Family Filter TV
Family Filter TV: questions and answers
Plain answers about what Family Filter TV does, what it works with, what it costs and what it cannot do.
The basics
What is Family Filter TV?
An app that automatically mutes swear words and other unwanted language while the picture keeps playing. It checks the subtitles for what you are watching against the filter strength you chose, and mutes the sound for each matching line. How it works.
Does it cut, blur or skip anything?
No. Only the sound drops, and only for the length of that line.
Does it do anything about violence or nudity?
No. It mutes swearing in speech and nothing else.
Does Family Filter TV provide films or streaming?
No. It is not a streaming library and does not host, index or redistribute video. You watch in your own apps, and it filters supported playback.
Is every swear word caught?
No. Muting is best effort. A line can slip through, especially in songs or when the subtitles differ from what is said.
Which languages does it work in?
English titles only for now.
Devices and apps
Which devices does it run on?
Android TVs, Google TV and Android TV boxes, and Android phones (Android 7.0 or newer). There is also an early-beta companion for Windows PCs. A few TV boxes have no Play Store; install it directly on those.
Will it work on my TV?
It depends on the system your TV runs, not the brand. If your TV has the Google Play Store, yes. Which TVs has the brand-by-brand answer.
Does it work on a Samsung or LG TV?
Not in the TV’s built-in apps. A Google TV or Android TV streaming stick or box in an HDMI port of the TV works the same as any Google TV.
Does it work with Stremio?
Yes. Choose Family Filter TV as Stremio’s external player on Android TV, and anything you start in Stremio plays already filtered. Stremio profanity filter.
Does it work with Netflix?
Yes, on Android TV and Google TV, in follow-along mode. Start the title in Netflix on the TV, pick the same title in Family Filter TV on your Android phone, and the TV mutes the swearing. English titles only. Family Filter TV is not affiliated with Netflix. How to mute swearing on Netflix.
Does it need a phone?
For follow-along mode yes: you pick the title and set the filter on an Android phone, and the phone can find your place in a film by listening when the TV cannot tell. Stremio playback on the TV is chosen in Stremio.
Price and free trial
What does Family Filter TV cost?
Choose a 30-day or 1-year plan after your 14-day free trial — current prices are shown in Google Play, in your own currency. One account covers three devices, and more can be added up to six.
What happens during the 14-day free trial?
The first 14 days are free. After the trial you choose a 30-day or 1-year plan, billed through Google Play with current prices shown there, and you can cancel any time from Google Play. If the trial ends and you have not subscribed, the app stops filtering and stops playback; it never plays a stream unfiltered. See the terms.
How many devices are included?
Three devices on one account, and up to six. The filter belongs to the household: set it on your phone and every linked device follows.
Privacy
Does the phone listen to my TV all the time?
No. Only when it has to find your place in a film: once you have allowed the microphone it starts when you follow a title, and you can tap Stop. The sound is turned into words on the phone and compared there with the subtitles. Nothing is stored or sent anywhere. See the privacy policy.
Troubleshooting
The filter is not in sync with the film. What do I do?
See If it is not in sync. Turn the volume up, or play the sound through speakers instead of headphones so the phone can hear it. Songs and quiet scenes are hard to line up.
The app says filtering is unavailable for a title.
Filtering needs subtitles for that title. When none can be found the app tells you on screen, and it cannot filter that title.
Playback stutters or will not start on my box.
Some Android phones and boxes lack hardware decoding for 10-bit HEVC video, so playback can stutter or fail whatever app is used. It is a device limit rather than something the app can filter around. Support lists the known limits.
Where do I get help?
Support has the setup steps, the known limits and an address to write to.