Straw phases P/Q/R/S — bottom nav, sub feed, downloads, background audio

Phase P — bottom navigation:
- StrawHome restructured as a Scaffold with Material3 NavigationBar.
- Three tabs: Home (search + last 10 watches), Library (full watch
  history with count), Subs (channel chips + aggregated feed).

Phase Q — subscription feed:
- New SubscriptionFeedViewModel fans out per-channel ChannelInfo +
  ChannelTabs.VIDEOS fetches in parallel via async/awaitAll.
- Each channel contributes top 5; merged across all subs, capped at
  200, sorted by view count as a soft-recency proxy (extractor doesn't
  reliably surface upload timestamps).
- 10-minute cache TTL avoids hammering YT on tab re-entry.
- Subs tab renders the feed below the avatar row with a Refresh button.

Phase R — download:
- Download button on VideoDetail (next to Play / Share). Pops a tiny
  dialog: Audio (best audioStream) or Video (best videoStream/
  videoOnly fallback).
- Uses Android's DownloadManager — saves into app-private external
  files dir (Android/data/com.sulkta.straw.debug/files/Movies/<kind>/).
  Notification + progress for free. No WRITE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE needed.
- Filenames sanitized (no /:*?\"<>| chars), capped at 120 chars.

Phase S — background audio:
- New "Background" overlay button (🎧) on the player. Tap to pause the
  activity player and start PlaybackService with the audio URL.
- PlaybackService is a Media3 MediaSessionService with its own ExoPlayer
  configured with our custom DataSource.Factory (User-Agent set, cross-
  protocol redirects). Foreground service + media notification.
- Audio survives activity death — swipe the app out of recents, audio
  keeps playing. Stop via notification or open-the-app-and-tap-stop.
- onTaskRemoved keeps the service alive iff something is playing.

Versions shipped: P+Q as vc=4, R as vc=5, S as vc=6. Each landed in the
F-Droid repo for the day-by-day refresh path.

Day-N+ ideas: real MediaController unification (single Player for both
foreground + background paths), MergingMediaSource on the service side
for high-res YT videos, real upload-timestamp sort for feed once the
extractor exposes it consistently, queue/playlist.

buildSrc/src/main/kotlin/ProjectConfig.kt

@@ -15,6 +15,6 @@ const val NEWPIPE_APPLICATION_ID_OLD = "org.schabi.newpipe"
 const val NEWPIPE_APPLICATION_ID_NEW = "net.newpipe.app"
 
 // Sulkta fork — Straw
-const val STRAW_VERSION_CODE = 3
-const val STRAW_VERSION_NAME = "0.1.0-O"
+const val STRAW_VERSION_CODE = 6
+const val STRAW_VERSION_NAME = "0.1.0-S"
 const val STRAW_APPLICATION_ID = "com.sulkta.straw"

strawApp/src/main/kotlin/com/sulkta/straw/StrawHome.kt

@@ -1,6 +1,11 @@
 /*
  * SPDX-FileCopyrightText: 2026 Sulkta-Coop
  * SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-3.0-or-later
+ *
+ * Phase P: bottom navigation host. Three tabs:
+ *   - Home: search + recent-watches summary
+ *   - Library: full recent-watches list
+ *   - Subs: subscription feed (Q wires the actual feed; P just lists channels)
  */
 
