Ansub/tv-detox

The problem

Android TV sets accumulate sponsored rows, bundled apps and background services, and after a few years the interface becomes unusable on the hardware it shipped with. The usual fixes are factory resets that change nothing, or hunting for sketchy debloat scripts on forums. TV Detox packages two things: a lightweight replacement launcher plus a documented cleanup procedure that an AI coding agent walks you through over ADB.

What's different

Most debloat guides assume you already know adb shell pm disable-user and which packages are safe. This project instead ships a prompt for Claude Code or Codex that forces the agent to inventory apps in plain language, ask before each change, keep an undo list, and refuse to touch critical packages like Google Play services or the system UI. The second piece is a tiny Java home screen with apps, HDMI inputs and a clock. Compared with established launchers like FLauncher or Projectivy, it is deliberately minimal, and compared with community debloat lists it is interactive rather than a static package blacklist. Nothing here is novel technically; the packaging is the product.

Who it's for

Owners of older Sony, TCL, Hisense, Philips or Xiaomi Android TV sets, Chromecast with Google TV and Nvidia Shield who are comfortable turning on developer mode and running a laptop-side agent. It is not for Fire TV users who want to replace Amazon's home screen (blocked), and not for Roku, Tizen or webOS devices at all. If you want a full-featured launcher with customization, look at the mature alternatives instead.

Cost of adoption

You need a laptop on the same Wi-Fi, ADB, developer mode on the TV, and either Claude Code or Codex. The README itself warns that some TVs ended up stuck at the logo or rebooting, that the AI can make mistakes, and that wireless debugging left enabled exposes the TV to other devices on the network. Google TV users keep the stock launcher by default since v1.4.1, and OLED owners must keep the screensaver to avoid burn-in. License is MIT; install.sh and undo.sh are the scripts involved, and setup details live in the README rather than a single install command.

Verdict

This is a six-day-old project with roughly 1,487 stars and about 220 stars a day, riding heavy press coverage from The Verge, Tom's Guide and others rather than long-term community adoption. The idea is sound and the guardrails in the prompt are more careful than typical forum advice, but the risk profile is real: it disables system packages on hardware you cannot easily reflash. Treat it as a weekend experiment with undo.sh ready, not as a maintained tool with a track record. Watch whether it survives past the news cycle before relying on it for a TV you actually use.