What Is SmartTube?
SmartTube, released for several years under the name SmartTubeNext, is maintained by the developer yuliskov and published on GitHub, where the source, the issue tracker, and the release files sit in one repository. It is not a modified copy of Google's TV app. It reaches YouTube's public endpoints on its own, so it runs without Google Play Services, without a MicroG companion, and without root. Navigation assumes a directional pad and a viewer sitting across the room.
How It Differs From Vanced and ReVanced
Vanced and ReVanced both start from Google's code. Vanced was a prebuilt, repackaged version of the official phone app; ReVanced applies patches to a stock YouTube APK you supply. This project does neither, so its menus, playback overlay, and browsing grid resemble nothing in YouTube's own TV interface and no Vanced setting names carry over.
The independence also explains the MicroG difference. Vanced could not sign in to a Google account without the separate Vanced MicroG build, and the decay of that component is much of why old Vanced installs now fail at login. Here the app handles sign-in itself through a pairing code, with no second package to keep alive. The other split is the screen: ReVanced and Vanced target phones, so for ad-free YouTube in your hand, read the ReVanced guide or the NewPipe profile instead.
Main Features
- TV-optimized interface with remote control navigation
- Ad blocking
- SponsorBlock skipping of sponsored segments
- 4K/HDR playback support
- Adjustable playback speed
- Google account login support
- No root required
- Regular updates
Playback speed is worth singling out, since the official TV app does not offer it at all. SponsorBlock behaves as it does on phones, pulling community-submitted timestamps and skipping the categories you enable.
Feature Support Compared
| Feature | SmartTube | ReVanced | Official TV app |
|---|---|---|---|
| Built for TV screens and remotes | Yes | Phone focused | Yes |
| Ad blocking | Yes | Yes | No |
| SponsorBlock | Yes | Yes | No |
| Playback speed control | Yes | Yes | No |
| Google account sign-in | Optional, pairing code | Yes | Yes |
| Requires MicroG | No | Depends on patches | No |
| How updates arrive | Manual APK install | Re-patch and reinstall | Automatic |
Supported Devices
- Android TV boxes
- Amazon Fire TV Stick / Fire TV Cube
- Nvidia Shield
- Google TV devices
- Some smart TVs running Android TV OS
Installing and Updating
No store carries the app, so installation means sideloading an APK. On Fire TV the usual route is the Downloader app: enter the release URL, let it fetch the file, and grant Downloader permission to install unknown apps when prompted. On Android TV boxes and the Nvidia Shield, a file manager, a USB stick, or ADB over the local network all work.
Updating repeats that path, since nothing watches for new versions on your behalf. Install the newer APK over the old one; provided both carry the same developer signature, Android treats it as an upgrade and your settings survive. An installer that refuses the upgrade usually means the file came from a repackaged mirror.
Honest Limitations
- It is a television app. The interface is built for a D-pad and is awkward on a touchscreen.
- No automatic updates, no store review. Sideloading skips the vetting layer a store provides, which puts source-checking on you.
- It depends on YouTube's backend. Any independent client can break when Google changes how playback or search responses are structured, and a fix arrives whenever the maintainer ships one.
- Support is community-run. Questions go to the GitHub issue tracker, with no guaranteed response.
- Account features are not identical. Signing in restores subscriptions and history, but recommendations, memberships, and purchased content behave differently outside Google's own client.
Who It Suits
The clearest fit is a viewer whose main YouTube screen is a television. Fire TV Stick owners are a large share of that group, since Amazon's hardware runs Android underneath but stocks nothing comparable. Anyone unwilling to sideload should stay with the official app or YouTube Premium.
Safety Notes
The project is open source and its code lives at github.com/yuliskov/SmartTube. Download only from there. Repackaged TV APKs circulate widely and a modified build can carry anything, so check the domain before typing it into a sideloading tool. Our APK safety guide covers the rest.
Frequently Asked Questions
No. Vanced was a repackaged build of the official YouTube phone app, discontinued in March 2022 with 17.03.38 as its final release. This is a separate application written for televisions by a different developer, and it still receives releases.
Yes. Fire OS is built on Android and uses the same remote-driven layout the app is designed for. Amazon does not carry it in its appstore, so installation means sideloading the APK, usually with the Downloader app.
No. Browsing and playback work signed out. Signing in is optional and uses a pairing code shown on the television that you enter on a phone or computer, which brings subscriptions and watch history across. Unlike Vanced, no MicroG companion is involved.
No. It installs like any other sideloaded Android app and needs no unlocked bootloader, custom recovery, or superuser permissions.
Store policy does not allow applications that strip advertising out of another company's service, so distribution happens through the project's GitHub releases page instead. That also means updates are manual.