When the new Netflix app for Android devices hit the Android Market last week, a collective wave of excitement spread through the blogosphere. Finally, streaming movies and TV shows on your Android device. Woo-Hoo! But the excitement was short-lived as the app was found to only be supported on a measly five Android devices. Well, that was then, and this is now. The Android developer community came through in a big way, with two hacks, one that requires a device with root access and one that doesn’t. As always, there’s no guarantee the hacks would work on every phone. And there is always the chance that all of your finagling could backfire and leave you with a trashed Android device. So, proceed at your own risk.
TheNetflix Android app is part of your current Netflix membership. The company is offering a free trial for those users who haven’t ponied up for a membership.
The app (as of this writing) only supports the following Android devices:
• HTC Incredible with Android 2.2
• HTC Nexus One with Android 2.2, 2.3
• HTC Evo 4G with Android 2.2
• HTC G2 with Android 2.2
• Samsung Nexus S with Android 2.3
• Motorola Droid with Android 2.2
• LG Revolution with Android 2.2
• Casio G’zOne Commando C771 with Android 2.2
Netflix Android Apps
That’s a pretty small list. Within days of its release, (hours maybe) the busy Android developers over at the XDA Forums came up with a hack that involved modifying your device’s build.prop system file. But you need to have root access to your device. And the hack requires modding, which is not for the feint of heart. You can find detailed instructions here, if you are interested.
The second hack, also courtesy of the folks at XDA Forums, doesn’t require root access and it’s a lot safer. A developer modified the actual app to stop it from checking the identity of the Android device. Brilliantly simple!
Before installing the modified Netflix app on your device, you need to allow the installation of non-market apps, by going to Menu->Settings->Applications and checking unknown sources.
You can learn more about this hack and download the modded Netflix app here. It’s a good idea to read through the threads first to get an idea if it would work on your particular device.
Did you give it a try? What device did you use? How did it go? Let us know in the comments!
Related posts:
- Netflix For Android Hack Works With Unsupported Rooted Devices
- Netflix For Android Released, Available On Only 5 Android Smartphones
- Android Market Movie Rentals Blocked On Rooted Devices
- Netflix And Miramax Sign $100 Million Multi-Year Streaming Deal
- Motorola Xoom Receives Android 3.1 Update, More Devices To follow
Article by Susan Underhill
Susan has written 71 articles .
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{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }
loaded the hack onto to my droid charge but when I sign in it just closes out the app!!!!