Lock it to one screen.

SlowTV already hides every menu, library, and app-switcher from your child — up and down change the channel, and that's it. This guide is the last step: stopping a curious kid from leaving the app at all, on whatever device you hand over. Pick your platform below — every method lists how strong the lock really is and exactly how to get out.

Good to know

Install SlowTV first — grab it from the downloads page. Everyday limits (daily watch time, allowed hours) are set in the parent portal; the steps below only stop the child from leaving the app.

iPhone & iPad

Recommended

Guided Access

Strong
  1. 1

    Open Settings > Accessibility > Guided Access, and turn it on.

  2. 2

    Tap Passcode Settings > Set Guided Access Passcode, and set Display Auto-Lock to Never so the screen stays awake.

  3. 3

    Keep the iPad plugged in if it will live as an always-on TV.

  4. 4

    Open SlowTV, then triple-click the side button (or the Home button on older iPads).

  5. 5

    Tap Options, turn Touch off so taps do nothing, then tap Start.

How to exit

  • Triple-click the side (or Home) button, enter your Guided Access passcode, tap End.

Good to know

With Touch off, SlowTV's on-screen two-finger channel knob is disabled too, so change channels with a remote or keyboard, or by ending Guided Access. Guided Access protects a single session and can be ended by anyone who knows the passcode.

Option B

Single App Mode (supervised)

Full lock

Requires: A Mac + erases the iPad once

  1. 1

    Install Apple Configurator on a Mac (free, Mac App Store).

  2. 2

    Connect the iPad with a cable and Prepare the device with "Supervise devices" turned on. This erases the iPad, so do it on a spare or freshly reset tablet.

  3. 3

    Install SlowTV on the now-supervised iPad (TestFlight beta, or push it from Apple Configurator).

  4. 4

    Select the iPad > Actions > Advanced > Start Single App Mode, pick SlowTV, and apply.

  5. 5

    The iPad now boots straight into SlowTV and cannot leave it.

How to exit

  • Connect the iPad to the same Mac and choose Actions > Advanced > Stop Single App Mode.

Good to know

Supervision wipes the device once, and unlocking needs the Mac that set it up.

Android phones & tablets

Recommended

Device-owner kiosk (Lock Task)

Full lock

Requires: A freshly reset device + a computer with adb

  1. 1

    Factory-reset a spare device and skip adding any account (device-owner provisioning is refused once an account is on the device).

  2. 2

    Turn on Developer options > USB debugging, and install the SlowTV APK.

  3. 3

    From a computer with adb, run adb shell dpm set-device-owner co.slowtv.mobile/expo.modules.kiosk.AdminReceiver to make SlowTV the device owner.

  4. 4

    SlowTV locks the device down on its own: it blocks Back, Home, Recents, and the notification shade, hides the status bar, and re-enters itself on every boot.

How to exit

  • The device owner lock is permanent; remove it only by factory-resetting the device.

Good to know

Setup needs a spare, freshly reset device and a computer.

Option B

App pinning

Basic
  1. 1

    Open Settings > Security (or Security & privacy > More security settings) > App pinning, and turn it on.

  2. 2

    Turn on "Ask for PIN before unpinning".

  3. 3

    Open SlowTV, then open the Recents / Overview view.

  4. 4

    Tap the SlowTV icon at the top of its card > Pin.

How to exit

  • Hold Back + Overview together (or swipe up and hold with gesture nav), then enter your PIN.

Good to know

Android has no built-in setting that disables touch: pinning keeps the child in SlowTV but taps still register. Pinning lasts for one session and drops after a reboot, and a child who knows the PIN can exit.

Apple TV (tvOS, beta)

Recommended

Guided Access

Strong
  1. 1

    Open Settings > Accessibility > Guided Access, and turn it on.

  2. 2

    Set a Guided Access passcode in the same menu.

  3. 3

    Open SlowTV, then triple-press the TV/Control Center button (Back on older remotes) to start a session.

How to exit

  • Triple-press the TV/Control Center button again and enter your Guided Access passcode.

Good to know

Protects a single session; anyone who knows the passcode can end it.

Option B

Supervised MDM App Lock (Single App Mode)

Full lock

Requires: Apple Configurator or an MDM that supervises the Apple TV

  1. 1

    Supervise the Apple TV with Apple Configurator on a Mac (this erases it once).

  2. 2

    Apply a Single App Mode / App Lock profile naming SlowTV.

  3. 3

    The Apple TV boots straight into SlowTV and cannot leave it.

How to exit

  • Remove the App Lock profile from the Mac or MDM that manages the Apple TV.

Good to know

Needs a Mac or MDM, and supervision wipes the Apple TV once.

Android TV & Google TV

Recommended

Device-owner Lock Task

Full lock

Requires: A freshly reset device + a computer with adb

  1. 1

    Factory-reset the TV box and skip adding any account (device-owner provisioning is refused once an account is on the device).

  2. 2

    Turn on Developer options > USB debugging (or Network debugging), and install the SlowTV APK.

  3. 3

    From a computer with adb, run adb shell dpm set-device-owner co.slowtv.mobile/expo.modules.kiosk.AdminReceiver to make SlowTV the device owner.

  4. 4

    SlowTV locks the device down on its own: it blocks Back, Home, Recents, and the notification shade, and re-enters itself on every boot.

How to exit

  • The device owner lock is permanent; remove it only by factory-resetting the device.

Good to know

Setup needs a spare, freshly reset box and a computer.

Option B

Set SlowTV as the default Home app

Basic
  1. 1

    Open SlowTV once; when the TV asks which app should be Home, choose SlowTV.

  2. 2

    Or set it under Settings > Apps > Default apps > Home app.

How to exit

  • Choose a different Home app under Settings > Apps > Default apps > Home app.

Good to know

Pressing Home goes back to SlowTV, but Settings and other apps are still reachable.

Fire TV

Recommended

Parental Controls PIN

Basic
  1. 1

    Open Settings > Preferences > Parental Controls, and turn it on with a PIN only the adults know.

  2. 2

    Under the same menu, PIN-protect other apps and purchases so leaving SlowTV needs the PIN.

How to exit

  • Enter the PIN wherever Fire TV asks for it.

Good to know

Fire TV has no consumer kiosk mode: the child can still press Home and reach the launcher, and taps still register inside SlowTV.

Web browser (/tv)

Recommended

Chrome kiosk flag

Strong

Requires: A dedicated computer

  1. 1

    Launch Chrome with --kiosk https://slowtv.kids/tv so it boots straight into SlowTV full screen with no browser chrome.

How to exit

  • Quit the browser (Alt+F4 on Windows/Linux, Cmd+Q on a Mac).

Good to know

Someone with keyboard access can still quit or switch apps; only use this on a machine dedicated to the TV.

Option B

Full screen browser

Basic
  1. 1

    Open https://slowtv.kids/tv, then press F11 (Windows/Linux) or Ctrl+Cmd+F (Mac) for full screen.

  2. 2

    On an iPad: open it in Safari, tap Share > Add to Home Screen, launch it from the icon, then turn on Guided Access exactly as in the iPhone & iPad guide.

How to exit

  • Press F11 / Ctrl+Cmd+F again, or Esc, to leave full screen.

Good to know

Easy to leave: anyone can exit full screen or close the tab.

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