What is the function of the LG WebOS integration

Devices
1

There seems to be two different ways to connect an LG TV in Homey. The first is using some legacy driver, the second is using the ‘new’ ThinQ LG app. I have an OLED83G3PUA TV and neither seems to work well with it. The legacy driver is able to turn on the TV, but doesn’t seem to be able to perform any other functions (like turning it off). It also turns the TV onto one of the internet channels as opposed to the home screen.

The ThinQ LG app seems to work better. It turns the TV on, but instead of going to the home screen (like my remote does) it seems to default to HDMI 1. Unlike the ThinQ LG app, there are no controls on the device in Homey to go to the home screen, or turn switch to any of the apps. Not sure there is much purpose in having an integration here if it doesn’t inlcude changing channels or setting some default behavior.

Thought maybe automating it with a flow might be better. Create a ‘Netflix and Chill’ flow for instance. There seem to be flow cards for setting the application and setting the channel. The application one doesn’t seem to work because it expects to pick an application from a drop-down and on my screen the drop down is empty. Can’t find any instructions on how to populate the drop-down. LG application shows the applications I have installed on the TV. Tried to use a channel card to set the channel (which frankly isn’t that useful to me since I almost never watch OTA channels any more). That card didn’t seem to work either - TV came on as per the first card, but stayed on HDMI input. Had be hoping for a ‘Go Home” card, but there does not appear to be one.

So, I’m wondering what is the purpose of this app. It’s not to be able to control it interactively (without channel/app control). And the flows don’t seem to work as expected. Not sure why power on doesn’t function as it does on the remote control (which goes to the home screen).

Was hoping to use this functionality to build flows for ‘Watch a Movie’ or ‘Watch TV’, but that doesn’t seem possible with the current integrations.

2

I’ve been experimenting with the official LG ThinQ integration for Homey while trying to make Homey the centre of my AV system. During that process I’ve identified what appears to be a gap in the current TV implementation, and I’m interested to know whether it’s a limitation of the LG ThinQ API or simply functionality that hasn’t yet been exposed in Homey.

Current TV Flow cards

The LG TV integration currently provides Flow cards for:

  • Power on/off
  • Volume control
  • Channel Up / Down
  • Switch directly to a TV channel
  • Launch installed applications
  • Select TV HDMI inputs
  • Display on-screen messages

What appears to be missing

The following TV functions do not appear to be available as Flow cards:

  • Live TV
  • LG Channels
  • Home
  • Guide
  • Settings
  • Remote button simulation
  • Generic webOS commands

The specific problem

Pressing the INPUT button on the LG Magic Remote displays all available TV sources, including both the TV’s internal services and the external HDMI inputs.

For example, on my LG OLED G4 the Input menu includes:

  • Live TV
  • LG Channels
  • External HDMI devices

However, the Set TV Input Flow card only exposes the external HDMI inputs.

Similarly, the Launch Application Flow card correctly lists installed applications such as BBC iPlayer, ITVX, Netflix, Prime Video etc., but Live TV and LG Channels are not applications, so they cannot be selected that way either.

The result is that Homey can switch from the TV’s internal services to external HDMI devices, but there appears to be no way to switch back again.

Why this matters

For simple TV automation this isn’t a major issue.

However, for anyone trying to build an activity-based AV system, it becomes much more significant.

Most modern AV systems consist of multiple devices connected to the television, often via HDMI switches or AV receivers.

An activity such as:

  • Watch Apple TV
  • Watch Kodi
  • Watch Blu-ray
  • Watch Games Console
  • Watch Broadcast TV

is rarely achieved simply by selecting a single HDMI input.

Typically, Homey may need to:

  • Select the correct HDMI input on the TV.
  • Switch an HDMI switch or AV receiver to the correct input.
  • Power on one or more devices.
  • Select the appropriate sound mode.
  • Adjust room lighting and other automations.

The current LG integration already provides the first part by allowing the TV’s HDMI inputs to be selected.

The missing piece is the ability to return to the TV’s own broadcast services, making it difficult to build a complete set of AV activities.

My particular use case

To give one practical example, my TV’s HDMI inputs are connected to devices that themselves can provide multiple sources.

For example, one HDMI input on the TV is connected to an external HDMI switch. Homey first selects that HDMI input on the TV and then sends a second command to the HDMI switch to choose the required source.

This means the actual user activity (“Watch Kodi”, “Watch Games Console”, etc.) is dynamic and may involve several coordinated Homey Flow cards, not simply selecting one HDMI socket.

The only activity that cannot currently be completed is returning to the TV’s own internal broadcast services.

A question for developers

I’ve also enabled LG Network IP Control on the TV and have asked LG whether the ThinQ API exposes the TV’s internal services or only the external HDMI inputs.

If the limitation is simply that the current integration doesn’t expose everything available through the local webOS API, would there be any interest in a native LG webOS local Homey app?

Such an app could potentially expose additional Flow cards such as:

  • Select Live TV
  • Select LG Channels
  • Home
  • Guide
  • Settings
  • Remote button simulation
  • Generic webOS API commands

I suspect these capabilities would make Homey much more attractive as the central controller for advanced AV systems and as a successor to products such as the Logitech Harmony.

I’d be very happy to help with testing if anyone is interested in exploring this further.

3

You might be looking for the WebOS Plus community app by Max van de Laar:

Screenshot_20260701_175858_GitHub
Screenshot_20260701_175858_GitHub1076×4198 290 KB

You’ll find install instructions in the Readme.

I’m using it since 2020, it works flawlessly.

(The app resided in the community app store, but that was long ago)

Ex flow: