I have had the Google TV Streamer in our living room for a few months now, and it generally does a fantastic job.
Although I still prefer my older Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Max for content, my Google TV Streamer offers far more flexibility for sideloading apps.
After a few months of daily use, which is hardly a long stretch, I ran into performance hiccups that quickly soured my experience.
Specifically, a few apps I use regularly began getting stuck in loading loops, frequently crashing or forcing me back to the home screen.
I was on the verge of returning the streamer.
I initially assumed my home network connection was the cause. But after digging deeper, I uncovered the culprit and fixed the crashes for good.
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How I diagnosed the app loading troubles
My early weeks with the Google TV Streamer were quite pleasant. The device handled everything smoothly, and I installed dozens of apps and games without a hitch.
I booted up casual games without trouble, and while they took longer to initialize than standard apps, they never froze.
After a couple of months, however, I noticed that certain apps began hanging upon launch.
That persistent hang even plagued Google’s apps, with YouTube being the most prominent offender. Other apps also suffered from stuck uploading, like Netflix and YouTube Music, though the stalls were less frequent.
At first, I blamed our Wi-Fi, but I tested the same scenario on my Fire TV Stick 4K and, to my surprise, every app loaded fine.
Next, I checked the usable storage, but I found about 13GB of free space left, which ruled out memory as a suspect.
That process made me realize the problem resided solely within the apps.
Closing apps could be helpful
But it’s a temporary remedy
My initial instinct was to force-close the misbehaving applications, but Google TV doesn’t offer quick control over that.
To kill an active background task, go to Settings > Apps > See all apps, manually locate the service, and select Force stop.
That is an annoying chore to repeat from the sofa, and it doesn’t solve the issue permanently, since the loading spinner often returns the next time you open the program.
Another traditional workaround I relied on was performing a cold reboot on the Google TV Streamer.
That requires briefly disconnecting the power cable from the back of the set-top box, rather than putting the unit to sleep with the remote.
It acts like a soft reset for the system memory and can effectively flush stuck background processes that refuse to close properly.
Clearing the app cache
A more viable solution
While manual stops and full reboots help in some cases, they are bandages, not permanent fixes.
Clearing the app cache is a heavier tool that wipes out an app’s or game’s temporary files.
To do that, go back to the installed apps list in Settings and select the app.
I immediately relaunched the app to see whether the loading wheel would freeze again, and to my surprise, it launched without delay.
I use the same process for every other app that has been hanging.
Deleting the app cache removes temporary files like snippets and thumbnails but keeps history and login credentials.
Best of all, you don’t need to clear the entire cache if the glitch is isolated to one or two specific apps.
Reinstall apps to start fresh
It’s the nuclear option to fix freezing services
If clearing the cache doesn’t fix the freezing, I recommend completely uninstalling the affected app and reinstalling it from scratch.
Keep in mind that wiping an application or game removes all data and configuration, so consider that trade-off before deleting.
Although clearing the data achieves a similar reset, it still keeps the old installer package, which might contain corrupted files.
A fresh installation ensures that all data is erased, including the bad entries.
However, some pre-installed Google services cannot be uninstalled from the operating system, and if you hit that wall, selecting Clear data is the best available alternative.
Checking for available app updates might also fix these bugs. Go to Settings > Apps > Manage updates and install any available patches.
My Google TV Streamer isn’t foolproof
The Google TV Streamer isn’t fundamentally broken out of the box, as the hardware still operates smoothly for most of my viewing sessions.
However, these small bottlenecks are avoidable, so it’s always better to have the right tools and knowledge to fix them.
Still, spending five minutes clearing out buggy apps is more sensible than boxing up your Google TV Streamer and letting it collect dust in a drawer.
7.5/10
Operating System
Android TV OS
Downloadable Apps
Google Play Store
Resolution
4K at 60FPS
Ports
USB-C (power/data), HDMI 2.1 (Type A), Ethernet (10/100/1000Mbps)
The Google TV Streamer offers a versatile selection of ports and AI-powered voice search. Check the latest offer and get it at a discounted price.