Zapbar 1.2

Zapbar 1.2.0

Setup now finds your TV for you, and a saved TV reconnects when you open Zapbar. This release also includes everything from the 1.1.1 fixes.

What's new

• Setup finds the TV. One search looks for a Sony and a Xiaomi set. Pick the set. Type an address only if nothing is found. One TV is one choice, named like "Sony TV".
• Switches on the TV. When a switch on the TV can't be turned on from the Mac, setup shows that one step, waits until the TV answers, and continues. If it doesn't answer, it says what to try.
• Reconnects on launch. A saved TV shows "Connecting…" first. Setup opens only when there is no saved TV, or the reconnect fails and you choose Set up a new TV.
• One power button. It says Turn on, Turn off, or Checking…
• Send text only when the TV keyboard is showing. A hidden keyboard keeps your text and offers Retry.
• Install is .apk only. Drop an .apk on the panel or the menu bar icon, or choose one. Other files are refused.
• Screenshots can be cancelled and saved to a folder you pick.
• Launch at login is available in Settings.
• Dragging a file from Finder no longer closes the panel.

Honest limits

• Tested on a Sony Bravia. Other brands are unverified.
• Xiaomi is experimental. It was checked against a stand-in on a Mac, not a real set. It cannot type and cannot turn the set on.
• Finding the TV, the first-time Local Network prompt and the on-TV switch steps are tested in code and on a Mac, not on every network. If setup doesn't find your TV, type its address.
• Typing is English only. Mac only, macOS 13 or later.
• Turning a Sony on from deep standby and sending text have not been confirmed on a real set in every case.

First launch (unsigned app)

Zapbar is not signed with an Apple developer account yet, so macOS asks first. Right-click Zapbar and choose Open, or go to System Settings → Privacy & Security and choose Open Anyway.

Install

1. Download Zapbar-1.2.0.zip.
2. Move Zapbar to Applications and open it (see first launch above).
3. Follow setup, or use Try demo TV to look around without a TV.

Checksum (SHA-256)

bf9c9f3745d846351221e1c309c8503becb15d454b4e004fb64c0504d5c54910  Zapbar-1.2.0.zip

Target commit: 3022be2747a34f625a627a78a7eccb294dc68e54

Zapbar 1.1

Zapbar 1.1

Zapbar was called Mac Android TV Remote up to v1.0.1. Same project, new name. Repo stays pohstep/mac-android-tv-remote.

What's in this release

• Rename to Zapbar (menu bar app, icon, copy)
• App tiles with names, and the TV's own icon when the APK has one
• Keyboard typing on the TV (English only; Return sends)
• Paste / links — paste text or an http/https link into the field; ⌃⌥L focuses it
• APK drop — drop an app file on the menu bar icon or panel to install
• Send link / screenshot / file to the TV

Honest limits

• Sony Bravia tested first (Google TV / Android TV). Other brands unverified.
• adb (network debugging) needed for typing, links, screenshots, files, and APK install. Zapbar bundles its own adb helper in this build.
• English typing only — no Chinese input.
• Ad-hoc signed. First open: macOS Gatekeeper blocks until you allow it once (right-click → Open, or System Settings → Open Anyway, or xattr -dr com.apple.quarantine on the app). Verified on macOS 13: spctl rejects the download; clearing quarantine then launching works. Window title and setup headline are Zapbar / "Which TV is this?" — not Android / Sony Bravia.

Install

1. Download Zapbar-1.1.zip or Zapbar-1.1.dmg
2. Move Zapbar to Applications and open it (see first-launch note above)
3. Follow setup, or use Try demo TV with no TV on the network

Checksums (SHA-256)

b9764aa891aa867342866f2a6cc7974a43083e4f2e25ce49bb3096ef4907175d  Zapbar-1.1.zip
3402ca2c531a9e8b697b6c0e75e3fceedc17a75b24caa88124e56e1f78c12493  Zapbar-1.1.dmg

Target commit: ffe2dbacb7066068a92526e44df65116f91b7c50

Mac Android TV Remote 1.0.1

Arrow keys are now four large wedge-shaped click zones around the OK button, so you no longer have to hit the small glyph.

Mac Android TV Remote 1.0

Changelog

1.0 — 2026-10-21

First release.

• Menu bar remote: D-pad, OK, Back, Home, volume slider and steps, mute, play/pause, previous/next.
• Apps from the TV (Sony getApplicationList) with real icons, 12 pinned plus More apps…, launched with setActiveApp (adb fallback).
• Input picker with the TV's own names ("HDMI 1 — Apple TV").
• Power on that actually wakes the TV: Sony setPowerStatus, then Wake-on-LAN, then adb KEYCODE_WAKEUP, then a status re-check. Power off needs a second click.
• Keyboard as remote: ⌃⌥K toggles, ⌃⌥⌘K always turns it off. Arrows, Return, Esc (Back), Backspace (Delete), and typed text (adb input text, batched). Keyboard only; the mouse and trackpad stay with the Mac.
• Pre-shared key stored in the macOS keychain, never in settings or logs. Typed characters are never logged.
• Builds with swiftc alone; no Xcode needed.