In short: both arrive with BetterSTR TV app version 1.0.223, which is rolling out now. TVs update themselves, so there is nothing to install. Pick the guidebook layout per TV under Android TV → edit a TV → Guidebook, and add buttons under Android TV → Custom buttons.
Showcase: the guidebook, redesigned for the big screen
The original TV guidebook was a list of headings on one side and the text on the other. It worked, but it read like a document on a television. Showcase is built for a TV across the room.
- Your property, front and centre. The guide opens on your property photo with its name, so guests know straight away they are in the right place.
- The answers guests text you about, before they ask. Check-in and check-out times, the WiFi network and how to reach you sit across the top, with a QR code that joins the WiFi in one scan.
- Rows of cards, one row per section. Up and down moves between sections, left and right browses within one, the same way guests already browse Netflix. Each card shows the icon, title and the first lines of the article.
- A proper reader. Opening a card shows the full article next to its photo, an In this section list to jump to the next topic without going back, and a QR code that opens the whole guide on the guest’s phone, with working links.
It is the same guidebook you already have. There is nothing to rewrite or re-upload: your sections, articles, icons and photos appear in the new layout as they are, in all the languages the TV speaks.
Three layouts to choose from
Showcase doesn’t replace anything. Every TV now has three guidebook layouts, and you choose per TV:
| Layout | What it looks like | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| Showcase | Property photo, key details and WiFi QR up top, sections as rows of cards, a full-screen reader. | Holiday homes and apartments where the guide is part of the welcome. |
| Crisp | Shortcut buttons across the top, a menu of sections down the left and the article on the right, in your TV’s light or dark colour scheme. | Long, detailed guides and hotel compendiums with many sections. |
| Basic | A single list of sections and articles, the simplest layout. | Short guides, and hosts who like a plain look. |
To switch, open Android TV in your dashboard, edit the TV and pick a Guidebook layout next to the Guidebook switch. Match TV theme (the default) keeps whatever goes with your launcher theme. The TV picks up the change by itself, with no restart needed. The layout choice is available on every plan, free included.
Opening faster
We also made the guidebook open faster on every layout, and added an option for TVs where you want it instant. Under the TV’s Advanced → General settings, Keep the guide ready keeps the guide loaded in the background, so it opens the moment a guest presses the button. It holds a little memory on the box while it waits, so it is off by default: switch it on for the TVs where you want the fastest guide.
Your own buttons on the TV home screen
Next to Smart Home, Guidebook and Store, you can now add buttons of your own. Each one has an icon, a name and a web address, and opens that page full screen on the TV when a guest presses it.
Hosts have been asking for this for a while, for all sorts of reasons:
- A video showing how to light the fire, use the spa pool or work the heat pump.
- Your own booking page, so guests can book their next stay direct.
- A restaurant menu, a room-service order form, or the spa booking page at a hotel.
- A control page for lighting or heating you already run on another system.
- A feedback form, a local events calendar, a page from your own website.
Setting them up
Open Android TV → Custom buttons and press New button. Pick an icon from the full Font Awesome set (type to search), give it a short name and paste the address. Then choose where it shows: on all your TVs, on the TVs at one property, on TVs with a tag, or on a single TV. Each TV shows up to eight buttons.
Two switches per button:
- Only show while a guest is staying hides the button between bookings, for things like a checkout form that only makes sense during a stay.
- Keep this page ready loads the page in the background so it opens instantly. It works on TVs with Keep the guide ready turned on, one preloaded button per TV.
For developers: personalised links
The address can include placeholders that the TV fills in when the guest presses the button, so the page you open knows which TV, property and booking it is for:
| Placeholder | Filled with |
|---|---|
| {device_id} | The TV’s id |
| {property_uuid} | The property the TV is in |
| {reservation_uuid} | The current booking, while a guest is staying |
| {reservation_code} | The booking’s own reference from your PMS |
| {lang} | The language the guest picked on the TV |
| {timestamp} and {signature} | A time and a signature made with your account’s secret, so your server can check the request really came from your TV |
For example, https://example.com/roomservice?room={property_uuid}&booking={reservation_code}&lang={lang} opens your order form already knowing the room, the booking and the guest’s language. The Custom buttons screen shows your signing secret and how to check the signature.
Custom buttons are a Premium TV feature. They work during the free trial (your first 2 weeks); on the free plan your buttons stay saved and reappear as soon as the TV is on Premium. See pricing.
Getting version 1.0.223
Version 1.0.223 is rolling out now, and BetterSTR TVs install it themselves. Updates wait until daytime (we hold them between 9pm and 10am, property time) so nobody’s evening film gets interrupted, and you don’t need to do anything. To check a TV, open Android TV in your dashboard: each TV shows its app version. A TV still on an older version keeps the current guidebook and won’t show custom buttons until it updates.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to change my guidebook?
No. All three layouts show the same guidebook you edit in the dashboard. Adding a photo to a section or article makes it look better in Showcase, but nothing is required.
Can different TVs use different layouts?
Yes. The layout is set per TV, so a hotel can run Crisp in the rooms and Showcase on the lobby screen.
Can a custom button open an app instead of a web page?
Not yet: buttons open web pages. To put an app on the home screen, add it as an app tile from the TV’s Apps settings.
How many custom buttons can I add?
As many as you like across your account; each TV shows up to eight, in the order you set.