Android beta
Install the supervised Android beta directly.
Use this guide on the Android phone that will use the beta. The file is a temporary supervised, direct-install Android edition while Google Play review is pending.
Direct Android supervised beta
Available nowSupervised direct-install Android edition
This temporary build is for parents and legal guardians while Play review is pending. Screen-content features start off and require a separate parent or guardian choice. Your child can see what is shared and can turn that choice off in the app. Read Privacy before installing. This supervised direct-install Android edition is separate from the public Google Play app and is signed with a different key, so the Play version cannot update this install in place. Before the Play version arrives we will send sign-out-first reinstall instructions. Do not uninstall Tiny Beacon in the meantime — uninstalling removes the encryption keys stored on this device.
Check the file before installing
- Build
- Android beta · version 1.6.8 · build 61
- File
- 136 MB · Wi-Fi recommended
- Distribution
- Direct APK while Google Play review is pending
- Availability
- Link available until 27 November 2026
- SHA-256
- 4e4c6b58e8592889ca2c70e5f58510bac480116fc9895d23de8d3fa6d4cf1048
Android direct install
For parents and legal guardians setting up the Tiny Beacon Android beta.
This supervised Android build is installed from the Tiny Beacon website while the Google Play listing is unavailable. It is about 136 MB, so Wi-Fi is recommended.
The app explains each safety choice before it is enabled. Each choice starts off and requires separate parent or legal-guardian consent. Please explain your choices to your child. Tiny Beacon is not an emergency service.
How to install
- Open this page on the Android phone that will use the beta. Tap Download. Confirm that the page shows Tiny Beacon Android version 1.6.8, build 61.
- Chrome or another browser may ask whether to keep the APK file. Check that you started from tiny-beacon.com and that the version and build match.
The downloaded file may have an Expo-generated filename. That is expected; use the version, build, and SHA-256 above to check the file.
Chrome routinely asks whether to keep an APK. Once you have checked the version, build, and SHA-256 above, choosing Keep or Download anyway is expected. If instead Chrome says “Dangerous download blocked” or “Harmful app blocked,” cancel the download. Do not turn off Safe Browsing or Play Protect. Email [email protected].
- Open the downloaded file.
Tap the download notification. If it has disappeared, open Chrome → ⋮ → Downloads. You can also open your Files or My Files app and choose the Downloads folder.
- Android may say:
“For your security, your phone currently isn't allowed to install unknown apps from this source.”
Tap Settings. Turn on “Allow from this source” only for the app named on that screen:
- Downloaded and opened in Chrome → choose Chrome.
- Downloaded and opened in Samsung Internet → choose Samsung Internet.
- Downloaded in Firefox or Edge → choose that browser.
- Opened from Files by Google or My Files → choose that file app.
Return to the downloaded file and tap Install.
- On Android 13 and later, Android may show a “Restricted settings” message when you open the app. Open Settings → Apps → Tiny Beacon → ⋮ → Allow restricted settings, then return to Tiny Beacon. This is needed before notification access can be enabled. If the option is not available, stop and email [email protected].
- If Play Protect offers to scan the app or send it for a security check, allow the check to finish.
If Android says “App blocked to protect your device,” look for “More details” and “Install anyway” before doing anything else. Never turn Play Protect off. If there is no “Install anyway,” or if you are asked to turn on Developer options or wait for a security delay, stop and email [email protected].
- After installation, turn “Allow from this source” off again: Settings → search for “Install unknown apps” → choose the browser or file app → turn off “Allow from this source.”
Phone-specific settings
Samsung Galaxy: Settings → Security and privacy → More security settings → Install unknown apps → choose Chrome, Samsung Internet, or My Files → turn on the permission.
Samsung Galaxy (2024 models and newer): If you see “App blocked” or an Auto Blocker message, go to Settings → Security and privacy → Auto Blocker and turn off “Block apps from unauthorised sources.” Install Tiny Beacon, then turn Auto Blocker back on. If you would rather not turn it off, stop and email [email protected]. Do not uninstall an existing Tiny Beacon app, and do not turn Play Protect off.
Xiaomi, Redmi, or POCO: Settings → Additional settings → Privacy → Special app access → Install unknown apps → choose the app that opened the file. On some phones the menu is called Privacy protection or Special permissions. You can also search Settings for “Install unknown apps.”
If the app says “App not installed”
Do not uninstall an existing Tiny Beacon app. Email [email protected] with your phone model, Android version, and the exact message.
iPhone
You're on iPhone.
Install Tiny Beacon from the App Store. The Android file cannot be installed on an iPhone. Helping someone with an Android phone? Open the Android install guide on that phone or scan the QR code from another screen.
Desktop
Install Tiny Beacon on an Android phone
Scan this QR code with the Android phone that will use the beta. It opens the install guide first; it does not install anything on this computer.
