Google TV’s screensaver is nice, but where’s my native Photos app?

One of our favorite Google TV features is undoubtedly the screensaver. Wait, isn’t that just a logo that rotates around the screen? Not quite. Ambient modeas it’s officially called, it can display images from sources like NASA, Getty, and Google Arts & Culture. Prevents screen burn-in while turning my TV into an art gallery. It’s brilliant, but it has a talent that makes it even more valuable.

It can display images from my Google Photos library and albums, many of which contain cherished memories of my travels. The feature is so good that I often find myself trying to open the Google Photos app on my TV, only to remember that it’s not possible.

That was the good thing; Now let me point out the bad. For some inexplicable reason, there is still no official Google Photos app for Google TV, and it’s time for the company to address this glaring omission.

“But you can view your photos on Google TV, so what’s the problem?” is the company’s supposed argument, but I just can’t agree with the idea. Current methods of accessing my photos simply cannot replicate the extensive usability and functionality of dedicated software.

As I mentioned, Ambient Mode is a great feature, but it’s a screensaver. Its main purpose is to prevent pixels from burning on my TV, not to let me scroll through specific albums. The fact that a screen saver is the best way to view Google Photos on a TV highlights the platform’s problem.

There are other ways to view Photos content on Google TV, but they’re more complicated than they need to be.

Let’s start with the first: streaming photos from the Android app to my TV.

We’re on our phones almost all hours of the day, so sending pictures from the Photos app seems to be the easiest solution, right? Not quite. This method is much more unreliable than I would like. Maybe it’s because of me Chromecast connected to Google TV via Ethernetbut my phone often fails to detect the streamer to stream the content. My situation is probably one that few users face, but it highlights a potential flaw that an app could easily fix.

Then there’s another option: using Google’s fancy search feature to pull up photos and albums.

Google claims I can use Gemini voice commands on the remote to search for photos in my account, but there are too many obstacles preventing me from trying. First, I don’t have Gemini yet Chromecast with Google TV. Second, I’m not in the US. Because these two conditions are not met, I cannot test this Google-approved method.

Unfortunately, there is a real lack of third-party alternatives and methods. Kodi and its Google Photos add-on are often mentioned in forums, but are outdated. I’m not sure how much I’d lend my Google Photos data and credentials to any other unofficial platform or app.

Given the problems with the current options and the lack of alternatives, the smartest way to use Google Photos on Google TV would be through a dedicated app.

The benefits of a native portal are obvious. I would have a direct way to access my saved albums and photos – no searching or broadcasting required, no worries about disconnection or whether Gemini understood my search request. It would also (hopefully) offer access to the Photos Android app features, including Collections navigation, content search, and other organization options. I really appreciate using my larger TV screen to look at photos and decide which ones to keep or delete. I’m sure other Google TV users feel the same way.

Accessing essential content like My Photos libraries shouldn’t be this difficult on a platform designed to showcase personal content. And if we look at Google TV’s competitors, the company lags behind in this regard.

Apple’s tvOS system offers users a dedicated Photos app with an extensive set of features. It even allows users to create custom slideshows of selected images rather than Ambient Screensaver’s random selection from albums method. Even Amazon Fire TVs offer a built-in photo viewing experience.

Look, overall I enjoy Google TV. It is a reliable platform that is open to customization, supports a wide range of content and services, and is easy to use. Then there’s visual enhancements like Ambient Screensaver, which turns my TV into a wonderful dopamine dispenser. I really want nothing more than to take full advantage of it, looking back on memories, flipping through those albums, enjoying them on the big screen and making plans to create more. However, Google, one of the world’s most prolific app developers, simply doesn’t see the Pictures on TV app as important as getting Gemini into everything.

Hopefully the company is reconsidering its priorities, but given that we’re still not getting a dedicated YouTube Music app for TV, I probably shouldn’t hold my breath.