Samsung TVs are one of the most popular TV brands on the market, and for good reason.
They offer great picture quality and a wide range of features that make them perfect for both home entertainment and everyday use.
However, one thing that many Samsung TV owners may not know is that they can install apps on their TVs.
In this article, we'll show you how to install apps on a Samsung TV, and provide a few tips along the way to make the process as easy as possible.
Let’s Begin!
How to Install Apps on a Samsung TV
Things to Remember
To install apps on your Samsung TV there are three things you need to remember.
- Firstly, the TV should support APK files and/or provide access to the Google Play Store or a proprietary app store.
- The Samsung TV should be connected to the internet either via Ethernet or Wi-Fi.
- Finally, the TV should have enough storage space to download and install apps.
Steps to Download and Install Apps on a Samsung TV
If you’ve met the three conditions mentioned above you will be able to download and install apps on your Samsung TV in no time. To do this, there are a few steps you need to follow.
Step 1 -- Turn on the Samsung TV and access the Home Menu - In order to start downloading apps such as Hulu, Netflix, Prime Video and more on your Samsung TV, turn on your TV and click on the Home Button. This will open the Samsung Main Menu from where you can access the Samsung Smart Hub and download apps on your TV.
Step 2 -- Select the Apps Page - On the Samsung Main Menu page you will see Apps, click on it to open the Smart Hub.
Step 3 -- Search for the App - On the apps page you will see a wide range of apps you can download onto your Samsung TV. These apps will be segregated based on their category and if you’re unable to locate any app you want to download, simply tap on the Search bar at the top of the screen to check if that particular app is available to download.
Step 4 -- Install the App on your Samsung TV - Once you locate the app in the app page tap on Install to download and install the app on your Samsung TV. Tapping install will automatically begin the download process and you will receive a notification in the upper right hand corner of the TV screen once the app has been downloaded and installed.
Step 5 -- Open the Installed App on your Samsung TV - You can launch the apps you downloaded onto your Samsung TV in one of three ways.
- Either you can launch it directly from the app store page where you clicked on Install
- You can launch the app from the Recent Apps page in your Samsung Main Menu
- Or you can launch the app by accessing the apps page where your complete list of installed apps are listed and click on the app you just downloaded.
How to Auto-Update the Apps on your Samsung TV?
Much like the auto update feature on smartphones and tablets, Samsung TVs will let you auto update the apps that are installed on the TV.
To do this, you will need to enable the auto-update setting on the TV and once done you wouldn’t have to worry about manually updating our apps anymore and it will be one task you’d never have to worry about.
- Start by switching on the Samsung TV
- Click on Menu and then navigate to the TV Settings page
- Now tap on the Auto-Update option in the top right hand corner of thescreen
- Enable the feature and save the setting
Now every app installed on your TV will automatically get updated when a new version of the app is released. You wouldn’t have to worry about updating them yourself and the only problem here is that if you're currently using an app that has an update, the app will restart automatically once the update has been completed.
How to Add Apps to your Samsung TV Home Screen?
When you download apps on your Samsung TV you would want them to be easily accessible and preferably have them show up on your Home Screen.
By default, apps you download on a Samsung TV will not appear on your Home Screen. However, there’s a way you can go about adding your favorite apps to your Home Screen.
- Start by switching on the Samsung TV
- Click on Menu and then navigate to the TV Settings page
- Select the app you want to add to your Home Page
- From the drop-down menu, click on Add to Home
Once you do this, the app will be added to the Home Page apps ribbon and you will then be able to easily launch the app from the Home page itself.
How to Install a Third-Party App on a Samsung TV?
Installing a third-party app on a Samsung TV is pretty easy and the steps are quite straightforward. But before you can install any external app on your Samsung TV there are two things you need to do first: Enable Developer Mode and Install from Unknown Sources.
Once you’ve done this you can install third-party APK files on your Samsung TV that are not available on the App Store.
Enable Developer mode
- Start by navigating to the Settings page and tap on Apps from the menu
- You will be requested for a pIn, enter the default 12345 or if you have changed the pin, enter the new pin.
- You will now be able to view the developer mode window. In order to be able to install third-party apps, key in the IP address of the computer you used to download the APK file.
- Now restart the Samsung TV
Enable Install from Unknown Sources
The next and final step before you can install third-party apps onto your Samsung TV is to enable the option “Install from Unknown Sources”. To do this you can follow these steps:
- Navigate to the Settings page and then click on the Personal tab from the Menu
- Tap on Security and locate Unknown Sources
- Enable Unknown Sources and then head back to the Home page.
- Now restart the Samsung TV
Install Third-party apps on your Samsung TV
- Once you have enabled the above mentioned settings, go ahead and download the third-party app onto your laptop/computer.
- Plug in a USB drive and format the drive according to the format of your TV. So if the TV is a FAT32, format the pen drive as FAT32. Similarly if the TV supports NTFS format, make sure to format the pen drive as NTFS.
- Copy the APK file onto your pen drive and eject the device from your computer
- Proceed to plug in the pen drive to your Samsung TV via the USB slot
- Access the File Manager on you Samsung TV and then click on USB drive or External Storage
- Now select the APK file from your pen drive and begin the installation process
You may receive a warning message on the TV stating that this app may not be safe to use. If you trust your source then proceed to install the app. However, if you’re skeptical then don't install this file and instead download and install an alternate APK file from another trusted source.
Launch a Third-party Application on your Samsung TV
Once you have successfully installed the third-party application on your Samsung TV, you will be able to launch the app just like you would any other regular app.
You can do so by either opening the Recent folder or by accessing the app from the Apps page. You can even move the app onto your homepage by using the Add to Home Page option from within the App settings.
Troubleshooting Samsung TV Not Downloading Apps
There are a number of reasons why your Samsung TV will not download or install apps. These issues can range from network issues to old firmware running on the TV.
Fixes for why your Samsung TV won’t install apps
- Hardware glitch - At times your Samsung TV or router may face some trouble and will not let you download apps on your TV. To fix this, simply restart both your Samsung TV and your router and try again.
- Samsung TV is running an old firmware - If your Samsung TV is running on an older firmware there are chances that you will not be able to download some apps as they will require the latest software to run. To fix this, launch the Settings page on your Samsung TV and then proceed to check if there’s any Samsung TV software update available. Installing the update will fix this problem,
- Network Connection Issues - Network connection issues stem mainly from your router and won’t be a problem for your TV. Either refresh the connected network by disconnecting and reconnecting to it or you can restart modem and router and try again.
- Location Settings are Invalid - Some apps are geo-locked and will not work in restricted countries. You can change the location of your Samsung TV to your current location or you can try downloading an alternate app that works in your country.
- File is corrupted - File is corrupted is a notification message you will receive when the downloaded APK or third-party app is not safe to use or is of a different format. Samsung TVs will accept only APK files, so make sure the file you downloaded has an APK extension and not EXE or APKX as these would not work on your Samsung TV.
Where can I find the app store on my Samsung TV?
You will be able to access the app store from within the Home Menu on your Samsung TV. Switch on the Samsung TV and then tap on the Menu, now click on Apps to find the app store.
Do all Samsung TVs support apps?
Samsung smart TVs from 2011 till date let you download and install apps from the app store and from third-party websites. Simply follow the same steps mentioned in this article to learn how to install apps on an older Samsung TV.
Takeaway
Installing apps on your Samsung TV is easy and straightforward - all you need is the right guide. By following our step-by-step instructions, you'll be able to install any app you want, with no problems at all.
So what are you waiting for? Go ahead and start installing amazing apps on your Samsung TV today!