Remove the original YouTube app from your device.
  • Download and install the Amazon Bridge app. (Use Downloader by AFTVnews for this.)
  On Google Chromecast:
  • Remove the original YouTube app from your device.
  • Download and install the ATV Bridge app from this link: https://kutt.it/stn_bridge_atv
  On all other Android devices:
  • Root your device.
  • Remove the official YouTube app using root (use this command: adb shell pm uninstall com.google.android.youtube.tv)
  • Download and install the Amazon Bridge app.

• Can I use this app on a Samsung Tizen TV / LG webOS TV / Roku / iOS / toaster?

• No, this app only works on Android devices. You can check if your TV is based on Android by looking at its product page. It should say clearly that it runs on Android. The app is not compatible with other platforms and we don’t plan to make it so. Please don’t ask us to do that. Instead, you can buy a separate TV stick or TV box that runs on Android and connect it to your TV.

• Can I use SmartTube app on car entertainment system?

• Yes, you can, but you need to meet some requirements:
  • Your car entertainment system is an Android device.
  • It has a big screen.
  • It has a TV remote, controller, or keyboard You cannot use SmartTube well with only touch or mouse input. Touch input and mouse/touchpad scrolling are not supported.

• How to fix “the video profile is not supported” error?

• Tap the “HQ” button in the bottom-left corner, choose video formats and pick something other than AV01. AV01 does not work on most devices (including yours, it seems), so use VP9 instead.

• Why does the debug information show my display as 1080p, when I have a 4k/UHD display?

• Don’t worry, the debug information is wrong. SmartTube works well even above 1080p and you can see that when you play a video in 4k or UHD. It’s also fine if it shows “720p” and you have a 1080p display.

• How can I choose a maximum resolution for my videos?

• SmartTube will choose the best quality for your video, up to a limit that you can set in the settings under “video profile”. SmartTube will use the video profile that you set, or the closest one that is available. You can also change the video profile while watching videos.

Can I watch HDR videos?

• Yes, you can watch HDR videos if your device supports them. The NVIDIA Shield does not support them. If HDR is not working, it’s probably not because of this app. You may need to look online for “HDR” and your device name to find any help.

• What does it mean when some updates say “don’t update if satisfied with the current version” in the changelog?

• These updates are meant to fix some problems that only happen on some devices or for some users. Only those who have these problems should update. For everyone else, there is no benefit from updating; but there is a risk of creating new problems. It’s OK if you updated anyway.

• What is AFR?

• AFR stands for “Auto Frame Rate”. It changes the refresh rate of your TV to match the video you’re watching. It can make the video look a bit smoother, but the change is very small; most people don’t notice it. It doesn’t work well on every device. If you don’t know what it does and don’t want to try it yourself, you can leave it off. Recommendation: You can turn it on to see if it works on your device; if it causes problems (or if you don’t want to try), turn it off.

• Why does my device freeze when watching YouTube?

• That’s a problem with your firmware or Android. If you are using a custom rom, maybe it has some bugs. We can’t help you with this problem, sorry. It’s too hard for the developer to fix. You can try some common solutions: restarting your device, clearing cache, reinstalling the app, or resetting your device to factory settings.

• Can I download videos?

• You can’t download videos with SmartTube.

• What is the difference between high and low buffer?

• The buffer is the amount of video that is loaded before you watch it. A high buffer loads more video ahead of where you are. A low buffer loads less video ahead of where you are. A low buffer might save some bandwidth, if you often stop watching videos before they finish. A high buffer can make the video play more smoothly, if your network is slow or unstable. A high buffer uses more RAM, but this should not be a problem.

• How to report bugs or suggest features for SmartTube?

• You can use different ways to give feedback or ideas for SmartTube. You can go to the GitHub page of the app and make an issue. You can join the Telegram group of the app and talk to the developer or other users. You can email to [email protected].