Streaming Player
A streaming player is a dedicated box or stick Home Assistant drives locally: playback, app launching, and remote-style navigation for whatever TV it is plugged into.
A streaming player is often more controllable than the TV it feeds. Boxes and sticks from Apple, Roku, Google, and
Amazon carry well-documented local APIs, so Home Assistant gets reliable playback state, app launching, and remote
key control even when the TV brand’s own integration is limited. Pairing one with any panel gives the room a clean,
consistent media_player entity.
How Selora AI uses streaming players
- App launching that opens a specific streaming app as part of a scene, so movie night starts on the right screen, not the home menu.
- Playback triggers that react to play, pause, and idle to drive lighting, shades, and audio in the room.
- Remote replacement where a dashboard or automation sends navigation and media keys, so nobody hunts for the coffee-table remote.
Why a streaming player is the automation-friendly choice
Players are small, affordable, and consistently well-supported by local integrations. Standardizing on one per room gives every TV in the home the same capabilities and the same automation behavior, regardless of panel brand.
Compatible devices
Fire TV Cube (3rd Gen)
The Fire TV Cube is Amazon's flagship streaming player, with wired Ethernet, Wi-Fi 6E, and hands-free Alexa. Home Assistant controls it locally over ADB through the androidtv integration: power, volume, app launch, and playback state, so it can anchor playback-aware lighting, doorbell pauses, and bedtime shutdown in the media room.
Fire TV Stick 4K Max (2nd Gen)
The Fire TV Stick 4K Max is Amazon's most powerful streaming stick, with Wi-Fi 6E and 4K Dolby Vision output. Home Assistant controls it locally over ADB through the androidtv integration: power, volume, app launch, and playback state, bringing any TV it is plugged into within reach of playback-aware scenes and bedtime routines.
Fire TV Stick 4K Plus
The Fire TV Stick 4K Plus is Amazon's current mainstream 4K stick with Wi-Fi 6. It still runs Fire OS, so Home Assistant controls it locally over ADB through the androidtv integration: power, volume, app launch, and playback state, a low-cost way to make an existing TV automation-ready.
Apple TV 4K (3rd generation)
The Apple TV 4K (3rd generation) is the reference streaming player for Home Assistant. The local apple_tv integration exposes it as a media_player with push-based playback state, remote navigation, and app launching, so scenes can start a movie, dim the lights on play, and pause the room when the doorbell rings.
Google TV Streamer (4K)
The Google TV Streamer (4K) is Google's flagship streaming box and the successor to the Chromecast line. Home Assistant pairs the local cast integration for playback and app state with androidtv_remote for power, volume, and key presses, so one box gives a room a full media_player: launch apps in a scene, dim lights on play, and shut the screen down at bedtime.
Roku Streaming Stick Plus
The Roku Streaming Stick Plus is Roku's current mainstream 4K HDR stick, an inexpensive way to give any TV a clean Home Assistant media_player. The local roku integration provides power, volume, app launch, and playback state, so even a guest-room TV can join playback-aware lighting and bedtime all-off routines.
Roku Ultra
The Roku Ultra is Roku's flagship streaming player, with 4K Dolby Vision output and wired Ethernet. Home Assistant's local roku integration exposes it as a media_player with power, volume, app launch, and playback state, so a movie-night scene can open the right app while the lights dim, and bedtime routines shut it down.
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