Saving a modified apk.

So i have this apk running on an unrooted Android TV but it's poisoned with full screen ads and multiple 3rd party analyitic gathering modules.

It can't be modified on the TV as the app has inbuilt protection against tampering and checks against a remote file sig on launch.

I can't block the ip address using the TV's hosts file because I'd need root access.

I can't block it at the router level either as the connection goes through a VPN so it doesn't recognise the ip address.

Ad blockers are no good as they're all VPN based and you can only run one instance of a VPN at a time on Android.

There are a few apps on the Play Store that let you disable services in installed apk's, but without root 

On a rooted phone, the sig checking service is easily disabled, the app can be modified without the protection kicking in, and it works exactly how I want it.

I've tried hundreds of useless apps to edit, copy or clone a modified version of the apk, but none of them will save a copy where the service remains disabled, they all just create a standard unedited fresh copy.

So basically, with root I'm looking for some way to get this app, in it's current modified working state, into a valid apk file that will install on the TV

Or, without root, some way of disabling the service in the installed app, so it can't call home.

And just to further complicate things,  I'll have no access to a laptop or desktop computer for a while as I'm away from home,  so I only have my phone and the TV to work with.

Any suggestions ?

I think if you try Apk editor from the Play store it can save the hacked version.

I think I remember Google clamping down on apps like APK Editor ages ago, as they were encouraging the infringement of the intellectual property rights of other developers, and neither it nor the paid version have worked in years.

I would use 'APK easy tool' to decompile the apk, make the necessary changes and then recompile. You can do the same using the Android Studio (but it's bit more complicated).

Decompiling and re-packing multiple versions of the modified apk takes forever on a mobile, so I was just patching the installed app instead, as it was quicker, and easier to check if any edits were valid or not.

But I'll definately give that program a try man, it looks like its got better options than some of the older stuff I have at home for working with dex and jar files.

Cheers. 💍