Android TV now has an NTFS USB plugin from Paragon Software, which allows users of Android TV devices to access files of any size from external storage drives and file system formats that were previously incompatible with the platform. No matter the what the file system format happens to be (some of the supported formats are NTFS, FAT32, and HFS+), Paragon’s exFAT NTFS USB Plugin enables access on any Android TV device as well as other types of set top boxes. This is particularly important for those who may have wanted to watch videos from a non-supported file system format that were 40GB in size or more, such as 4K videos of a certain length.
The plugin is easily downloadable and doesn’t take much effort to get things up and running, though there are a few requirements that are needed before you can start using the plugin as intended. First and foremost, users will need to download Paragon Software’s Total Commander application from Google Play. This is a free application and is one half to the two-part system. This app is essentially the base layer that’s needed, and the new plugin is a separate app. Once the Total Commander app is installed, the next step is to install the exFAT NTFS USB Plugin for Android, which also free, and then you can jump right into connecting which ever external device that holds the files you’re trying to access from your Android TV unit.
Paragon states that things will work immediately and there is nothing else that needs to be done, but there is one caveat. This feature is only offered on a two-day free trial at which point you’ll need to buy the access through a one-time in-app purchase. It’s also worth noting that there are multiple access unlocks depending on which type of file system format you want to connect to. If you just need to connect to the NTFS USB file systems format, then you can pick up this access through the IAP for just $2.99. There are also unlocks for other file system format types for prices ranging from $2.99 to $4.99. If you’re looking at unlocking access to more than just NTFS USB, then you’re better off paying for the third option which is $9.99 to unlock all supported file system formats. If you’re interested in setting this up, you can grab each of the needed Android apps from the buttons below.