Dreamr playing on a TV: a granite valley with pine trees and a river, with the weather in the top-left corner and the time in the bottom-right Dreamr's next photo: trees on a meadow at sunset Dreamr's next photo: green sea cliffs under cloud

An Android TV screensaver for the photos on your NAS

Dreamr is an Android TV and Google TV screensaver for people who keep their photos on a NAS or home server. Whenever the TV is idle, it plays them straight from an SMB share, an NFSv4 export or the TV's own storage. No cloud upload, no Plex or DLNA server, nothing to install on the NAS.

Get it on Google Play See the 5-minute setup

How do I show photos from my NAS as my Android TV screensaver?

To show photos from a NAS as your Android TV or Google TV screensaver, install Dreamr from Google Play, pick SMB or NFS as the photo source, enter the server and folder, then set Dreamr as the screensaver: in Settings on Android TV, or with one ADB command on Google TV. It works with Synology, QNAP, TrueNAS, Unraid, OpenMediaVault, Windows shared folders and any Linux NFSv4 server.

Where Dreamr reads photos from

Dreamr connects to your file server directly. Your photos stay where they are, and new ones show up in the slideshow on their own.

  • NFSNFSv4 exports

    Built-in NFSv4 client, so there's no mount, root or Plex needed. For TrueNAS, Unraid, OpenMediaVault, Proxmox and plain Linux servers.

    nas.local:/mnt/tank/photos
    NFS setup guide

  • SMBWindows-style shares

    Synology, QNAP, Asustor, a Windows PC or a router's USB share. Guest access or a username and password, encrypted on the TV.

    \\DS920\photo\Family
    SMB setup guide

  • LocalOn the TV itself

    A USB stick or the TV's internal storage. Good for a shop window or a holiday home with no network share.

    /storage/USB/Pictures
    Supported formats

How to set it up

  1. Install on the TV

    Search “Dreamr” in the Google Play Store on your Android TV, Google TV or Chromecast with Google TV.

  2. Point it at a folder

    Choose SMB, NFS or Local, enter the server, then browse to the photo folder. Test Connection tells you how many photos it found.

  3. Make it the screensaver

    Android TV: Settings › Device Preferences › Screen saver. As of October 2026, Google TV hides third-party screensavers, so there you run one ADB command from a computer. The guides show how.

  4. Walk away

    Whenever the TV goes idle, your photos play. If the NAS sleeps or reboots, Dreamr reconnects by itself.

What Dreamr does

Shuffle with no repeats
Every photo shows once before any repeats, even across days.
5 seconds to 30 minutes
Pick a pace, from a lively slideshow to an almost-still picture on the wall.
Clock and weather
Optional time and current-weather overlays in the corner of the screen, as in the photo at the top of this page.
Where was this?
Shows the country flag from the photo's GPS data, so the slideshow prompts a story.
Private by design
Photos are shown on the TV and never uploaded. The share password is encrypted in the TV's Android Keystore.
Big libraries welcome
Reads JPEG, PNG, WebP, GIF, BMP and iPhone HEIC photos straight from the share, with nothing copied to the TV in advance.

Common questions

Can Android TV show photos from a NAS as the screensaver?

Not out of the box: the built-in Ambient mode shows Google Photos and curated art, not files on your network. Dreamr adds a screensaver that reads straight from SMB or NFS shares on your NAS.

Do I need Plex, Jellyfin or a DLNA server?

No. Dreamr talks to the file share directly, so there's no media server to install or keep running.

Does it work on Chromecast with Google TV, Nvidia Shield and Sony or TCL TVs?

Yes. On Android TV devices such as the Nvidia Shield, pick Dreamr under Settings › Device Preferences › Screen saver. As of October 2026, Google TV devices, including Chromecast with Google TV, don't list third-party screensavers in Settings, so you set Dreamr once with an ADB command from a computer.

Is there a phone app?

No. Dreamr runs on the TV. In the Play Store on your phone, use the device menu next to Install to send Dreamr to your TV. Installed on a phone, it only shows these instructions.

Is Dreamr free?

Free to try: the free version plays the first 10 photos in the folder, in name order. A one-off in-app purchase unlocks every photo and shuffle. There is no subscription, and Google Play shows the price in your currency.

All questions