Faithlife Digital Signage requires a web browser and a connection to the Internet. This opens up a lot of options for a cost effective digital signage solutions. Here are two:
Amazon Fire TV
The easiest way to get started is with a flat screen TV and an Amazon FireTV. To get started:
- Set up your sign feed on Faithlife.com.
- Download our FireTV app.
- Sign in to your Faithlife account following the on-screen instructions in the FireTV app.
- Select your sign feed to display it.
Disable “Still Watching” Setting
Newly updated FireTV software automatically enables a “still watching” setting, which returns the FireTV to the Home Screen after 4 hours. Disable this setting to allow Digital Signage to play continuously until you manually disconnect it. You can disable the setting under Settings>Preferences>Data monitoring on your FireTV.
Asus Chromebit HDMI Stick Computer
Another one of our favorite options is combining a flat screen TV with an Asus Chromebit HDMI stick computer.
The Chromebit turns your TV into a lightweight computer running Chrome OS, which is perfect for running signs. The Chromebit comes standard with an extension cable, allowing you to plug it into the most awkward of HDMI ports and mount the TV flat against the wall.
We encountered a couple minor gotchas during setup:
- Our TV had several HDMI ports and not all of them worked with the Chromebit. If the first port you try doesn’t work, be sure to try them all.
- You need to plug the power and keyboard into the Chromebit before you connect it to the TV.
The Chromebit has a single USB port. We found it helpful to have both a mouse and a keyboard for the initial setup. We used a USB hub (shown below) to accomplish this. We’ve also used an Adesso mini keyboard with great results.
To use Chrome OS you’ll need a Google account. If you don’t already have one they’re free and easy to create.
Note: Chrome browser settings automatically sync between all instances of Chrome. Create a bookmark to your sign feed once and you won’t have to enter the address on additional TVs.
Once you’ve completed the setup of Chrome OS open the Chrome web browser and enter your sign feed address. When your sign loads click the icon on the bottom right to go full screen and you’re done! It’s now safe to unplug your keyboard and let your sign run.