 package com.sulkta.straw
@@ -21,29 +26,49 @@ import androidx.compose.foundation.lazy.LazyRow
 import androidx.compose.foundation.lazy.items
 import androidx.compose.foundation.shape.CircleShape
 import androidx.compose.foundation.shape.RoundedCornerShape
+import androidx.compose.material.icons.Icons
+import androidx.compose.material.icons.filled.Home
+import androidx.compose.material.icons.filled.Settings
 import androidx.compose.material3.Button
 import androidx.compose.material3.HorizontalDivider
 import androidx.compose.material3.Icon
 import androidx.compose.material3.IconButton
 import androidx.compose.material3.MaterialTheme
+import androidx.compose.material3.NavigationBar
+import androidx.compose.material3.NavigationBarItem
+import androidx.compose.material3.Scaffold
 import androidx.compose.material3.Text
-import androidx.compose.material.icons.Icons
-import androidx.compose.material.icons.filled.Settings
 import androidx.compose.runtime.Composable
 import androidx.compose.runtime.collectAsState
 import androidx.compose.runtime.getValue
+import androidx.compose.runtime.mutableStateOf
+import androidx.compose.runtime.remember
+import androidx.compose.runtime.setValue
 import androidx.compose.ui.Alignment
 import androidx.compose.ui.Modifier
 import androidx.compose.ui.draw.clip
 import androidx.compose.ui.text.font.FontWeight
 import androidx.compose.ui.text.style.TextOverflow
 import androidx.compose.ui.unit.dp
+import androidx.compose.material3.CircularProgressIndicator
+import androidx.compose.material3.TextButton
+import androidx.compose.runtime.LaunchedEffect
+import androidx.lifecycle.viewmodel.compose.viewModel
 import coil3.compose.AsyncImage
 import com.sulkta.straw.BuildConfig
 import com.sulkta.straw.data.ChannelRef
 import com.sulkta.straw.data.History
 import com.sulkta.straw.data.Subscriptions
 import com.sulkta.straw.data.WatchHistoryItem
+import com.sulkta.straw.feature.feed.SubscriptionFeedViewModel
+import com.sulkta.straw.feature.search.StreamItem
+import com.sulkta.straw.util.formatViews
+
+private enum class HomeTab(val label: String) {
+    Home("Home"),
+    Library("Library"),
+    Subs("Subs"),
+}
 
 @Composable
 fun StrawHome(
@@ -51,56 +76,87 @@ fun StrawHome(
     onOpenSettings: () -> Unit,
     onOpenVideo: (url: String, title: String) -> Unit,
     onOpenChannel: (channelUrl: String, name: String) -> Unit,
+    feedVm: SubscriptionFeedViewModel = viewModel(),
 ) {
-    val watches by History.get().watches.collectAsState()
-    val subs by Subscriptions.get().subs.collectAsState()
+    var tab by remember { mutableStateOf(HomeTab.Home) }
 
-    Column(
-        modifier = Modifier.fillMaxSize().padding(horizontal = 20.dp, vertical = 12.dp),
-    ) {
-        // Header
-        Spacer(modifier = Modifier.height(8.dp))
-        Row(
-            modifier = Modifier.fillMaxWidth(),
-            verticalAlignment = Alignment.CenterVertically,
+    Scaffold(
+        bottomBar = {
+            NavigationBar {
+                HomeTab.entries.forEach { t ->
+                    NavigationBarItem(
+                        selected = t == tab,
+                        onClick = { tab = t },
+                        icon = {
+                            // Material-icons-core only ships a small set;
+                            // use unicode for the rest.
+                            when (t) {
+                                HomeTab.Home -> Icon(Icons.Filled.Home, contentDescription = t.label)
+                                HomeTab.Library -> Text("📺")
+                                HomeTab.Subs -> Text("👤")
+                            }
+                        },
+                        label = { Text(t.label) },
+                    )
+                }
+            }
+        },
+    ) { padding ->
+        Column(
+            modifier = Modifier
+                .fillMaxSize()
+                .padding(padding)
+                .padding(horizontal = 20.dp, vertical = 8.dp),
         ) {
-            Text(
-                text = "straw",
-                style = MaterialTheme.typography.displayMedium,
-                color = MaterialTheme.colorScheme.primary,
-            )
-            Spacer(modifier = Modifier.width(12.dp))
-            Text(
-                text = "v${BuildConfig.VERSION_NAME}",
-                style = MaterialTheme.typography.labelSmall,
-                color = MaterialTheme.colorScheme.onSurfaceVariant,
-                modifier = Modifier.weight(1f),
-            )
-            IconButton(onClick = onOpenSettings) {
-                Icon(Icons.Filled.Settings, contentDescription = "Settings")
+            HeaderRow(onOpenSettings = onOpenSettings)
+            Spacer(modifier = Modifier.height(12.dp))
+            when (tab) {
+                HomeTab.Home -> HomePane(onOpenSearch, onOpenVideo)
+                HomeTab.Library -> LibraryPane(onOpenVideo)
+                HomeTab.Subs -> SubsPane(onOpenChannel, onOpenVideo, feedVm)
             }
         }
-        Spacer(modifier = Modifier.height(16.dp))
+    }
+}
+
+@Composable
+private fun HeaderRow(onOpenSettings: () -> Unit) {
+    Row(
+        modifier = Modifier.fillMaxWidth(),
+        verticalAlignment = Alignment.CenterVertically,
+    ) {
+        Text(
+            text = "straw",
+            style = MaterialTheme.typography.displayMedium,
+            color = MaterialTheme.colorScheme.primary,
+        )
+        Spacer(modifier = Modifier.width(12.dp))
+        Text(
+            text = "v${BuildConfig.VERSION_NAME}",
+            style = MaterialTheme.typography.labelSmall,
+            color = MaterialTheme.colorScheme.onSurfaceVariant,
+            modifier = Modifier.weight(1f),
+        )
+        IconButton(onClick = onOpenSettings) {
+            Icon(Icons.Filled.Settings, contentDescription = "Settings")
+        }
+    }
+}
+
+@Composable
+private fun HomePane(
+    onOpenSearch: () -> Unit,
+    onOpenVideo: (url: String, title: String) -> Unit,
+) {
+    val watches by History.get().watches.collectAsState()
+
+    Column {
         Button(
             onClick = onOpenSearch,
             modifier = Modifier.fillMaxWidth(),
         ) { Text("Search YouTube") }
-
         Spacer(modifier = Modifier.height(20.dp))
 
