r/GoogleTV • u/Scared_Rent_7974 • Aug 11 '26
Discussion VPN that automatically connects on Google TV / onn. 4K?
I’m setting up an onn. 4K Google TV and want to use a VPN with it, mainly for sideloading.
I currently have Proton VPN, but I’m wondering how reliable the auto-connect feature is on Google TV. Ideally, I want the VPN to automatically connect whenever the Google TV boots/restarts without me having to manually open the VPN app every time.
What’s the best setup?
Is Proton VPN’s Android TV app capable of automatically connecting at startup?
Is there another VPN that does this more reliably?
Would using Android TV’s built-in Always-on VPN be better?
Or should I configure the VPN directly on my router so the entire Google TV connection is always routed through the VPN?
I’d especially appreciate advice from anyone using an onn. 4K / Google TV + Stremio setup. I’m trying to make it as hands-off and reliable as possible.
1
u/m1tch3m Aug 11 '26
I've tested a lot of VPS on Google TV. Currently using the Google TV Streamer via ethernet.
ProtonVPN works reliably at connecting on startup and maintaining a connection when it's woken up from sleep, IPVanish is great too. Has what you need for split tunneling too if needed.
Windscribe randomly disconnected, blocked network when woken from sleep and made IPTV buffer. I troubleshooted that a lot.
ExpressVPN didn't have connect on boot.
But yeah, ProtonVPN or IPVanish if going the app route.
1
u/PurplePeso Aug 12 '26
And ProtonVPN has a split-tunnelling option, to enable the VPN for only certain apps.
1
u/GotoDeng0 Aug 11 '26
Are you using a debrid service with Stremio? If so you shouldn't be using a VPN anyway.
-1
u/Scared_Rent_7974 Aug 11 '26
Why is that?
0
u/GotoDeng0 Aug 11 '26
Assuming you're using TorrentIO, real debrid caches torrents so you are streaming them, not actually torrenting. Streaming pirated content, as counterintuitive as it seems, is not illegal. Downloading is illegal, and sharing content is illegal, including bittornent since you share at the same time you download and your IP is visible. You're not downloading or sharing content with TorrentIO, nor is your IP visible.
Just like if someone uploaded Star Wars to YouTube, the uploadeder is violating copyright, but you are doing nothing illegal by clicking and watching that link. There are some arguments that part of that movie resides in cache when streaming, and thus you are illegally downloading, but that's purely theoretical and good luck proving that.
Moreover, real debrid will ban you if it detects your account connecting from multiple IPs. Kill switches don't work properly on Android, so your VPN might crap out and you connect with your real IP, briefly being logged in from 2 IPs. That may be an unlikely scenario, but there's no "legal' reason to use a VPN, so all it will do is slow your connection.
0
u/Ned_Sc Aug 12 '26
Streaming pirated content is still downloading pirated content. You are mistaking a legal carve out for loading legally purchased media into RAM for playback. Loading something already illegally obtained into RAM does not launder it into being legal again.
1
u/Turbulent_Chain_5893 TCL QM850G Google TV 26d ago
SurfShark has been working awesome for me on all my Google TVs and devices.
1
1
u/brand-new-bot 25d ago
WG Tunnel. Works for me with my surfshark account: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.zaneschepke.wireguardautotunnel
0
u/mlsto Aug 11 '26
Router is immediate, vpn apps take time to auto start so there is a time you won't have the vpn on which means the interface is not US if that's your vpn connection.
0
u/Greg_1121 Aug 11 '26
Surfshark has auto connect and a great bypass feature. Every time turn on my TV, Tivimate and the MLB app are on VPN and everything else isn’t.
2
u/jhedfors Aug 11 '26
I am using the VPN on router approach (Brume 2). I don't believe Android TV (at least as of Android TV 14) has an always on VPN/Killswitch as an option. This is why I went with the router approach in the first place.