How to Install Google Text-to-Speech on Philips Displays (Android)

How to Install Google Text-to-Speech on Philips Displays (Android)

Context

This article describes how to manually install the Google Text-to-Speech (TTS) engine on Philips Android displays via ADB and set it as the default text-to-speech engine.

Prerequisites

Before proceeding, make sure that:
  • the display belongs to the Philips xxBDL3751T series, which includes the models currently supported;
  • the display is switched on and connected to the local network;
  • ADB debugging is enabled on the device;
  • the computer is connected to the same network as the display;
  • the Google TTS APK bundle is available and can be downloaded from the following link: http://myls.io/philips/tts.zip
  • ADB is installed on the computer from which the commands will be run.

Preparing the Computer (Windows)


Installing ADB

Download the Android SDK Platform-Tools for Windows from the official Google website:

Extract the contents of the ZIP file, for example to: C:\platform-tools.
Notes
You do not need to install Android Studio.
Open Command Prompt and navigate to the folder where you extracted Platform-Tools:
Shell
cd C:\platform-tools

Preparing the Computer (macOS/Linux)

Installing ADB

Download the Android SDK Platform-Tools for macOS or Linux from the Google website: https://developer.android.com/tools/releases/platform-tools
Extract the contents of the ZIP file, for example to: ~/platform-tools
Open Terminal and navigate to the folder where you extracted Platform-Tools:
Shell
cd ~/platform-tools

Installation Procedure

The following steps describe how to manually install the Google Text-to-Speech engine on the display via an ADB connection, verify that it has been installed correctly, and configure it as the system’s default text-to-speech engine. This procedure requires access to the device’s local network and the supplied APK bundle.

Connecting to the Display via ADB

Open a terminal in the folder containing the TTS bundle APK files and connect to the display:
Shell
adb connect IP_DEL_DISPLAY

Verify the connection:

Shell
adb devices

The display should appear in the list of connected devices.

Installing the Google TTS Bundle

Navigate to the folder containing the APK files from the package downloaded previously and run:

Shell
adb install-multiple *.apk

Wait for the installation to complete.

Verifying the Installation

Check that the package has been installed correctly by running:
Shell
adb shell pm list packages | grep tts

NotesIf the installation was successful, the following will appear: package:com.google.android.tts

Setting Google TTS as the Default Engine

Configure Google Text-to-Speech as the system’s default text-to-speech engine:

Shell
adb shell settings put secure tts_default_synth com.google.android.tts

Also enable the service among those available:

Shell
adb shell settings put secure enabled_accessibility_services com.google.android.tts

Info
After the configuration is complete, Google Text-to-Speech will be set as the device’s default text-to-speech engine and will be ready to use.