Screensaver Killing Apps

[iRdMoose]

Sometimes, when watching YouTube during my day, I'll pause for a little bit. Frustratingly, if the screensaver comes up, 9 times out of 10, YouTube will be closed on me when I press a button to exit the screen saver. This is moronic beyond belief. It should resume the activity I was doing from where I left off when the screensaver activated. 

Also, there is no way to disable the screensaver or change the activation time. If I want a static image on my screen for 30 minutes or 4 hours, I should have the option to do that on this Android-based device like I can on my Android phone. If you think it might damage my TV, present a warning, but do not stop me from doing with my device what I choose. 

[nerys]

Hi iRdMoose,

Thanks for posting in the community!

I'm so sorry to hear that your content on YouTube stops unexpectedly when ambient mode (screensaver) comes up. No worries; I'm here to help! Just to get started, I have a couple of questions that will help me understand what can be causing this situation. Can you help me answer them?

• Is your Chromecast device a dongle or built-in?
• Does this situation occur with other apps?
• Does it show any error messages when this happens?
• Have you tried any troubleshooting steps yet?

If you have more questions for me, feel free to reply to this post. I'll be happy to assist further! 

Best regards,

Nery.

[iRdMoose]

Hi @nerys.

Thank you for getting back to me. Here are the answers to your questions:

1. It is a dongle
2. Yes, it occurs with Plex and Amazon Prime Video as well
3. No error messages. When I press a button I'm dumped back to the home screen. Sometimes the app will resume from where I left off, but other times it will start fresh, losing my place. I haven't found any specific correlation for this behavior yet.
4. I've tried going through the settings for Ambient Mode so I can completely disable it, but there isn't an option to do that. I've looked for apps to disable Ambient Mode, but I haven't found any yet.

This happens on both of my Chromecast dongles. They're both running the same versions... and here's the info from the About screen:
Model: Chromecast
Android TV OS Version: 12
Android TV OS Security Patch level: April 1, 2024
Kernel Version: 4.9.269 #1 Wed Mar 6 14:21:09 UTC 2024
Android TV OS Build: STTE.240315.002.11695351

I have also checked for updates, but none seem to be available.

Thanks for your help, Nery.

Regards,
Scott

[chaconmorales]

Hi iRdMoose,

Thank you for following up and sharing more details about your issue. I understand your frustration with the device even after troubleshooting. I apologize for the inconvenience you're experiencing.

Based on the information provided it is unclear if you are searching for Ambient Mode using the Chromecast settings or the settings using the Google Home app (if you have Chromecast with Google TV, you can change Ambient Mode settings on your TV screen).

Ambient Mode settings for other Chromecast Devices:

1. Open the Google Home app Google Home app.
2. Tap and hold your device's tile.
3. At the top right corner, tap Settings.
4. Scroll down tap Ambient Mode.

However if you already checked the Google Home app and it is not available, please let me know. You can also check the following article to review the Ambient Mode for Chromecast and Chromecast Ultra.

Please keep me posted.

Best regards,

Mario

[iRdMoose]

Hi @chaconmorales,

Thank you for getting back to me. No, I hadn't tried checking the settings in the Google Home app. However, looking at the app, I don't see any options to disable Ambient Mode, changing the amount of time for it to automatically activate, or stop it from killing the apps when it starts. These are all features that I could control or disable on my Roku as I desired, and not having these options on the Chromecast is quite frustrating.

If I pause a video on YouTube or a show that I'm watching on Plex for a few minutes, it's quite annoying that I have to press 3 to 4 different buttons (which can lag quite a bit at times because of the underpowered CPU in the dongle), if I pause to take a call or need to step away from my TV for a few minutes.

I recognize this is likely an enhancement request/quality of life request, but I would greatly appreciate an option to disable Ambient mode completely and control the amount of time that it takes for it to activate without having to hack my device.

[nerys]

Hi iRdMoose,

Thanks for getting back to me!

I understand how frustrating it can be when you can't find a setting. We're looking for ways to improve our products and services, and we appreciate you taking the time to share your experience. Please feel free to share the case you had with the ambient mode through this feedback form. We will take your comments and implement the features you need.

Regarding the screensaver killing apps situation, we can try some steps that might solve this situation:

• Reboot your Chromecast, router, and casting device.
• If you're using an Android device, clear the cache and data of the affected app.
• Uninstall and reinstall the apps experiencing issues.

I hope this helps! If you have more questions for me, feel free to reply to this post. I'll be happy to assist further! 

Best regards,

Nery.

[iRdMoose]

Hi again @nerys,

I've attempted to reboot, but Ambient mode still kills apps. I've also tried uninstalling and reinstalling them, though I'm not sure if there's an option to clear the app cache. None of that would help anyway since the applications are being killed while Ambient Mode is active. The problem is with Ambient Mode and the inexcusable lack of options to control how long it takes to turn on or to disable it.

I'll fill out the feedback form. I'm hopeful that options will be available in the near future because these are options that myriad other streaming devices have had for a decade or more.

[nerys]

Hi iRdMoose,

Thanks for taking the time to share your feedback!

I completely understand the frustration, but at the moment there is not a way to change the time delay for when the ambient mode will start or an option to turn off the ambient mode. We really appreciate your feedback!

If you have more questions for me, feel free to reply to this post. I'll be happy to assist further!

Best regards,

Nery.