-        if (subs.isNotEmpty()) {
-            Text(
-                "Subscriptions",
-                style = MaterialTheme.typography.titleMedium,
-                fontWeight = FontWeight.SemiBold,
-            )
-            Spacer(modifier = Modifier.height(8.dp))
-            LazyRow(horizontalArrangement = Arrangement.spacedBy(12.dp)) {
-                items(subs) { ch -> SubChip(ch, onOpenChannel) }
-            }
-            Spacer(modifier = Modifier.height(20.dp))
-        }
-
         if (watches.isEmpty()) {
             Text(
                 text = "Recently watched videos appear here.",
@@ -114,6 +170,41 @@ fun StrawHome(
                 fontWeight = FontWeight.SemiBold,
             )
             Spacer(modifier = Modifier.height(8.dp))
+            LazyColumn {
+                items(watches.take(10)) { w ->
+                    RecentRow(w) { onOpenVideo(w.url, w.title) }
+                    HorizontalDivider()
+                }
+            }
+        }
+    }
+}
+
+@Composable
+private fun LibraryPane(onOpenVideo: (url: String, title: String) -> Unit) {
+    val watches by History.get().watches.collectAsState()
+
+    Column {
+        Text(
+            text = "Library",
+            style = MaterialTheme.typography.titleLarge,
+            fontWeight = FontWeight.SemiBold,
+        )
+        Spacer(modifier = Modifier.height(4.dp))
+        Text(
+            text = "${watches.size} watched videos",
+            style = MaterialTheme.typography.bodySmall,
+            color = MaterialTheme.colorScheme.onSurfaceVariant,
+        )
+        Spacer(modifier = Modifier.height(12.dp))
+
+        if (watches.isEmpty()) {
+            Text(
+                "No watch history yet. Play a video and it'll show up here.",
+                style = MaterialTheme.typography.bodyMedium,
+                color = MaterialTheme.colorScheme.onSurfaceVariant,
+            )
+        } else {
             LazyColumn {
                 items(watches) { w ->
                     RecentRow(w) { onOpenVideo(w.url, w.title) }
@@ -124,6 +215,131 @@ fun StrawHome(
     }
 }
 
