The Spectrum app is making news all over, thanks to the fact that it houses more than 40,000 on-demand movies and TV shows. The Spectrum app allows you to stream the content your heart desires, but the all-important question is how do you go about installing it. This article is designed to answer that question by acting as a comprehensive guide to installing the Spectrum app on firestick.
But, before we get there, here’s a little introduction about The Spectrum TV app.
Table of Contents
What exactly is the Spectrum app?
Spectrum app is the definite solution to all your streaming needs It’s essentially a mobile application that allows you to watch live TV and on-demand premium content at a nominal cost. The features don’t stop there, some of the others that are worthy of a mention include:
- The option to watch on multiple devices simultaneously
- A handy feature of modifying the DVR settings, and hence making the process of recording and editing content much easier
- The option to enable a parental lock and hence preventing access to some specific channels
- A dedicated guide screen to help make it easy for you to pick a show or movie to binge-watch
- The ability to add your beloved movies and shows, and hence allowing you to customize the platform as per your wishes
- Restarting certain programming from the beginning in case you missed out on it
- Screen mirroring to connect the Spectrum application on your Android or iOS phone onto the television
What devices is the Spectrum application compatible with?
The good news is that the Spectrum application can function across different operating systems spanning a large number of devices that include:
- Apple devices running on iOS 12 or higher like the iPhone 5S or newer, the Apple TV, the iPad Pro- 5th gen or newer, and the iPod Touch- 6th gen or higher
- Amazon devices like the Kindle Fire which run on at least Android 5.0
- All Android devices currently running Android 5.0 or higher
- All Xbox One models
- Samsung Smart TV
- Roku TV’s and players (second-gen and onwards)
It is worth mentioning that you’ll need a separate modem in the case of Xbox, Roku TV, and Samsung Smart TV.
Why do you need to be using a VPN while accessing Spectrum TV?
The one thing you need to remember before installing the Spectrum app on firestick is to get yourself a VPN. A VPN ensures that your network is secure and that your IP address doesn’t fall into the wrong hands.
Since you’ll be watching premium content for free in a country where you might not be legally authorized to, it generally makes sense to hide your location. Yet another advantage of using a VPN is that allows you to switch your device’s location with relative ease. This feature can prove to be extremely useful if you want to watch a movie that’s exclusively available in a different region than the one you live in.
Make sure you properly research the different options available before picking a VPN service. There are a ton of options, but only a handful that you can trust to safeguard your network. Free VPNs should also do the trick, but the premium ones offer a wide range of features that are worth the price.
Is the Spectrum app on firestick a good idea?
The Amazon firestick is an add-on that allows you access to multiple streaming platforms like Amazon Prime, Netflix, and Disney+ among others. It’s essentially a USB drive that you can plug into the HDMI port on your television. The biggest advantage with the firestick is that the device’s portable, so you can take the device to a new home or a vacation rental property with relative ease.
Now, installing the Spectrum application on your firestick allows you to screen a ton of quality content that keeps getting updated weekly. You also gain the advantage of having access to live channels without having to pay an extra penny. So, don’t think twice about installing the Spectrum TV application. It’s an absolute must-have for all cinephiles.
Is Spectrum TV available for firestick?
The short answer is yes, but it’s a little more complicated than that. The Amazon store does not carry the application everywhere across the globe. In other countries where the application isn’t available, you might need to use a VPN service. So, in these exceptional cases, you’ll need to download the application from a third-party service. This process is termed side-loading.
How to install the Spectrum app on firestick?
If you live in a part of the world where the Amazon store carries the Spectrum application, you can directly download it onto your firestick. Here’s how you do it:
- Go to the Amazon App store and search for the Spectrum TV app using your remote
- Click on Download and the application should be installed on your device after the download is complete
- Open the Spectrum TV app and enjoy its benefits
As we’d mentioned earlier, the Spectrum application is not available for download in all locations currently. You’ll need to use a third-party source to install the Spectrum TV app in these cases. But, before you do that, you’ll need to allow your firestick to install applications from unknown sources. Follow these steps to accomplish this crucial step:
- Navigate to the Settings page from the home page on your firestick using the remote
- Click on My Fire TV from the multiple options that appear before you
- You’ll now see a drop-down menu with multiple options. Click on Developer Options
- Now, tap on Apps from Unknown Sources and enable it
- You might see a warning message indicating that you might be at risk of unexpected behavior. Ignore the security message and Click on Turn On. There’s no risk if you’re downloading applications from trusted sources
Now that we’ve gotten the prerequisite out of the way, it’s time to move on to installing the Spectrum TV app on your Amazon firestick device. This can be accomplished in mainly, three ways. They are:
A) Installing Spectrum TV on firestick by using the Downloader app
Since the Amazon store doesn’t carry the application we’re looking for, we’ll need to rely on an alternate service to do the same. This is where a third-party app called the Downloader app comes into play. Follow these steps to install Spectrum TV on firestick by using the Downloader app:
- You’ll first need to install the Downloader app on your Amazon firestick device. To do this, go to the Amazon Store and look for the Downloader app
- Once you’ve found it, click on Download and the application should be installed on your device once the download is complete
- Now, open the Downloader app and paste this link https://bit.ly/spectrumtvforfirestick into the search bar
- Click on Go and the download for the Spectrum TV application would begin shortly
- You’ll see a notification pop up once the download is complete. Click on Install on the pop-up window
- The application will start its process of installation and you should be able to enjoy its features once that’s done
This method isn’t entirely foolproof, you might run into issues like the file for download being corrupted. In these cases, try deleting the file and re-installing it. If the issue persists, you can skip ahead to the second method.
