Developer options are not showing up
· 2 min read
You have tapped Build seven times and nothing happens. Let us work through why.
You are tapping the wrong line#
The right line varies by model. Try, in this order:
- Build
- Build number
- Android version
- Android TV OS version
Some models have two similar lines and only one works.
You are tapping too slowly#
Android requires the taps to be consecutive. Leave more than a second between them and the counter resets. Tap fast, without pauses.
You are not pressing OK#
On a television you have to select the line and press the remote's centre button. Navigating to it does not count.
The menu is somewhere else#
Alternative paths we have seen:
| Manufacturer | Path |
|---|---|
| Generic Android TV | Settings → Device preferences → About |
| Google TV | Settings → System → About |
| Fire TV | Settings → My Fire TV → About → Device name |
| Some Sony sets | Settings → Device preferences → About → Build |
Your television is not Android#
The most common cause of all, by a distance. A Samsung (Tizen), an LG (webOS) or a Panasonic on My Home Screen has no developer options because it is not Android.
Signs that it is: you have Google Play Store, and Google Assistant is built in. If your app store is called something else, it is not Android TV.
The manufacturer has locked it#
Rare on consumer televisions, but it happens on sets sold on operator subscription, where the firmware ships locked. There is no way round that.
It appears but with no "network debugging"#
Then your model only does USB debugging. It works exactly the same: connect a USB cable from the television to the computer. The port that works is not always the first one, so try them all.