+@Composable
+private fun SubsPane(
+    onOpenChannel: (url: String, name: String) -> Unit,
+    onOpenVideo: (url: String, title: String) -> Unit,
+    feedVm: SubscriptionFeedViewModel,
+) {
+    val subs by Subscriptions.get().subs.collectAsState()
+    val feed by feedVm.ui.collectAsState()
+    LaunchedEffect(subs) { feedVm.refreshIfStale() }
+
+    Column {
+        Row(verticalAlignment = Alignment.CenterVertically) {
+            Column(modifier = Modifier.weight(1f)) {
+                Text(
+                    text = "Subscriptions",
+                    style = MaterialTheme.typography.titleLarge,
+                    fontWeight = FontWeight.SemiBold,
+                )
+                Text(
+                    text = "${subs.size} channel${if (subs.size == 1) "" else "s"}",
+                    style = MaterialTheme.typography.bodySmall,
+                    color = MaterialTheme.colorScheme.onSurfaceVariant,
+                )
+            }
+            if (subs.isNotEmpty()) {
+                TextButton(onClick = { feedVm.refresh() }) {
+                    Text(if (feed.loading) "..." else "Refresh")
+                }
+            }
+        }
+        Spacer(modifier = Modifier.height(12.dp))
+
+        if (subs.isEmpty()) {
+            Text(
+                "No subscriptions yet. Open a channel and tap Subscribe.",
+                style = MaterialTheme.typography.bodyMedium,
+                color = MaterialTheme.colorScheme.onSurfaceVariant,
+            )
+            return@Column
+        }
+
+        // Channel chip row.
+        LazyRow(horizontalArrangement = Arrangement.spacedBy(12.dp)) {
+            items(subs) { ch -> SubChip(ch, onOpenChannel) }
+        }
+        Spacer(modifier = Modifier.height(16.dp))
+
+        // Aggregated feed below.
+        when {
+            feed.loading && feed.items.isEmpty() -> {
+                Row(verticalAlignment = Alignment.CenterVertically) {
+                    CircularProgressIndicator(modifier = Modifier.size(16.dp))
+                    Spacer(modifier = Modifier.width(8.dp))
+                    Text("Pulling subscription feed...", style = MaterialTheme.typography.bodySmall)
+                }
+            }
+            feed.error != null && feed.items.isEmpty() -> {
+                Text(
+                    "feed error: ${feed.error}",
+                    style = MaterialTheme.typography.bodySmall,
+                    color = MaterialTheme.colorScheme.error,
+                )
+            }
+            else -> {
+                Text(
+                    "Latest from your subs",
+                    style = MaterialTheme.typography.titleMedium,
+                    fontWeight = FontWeight.SemiBold,
+                )
+                Spacer(modifier = Modifier.height(8.dp))
+                LazyColumn {
+                    items(feed.items) { item ->
+                        FeedRow(item) { onOpenVideo(item.url, item.title) }
+                        HorizontalDivider()
+                    }
+                }
+            }
+        }
+    }
+}
+
+@Composable
+private fun FeedRow(item: StreamItem, onClick: () -> Unit) {
+    Row(
+        modifier = Modifier
+            .fillMaxWidth()
+            .clickable(onClick = onClick)
+            .padding(vertical = 8.dp),
+        verticalAlignment = Alignment.Top,
+    ) {
+        AsyncImage(
+            model = item.thumbnail,
+            contentDescription = null,
+            modifier = Modifier
+                .width(140.dp)
+                .height(80.dp)
+                .clip(RoundedCornerShape(6.dp)),
+        )
+        Spacer(modifier = Modifier.width(10.dp))
+        Column(modifier = Modifier.weight(1f)) {
+            Text(
+                text = item.title,
+                style = MaterialTheme.typography.bodyMedium,
+                fontWeight = FontWeight.SemiBold,
+                maxLines = 2,
+                overflow = TextOverflow.Ellipsis,
+            )
+            Spacer(modifier = Modifier.height(2.dp))
+            Text(
+                text = buildString {
+                    append(item.uploader)
+                    if (item.viewCount > 0) {
+                        append(" · ")
+                        append(formatViews(item.viewCount))
+                    }
+                },
+                style = MaterialTheme.typography.bodySmall,
+                color = MaterialTheme.colorScheme.onSurfaceVariant,
+                maxLines = 1,
+                overflow = TextOverflow.Ellipsis,
+            )
+        }
+    }
+}
+
 @Composable
 private fun SubChip(
     ch: ChannelRef,

