Can I use BullVPN on my Android TV? Can I install BullVPN on my TrueID box? How do I install the app on my TV? These are the questions we've been getting from our customers asking for BullVPN on TV over the past several years.
First, we’d like to mention that BullVPN supports Windows, iOS (iPhone, iPad), Android, and Chrome Extension. However, we did not initially focus on TV because we had limited data and the process of installing applications on TV was relatively new and complex.
In recent years, due to the increasing demand from both local and international customers, we began studying the VPN app market for TVs and exploring various possibilities to develop a TV-compatible version.
Previously, we had attempted to use the same version of BullVPN for both mobile and Android TV. However, this led to significant UX/UI issues and customer feedback indicated that the mobile version was not suitable for TV. We took these problems into account and initiated a dedicated BullVPN Android TV project.
Before starting the development of the TV app, we had many questions about how to best meet customer needs. The UX/UI for TV is quite different from mobile applications. With the large screen size of TVs, it was necessary to design an easy-to-understand and easy-to-use interface. Having many buttons on a TV app would be cumbersome to navigate. Coding for TV apps also posed challenges as testing had to be conducted on actual TVs, and the flow differed from mobile apps, requiring extensive testing.
Our graphic team began by studying various TV apps and designing a new UX/UI specifically for BullVPN on Android TV. The entire team collaborated to refine the design. Once the UX/UI was finalized, our developers began coding. The project was divided into two parts: logic and UI. The logic part used existing code with necessary adjustments for Android TV, utilizing product flavors to differentiate between TV and mobile functionalities. The UI part was almost entirely new, and after studying various Android toolkits like leanback and compose for TV, we decided to custom build the UI to achieve the desired user experience.
Finally, the BullVPN team worked together to successfully develop a complete and refined version of BullVPN for Android TV, reflecting our brand’s identity. However, this is not the final version, as we will continue to improve based on customer feedback. We are one of the first companies in Thailand to develop an Android TV app and are also working on an Apple TV version. Stay tuned for BullVPN on Apple TV coming soon.