B) Installing Spectrum app on firestick using ES File Explorer
The ES File Explorer is a pretty handy tool for managing all the files on your device. Uploading files and accessing them has never been easier. We’ll be using the same application to install the Spectrum app on firestick. Similar to using the Downloader app, you’ll first need to install ES File Explorer.
- Find the Amazon Store on your firestick and search for ES File Explorer
- Click on Download and wait for it to get installed onto your device
- Open the app once the download is complete
- You’ll see a Download icon, click on it, and further tap on the Add icon
- Paste this link https://bit.ly/downloadspectrumtv in the bar that appears and click on Download
- The download process might take a while, but you’ll see a notification pop up once it’s complete
- On the pop-up window that appears, click on Install
- You should now be able to enjoy all the features of Spectrum TV on your television/ monitor
C) Installing Spectrum app on firestick using Apps2Fire app
Like in the previous cases, you’ll first need to install the third-party application, which here is Apps2Fire. The steps are more or less the same. Once you’ve installed Apps2Fire, here’s what you need to do:
- Download the APK file of the Spectrum TV application from the below link
Link: https://bit.ly/installspectrumtv
- Make sure that you connect both your Amazon firestick device and your smartphone to the same Wi-fi Network
- You’ll now need to find the IP address of your firestick device by navigating to the Network Settings from the main Settings page
- Launch the Apps2Fire app and install the Spectrum TV file that you’d downloaded earlier from the Local Apps menu
- You should be able to access all the on-demand content on the Spectrum app on firestick once the APK file has been installed
Setting up a Spectrum TV account
Once you’ve installed the Spectrum TV, you’ll need to set up your account. This process is fairly similar to how you’d log in on any other streaming platform. Create an account if you’ve never used the app before using your email address and phone number. Alternatively, you can also use your account information in creating your profile. This will serve as your primary account, but you can always add more accounts later on. A new user is allowed to add up to 5 different profiles, meaning your entire household can watch the content they like on a single account.
Troubleshooting 101: Common issues faced by consumers
While Spectrum app on firestick offers a smooth streaming experience, there are still issues that a few users seem to be encountering. The next section will cover some of them in detail and also suggest ways to circumvent the same.
1. Spectrum TV isn’t displaying all the shows on its database
A lot of new users seem to experience this issue and it’s mostly been associated with the on-demand channels. It’s more than likely that this issue could be caused by faulty parental controls. So, try disabling the parental controls which might have blocked the content you were looking forward to watching.
If this issue persists, it could be because the movies or TV shows that you were specifically looking for might not be available in the country you live in. So, use a VPN to switch your device’s location to a country where it’s still available to stream.
2. Spectrum TV is malfunctioning and is unable to stream
If the video seems to be buffering a lot or if the platform itself seems to be slowing down, there’s a chance that it might be due to a bad Internet connection. Try disabling Wi-Fi on your phone and check if the cellular data is working or not. If it’s working, then the issue lies with your wireless connection. Try restarting the router and see if the issue gets rectified. In case it doesn’t, you’ll need to contact your Internet Service Provider and ask them for further instructions.
Some of the other reasons why you are encountering an issue streaming could be either an Internet outage on your end or the Spectrum app getting corrupted over time. There’s not much you could do in the first case other than wait for the appropriate authorities to take notes of the issue. In the latter case, you can try re-installing the application, but by using a different APK file this time around.
3. Spectrum TV doesn’t seem to work on Roku devices
The issue could either lie with your Internet connection or the streaming platform itself. So, try installing the latest versions of both the Spectrum TV app and the firestick. If the issue persists, follow the same steps as mentioned above in the previous scenario.
But, the process of updating the Spectrum app can prove to be a bit tiring. Since the app isn’t officially available on Amazon, auto-updates are definitely out of the question. So, you’ll need to delete the version you have and reinstall the latest version all over again. Follow the same steps as mentioned before to re-install the Spectrum app on firestick, the only difference being that you’ll need a different APK file from the one from before.
4. Unclickable buttons
It’s hard to pinpoint where the defect lies in this case, but the fix is rather simple. If you’re having trouble navigating with the buttons on the screen, try connecting a wireless mouse or keyboard using Bluetooth. This eliminates the need to use the fragile remote that comes with the firestick and makes the whole experience of shuffling between multiple channels and streaming platforms a lot simpler.
Conclusion
The Spectrum TV app is a must-have on your Amazon firestick device. But, since it’s not currently available on Amazon, you’ll need to “sideload” it from a third-party application like the Downloader, ES File Explorer, or Apps2Fire. So, go ahead and watch your favorite movies and TV shows using the Spectrum TV app, but always remember to use a VPN while accessing it. It protects your identity and ensures that you stay anonymous while you’re using the application.