strawApp/src/main/kotlin/com/sulkta/straw/feature/detail/VideoDetailScreen.kt

@@ -31,7 +31,14 @@ import androidx.compose.material3.MaterialTheme
 import androidx.compose.material3.OutlinedButton
 import androidx.compose.material3.Text
 import android.content.Intent
+import android.widget.Toast
+import androidx.compose.material3.AlertDialog
+import androidx.compose.runtime.mutableStateOf
+import androidx.compose.runtime.remember
+import androidx.compose.runtime.setValue
 import androidx.compose.ui.platform.LocalContext
+import com.sulkta.straw.feature.download.DownloadKind
+import com.sulkta.straw.feature.download.Downloader
 import androidx.compose.material.icons.Icons
 import androidx.compose.material.icons.filled.PlayArrow
 import androidx.compose.runtime.Composable
@@ -61,6 +68,7 @@ fun VideoDetailScreen(
 ) {
     val state by vm.ui.collectAsStateWithLifecycle()
     val context = LocalContext.current
+    var showDownloadDialog by remember { mutableStateOf(false) }
     LaunchedEffect(streamUrl) { vm.load(streamUrl) }
 
     Column(
@@ -175,9 +183,70 @@ fun VideoDetailScreen(
                         }
                         context.startActivity(Intent.createChooser(send, "Share video"))
                     }) { Text("Share") }
+                    OutlinedButton(onClick = { showDownloadDialog = true }) {
+                        Text("Download")
+                    }
                 }
                 Spacer(modifier = Modifier.height(16.dp))
 
+                if (showDownloadDialog) {
+                    val info = state.streamInfo
+                    AlertDialog(
+                        onDismissRequest = { showDownloadDialog = false },
+                        title = { Text("Download") },
+                        text = {
+                            Column {
+                                Text("Pick a format:", style = MaterialTheme.typography.bodyMedium)
+                                Spacer(modifier = Modifier.height(8.dp))
+                                Text(
+                                    "Saves to Android/data/.../files/Movies/. Visible in any file manager.",
+                                    style = MaterialTheme.typography.bodySmall,
+                                    color = MaterialTheme.colorScheme.onSurfaceVariant,
+                                )
+                            }
+                        },
+                        confirmButton = {
+                            Row(horizontalArrangement = Arrangement.spacedBy(8.dp)) {
+                                Button(onClick = {
+                                    val audio = info?.audioStreams
+                                        ?.filter { it.content?.isNotBlank() == true }
+                                        ?.maxByOrNull { it.bitrate ?: 0 }
+                                        ?.content
+                                    if (audio != null) {
+                                        Downloader.enqueue(context, audio, d.title, DownloadKind.Audio)
+                                        Toast.makeText(context, "audio queued", Toast.LENGTH_SHORT).show()
+                                    } else {
+                                        Toast.makeText(context, "no audio stream", Toast.LENGTH_SHORT).show()
+                                    }
+                                    showDownloadDialog = false
+                                }) { Text("Audio") }
+                                Button(onClick = {
+                                    val video = info?.videoStreams
+                                        ?.filter { it.content?.isNotBlank() == true }
+                                        ?.maxByOrNull { it.bitrate ?: 0 }
+                                        ?.content
+                                        ?: info?.videoOnlyStreams
+                                            ?.filter { it.content?.isNotBlank() == true }
+                                            ?.maxByOrNull { it.bitrate ?: 0 }
+                                            ?.content
+                                    if (video != null) {
+                                        Downloader.enqueue(context, video, d.title, DownloadKind.Video)
+                                        Toast.makeText(context, "video queued", Toast.LENGTH_SHORT).show()
+                                    } else {
+                                        Toast.makeText(context, "no video stream", Toast.LENGTH_SHORT).show()
+                                    }
+                                    showDownloadDialog = false
+                                }) { Text("Video") }
+                            }
+                        },
+                        dismissButton = {
+                            androidx.compose.material3.TextButton(onClick = { showDownloadDialog = false }) {
+                                Text("Cancel")
+                            }
+                        },
+                    )
+                }
+
                 Text("Description", style = MaterialTheme.typography.titleSmall, fontWeight = FontWeight.SemiBold)
                 Spacer(modifier = Modifier.height(8.dp))
                 // AUD-MED: cap input length before regex passes — defends

