One of the more rare features in an Android smartphone these days is the IR blaster. Touted to be one of the most game-changing features to ever grace the smartphone, the IR blaster has fallen out of favor in recent years, with most OEMs choosing to look away from adding it into their devices.
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How to install an IR blaster on an Android smartphone
For those of you who don’t know, the IR blaster is a device that emulates an infrared remote control to autonomously control a device that is normally controlled only by controlled key presses. This means, using the IR blaster, you can control a whole range of appliances, directly from your smartphone. This includes most TVs, ACs, Set-Top boxes, and much more.
The IR blaster trend started in 2013 when LG and Samsung started fitting the IR blaster into their flagship phones, and after that, it was just a mad rush to get a hold of the smartphones just for this feature. However, the same IR blaster mysteriously disappeared, only to appear a few years later, in the Redmi smartphone lineup.
Today, Xiaomi still fits the IR blaster in its devices as a means to set itself apart from the rather choc a bloc market. The best part, however, is just how well the blaster actually works. We have tried this on several brands including Sony TVs, Samsung and LG air conditioners, etc, and every one of them has responded to the IR blaster.
Now, if you are wondering as to how you can get this IR blaster on your smartphone, well, sadly, you can’t. The reason is that the IR blaster is a hardware sensor. So no matter what changes you make to the software of your smartphone, it will not work unless the corresponding hardware is present on the device.
This means, the only way for you to actually get the IR blaster in your possession, is to actually buy a smartphone that has the IR blaster feature pre-installed.
So, if you see apps that promise to give your smartphone the capabilities of an IR blaster, stay away from them, they are most certainly a scam.