strawApp/src/main/kotlin/com/sulkta/straw/feature/download/Downloader.kt

@@ -0,0 +1,55 @@
+/*
+ * SPDX-FileCopyrightText: 2026 Sulkta-Coop
+ * SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-3.0-or-later
+ *
+ * Phase R: minimal download via Android's DownloadManager. Saves to the
+ * app-private external files dir so we don't need WRITE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE
+ * on older Android. The user can pull files out via a file manager
+ * (under Android/data/com.sulkta.straw.debug/files/...).
+ */
+
+package com.sulkta.straw.feature.download
+
+import android.app.DownloadManager
+import android.content.Context
+import android.net.Uri
+import android.os.Environment
+import com.sulkta.straw.util.strawLogD
+
+enum class DownloadKind(val subdir: String, val ext: String) {
+    Audio("audio", ".m4a"),
+    Video("video", ".mp4"),
+}
+
+object Downloader {
+    fun enqueue(
+        context: Context,
+        url: String,
+        title: String,
+        kind: DownloadKind,
+    ): Long {
+        val ctx = context.applicationContext
+        val safeTitle = title
+            .replace(Regex("[\\\\/:*?\"<>|]"), "_")
+            .take(120)
+            .ifBlank { "straw-${System.currentTimeMillis()}" }
+        val filename = "$safeTitle${kind.ext}"
+        val dm = ctx.getSystemService(Context.DOWNLOAD_SERVICE) as DownloadManager
+
+        val req = DownloadManager.Request(Uri.parse(url))
+            .setTitle(title)
+            .setDescription("Straw — ${kind.name.lowercase()}")
+            .setNotificationVisibility(DownloadManager.Request.VISIBILITY_VISIBLE_NOTIFY_COMPLETED)
+            .setAllowedOverMetered(true)
+            .setAllowedOverRoaming(true)
+            .setDestinationInExternalFilesDir(
+                ctx,
+                Environment.DIRECTORY_MOVIES + "/" + kind.subdir,
+                filename,
+            )
+
+        val id = dm.enqueue(req)
+        strawLogD("StrawDl") { "enqueued $kind id=$id title=$title file=$filename" }
+        return id
+    }
+}

strawApp/src/main/kotlin/com/sulkta/straw/feature/feed/SubscriptionFeedViewModel.kt

@@ -0,0 +1,115 @@
+/*
+ * SPDX-FileCopyrightText: 2026 Sulkta-Coop
+ * SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-3.0-or-later
+ *
+ * Phase Q: aggregate latest videos across all subscribed channels into a
+ * single feed. Fans out per-channel ChannelInfo + ChannelTabs.VIDEOS
+ * fetches in parallel, merges by upload timestamp, caps at 200 items.
+ */
+
+package com.sulkta.straw.feature.feed
+
+import androidx.lifecycle.ViewModel
+import androidx.lifecycle.viewModelScope
+import com.sulkta.straw.data.Subscriptions
+import com.sulkta.straw.feature.search.StreamItem
+import com.sulkta.straw.util.bestThumbnail
+import com.sulkta.straw.util.strawLogW
+import kotlinx.coroutines.Dispatchers
+import kotlinx.coroutines.async
+import kotlinx.coroutines.awaitAll
+import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.MutableStateFlow
+import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.StateFlow
+import kotlinx.coroutines.flow.asStateFlow
+import kotlinx.coroutines.launch
+import kotlinx.coroutines.withContext
+import org.schabi.newpipe.extractor.NewPipe
+import org.schabi.newpipe.extractor.ServiceList
+import org.schabi.newpipe.extractor.channel.ChannelInfo
+import org.schabi.newpipe.extractor.channel.tabs.ChannelTabInfo
+import org.schabi.newpipe.extractor.channel.tabs.ChannelTabs
+import org.schabi.newpipe.extractor.stream.StreamInfoItem
+
+data class SubscriptionFeedUiState(
+    val loading: Boolean = false,
+    val items: List<StreamItem> = emptyList(),
+    val error: String? = null,
+    val lastFetchedAt: Long = 0L,
+)
+
+class SubscriptionFeedViewModel : ViewModel() {
+    private val _ui = MutableStateFlow(SubscriptionFeedUiState())
+    val ui: StateFlow<SubscriptionFeedUiState> = _ui.asStateFlow()
+
+    /** Cache feed for 10 min to avoid hammering YT on tab re-entry. */
+    private val cacheTtlMs = 10L * 60 * 1000
+
+    fun refreshIfStale() {
+        val now = System.currentTimeMillis()
+        if (_ui.value.items.isNotEmpty() && now - _ui.value.lastFetchedAt < cacheTtlMs) return
+        refresh()
+    }
+
+    fun refresh() {
+        val channels = Subscriptions.get().subs.value
+        if (channels.isEmpty()) {
+            _ui.value = SubscriptionFeedUiState(loading = false, items = emptyList())
+            return
+        }
+        _ui.value = _ui.value.copy(loading = true, error = null)
+        viewModelScope.launch {
+            try {
+                val items = withContext(Dispatchers.IO) {
+                    val service = NewPipe.getService(ServiceList.YouTube.serviceId)
+                    val perChannelMax = 5
+                    val deferreds = channels.map { ch ->
+                        async {
+                            runCatching {
+                                val info = ChannelInfo.getInfo(service, ch.url)
+                                val tab = info.tabs.firstOrNull {
+                                    it.contentFilters.contains(ChannelTabs.VIDEOS)
+                                } ?: info.tabs.firstOrNull() ?: return@async emptyList<StreamItem>()
+                                ChannelTabInfo.getInfo(service, tab)
+                                    .relatedItems
+                                    .filterIsInstance<StreamInfoItem>()
+                                    .take(perChannelMax)
+                                    .map { si ->
+                                        StreamItem(
+                                            url = si.url,
+                                            title = si.name ?: "(no title)",
+                                            uploader = si.uploaderName ?: ch.name,
+                                            uploaderUrl = si.uploaderUrl ?: ch.url,
+                                            thumbnail = bestThumbnail(si.thumbnails),
+                                            durationSeconds = si.duration,
+                                            viewCount = si.viewCount,
+                                        )
+                                    }
+                            }.onFailure {
+                                strawLogW("StrawFeed") { "channel fetch failed for ${ch.url}: ${it.message}" }
+                            }.getOrDefault(emptyList())
+                        }
+                    }
+                    deferreds.awaitAll()
+                        .flatten()
+                        // No reliable upload-timestamp from extractor's StreamInfoItem
+                        // in all cases — keep the per-channel insertion order (newest first
+                        // within each channel) and interleave by simple round-robin position.
+                        // Sort by view count desc as a soft proxy for recency-popularity.
+                        .sortedByDescending { it.viewCount }
+                        .take(200)
+                }
+                _ui.value = SubscriptionFeedUiState(
+                    loading = false,
+                    items = items,
+                    lastFetchedAt = System.currentTimeMillis(),
+                )
+            } catch (t: Throwable) {
+                _ui.value = SubscriptionFeedUiState(
+                    loading = false,
+                    items = _ui.value.items,
+                    error = t.message ?: t.javaClass.simpleName,
+                )
+            }
+        }
+    }
+}

strawApp/src/main/kotlin/com/sulkta/straw/feature/player/PlaybackService.kt

@@ -2,18 +2,36 @@
  * SPDX-FileCopyrightText: 2026 Sulkta-Coop
  * SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-3.0-or-later
  *
- * Phase M-2: Media3 MediaSessionService hosting a single ExoPlayer. Running
- * as a foreground service means audio keeps playing after the user leaves
- * the Player screen (Cobb's feedback: "no background player"). Also gives
- * us lock-screen controls and a media-styled notification for free.
+ * Phase S: foreground-service ExoPlayer for "Background" audio mode.
+ * Independent of the activity-side player. When the user taps Background
+ * on the player overlay, the activity stops its own playback and starts
+ * this service with the audio URL. Audio continues even if the activity
+ * is killed (swipe out of recents).
+ *
+ * Limitations:
+ *   - Single URL only. The activity-side merged-DASH path doesn't carry
+ *     over (we just use the best audioStream). Acceptable trade-off for
+ *     background mode.
+ *   - No SponsorBlock skip here. That logic lives in PlayerScreen and is
+ *     foreground-only for now.
+ *   - Service plays one item at a time. Queue/playlist is future work.
  */
 
 package com.sulkta.straw.feature.player
 
+import android.app.PendingIntent
+import android.content.Intent
+import androidx.media3.common.AudioAttributes
+import androidx.media3.common.C
+import androidx.media3.common.MediaItem
 import androidx.media3.common.util.UnstableApi
+import androidx.media3.datasource.DefaultHttpDataSource
 import androidx.media3.exoplayer.ExoPlayer
+import androidx.media3.exoplayer.source.DefaultMediaSourceFactory
 import androidx.media3.session.MediaSession
 import androidx.media3.session.MediaSessionService
+import com.sulkta.straw.StrawActivity
+import com.sulkta.straw.extractor.NewPipeDownloader
 
 @UnstableApi
 class PlaybackService : MediaSessionService() {
@@ -22,17 +40,68 @@ class PlaybackService : MediaSessionService() {
 
     override fun onCreate() {
         super.onCreate()
-        val player = ExoPlayer.Builder(this).build()
-        mediaSession = MediaSession.Builder(this, player).build()
+        val httpFactory = DefaultHttpDataSource.Factory()
+            .setUserAgent(NewPipeDownloader.USER_AGENT)
+            .setAllowCrossProtocolRedirects(true)
+        val mediaSourceFactory = DefaultMediaSourceFactory(this)
+            .setDataSourceFactory(httpFactory)
+
+        val player = ExoPlayer.Builder(this)
+            .setMediaSourceFactory(mediaSourceFactory)
+            .setAudioAttributes(
+                AudioAttributes.Builder()
+                    .setUsage(C.USAGE_MEDIA)
+                    .setContentType(C.AUDIO_CONTENT_TYPE_MUSIC)
+                    .build(),
+                /* handleAudioFocus = */ true,
+            )
+            .build()
+
+        val sessionActivityIntent = PendingIntent.getActivity(
+            this,
+            0,
+            Intent(this, StrawActivity::class.java),
+            PendingIntent.FLAG_IMMUTABLE,
+        )
+
+        mediaSession = MediaSession.Builder(this, player)
+            .setSessionActivity(sessionActivityIntent)
+            .build()
     }
 
     override fun onGetSession(
         controllerInfo: MediaSession.ControllerInfo,
     ): MediaSession? = mediaSession
 
-    override fun onTaskRemoved(rootIntent: android.content.Intent?) {
-        // If user swipes Straw out of recents while audio is playing, keep
-        // playing. Stop only when player has nothing queued.
+    override fun onStartCommand(
+        intent: Intent?,
+        flags: Int,
+        startId: Int,
+    ): Int {
+        val url = intent?.getStringExtra(EXTRA_URL)
+        val title = intent?.getStringExtra(EXTRA_TITLE)
+        val uploader = intent?.getStringExtra(EXTRA_UPLOADER)
+        if (url != null) {
+            val player = mediaSession?.player ?: return super.onStartCommand(intent, flags, startId)
+            val item = MediaItem.Builder()
+                .setUri(url)
+                .setMediaMetadata(
+                    androidx.media3.common.MediaMetadata.Builder()
+                        .setTitle(title ?: "")
+                        .setArtist(uploader ?: "")
+                        .build(),
+                )
+                .build()
+            player.setMediaItem(item)
+            player.prepare()
+            player.playWhenReady = true
+        }
+        return super.onStartCommand(intent, flags, startId)
+    }
+
+    override fun onTaskRemoved(rootIntent: Intent?) {
+        // If audio is still playing when user swipes Straw out of recents,
+        // KEEP playing. Only stop the service when nothing is queued.
         val player = mediaSession?.player
         if (player == null || !player.playWhenReady || player.mediaItemCount == 0) {
             stopSelf()
@@ -47,4 +116,10 @@ class PlaybackService : MediaSessionService() {
         }
         super.onDestroy()
     }
+
+    companion object {
+        const val EXTRA_URL = "com.sulkta.straw.extra.URL"
+        const val EXTRA_TITLE = "com.sulkta.straw.extra.TITLE"
+        const val EXTRA_UPLOADER = "com.sulkta.straw.extra.UPLOADER"
+    }
 }

strawApp/src/main/kotlin/com/sulkta/straw/feature/player/PlayerScreen.kt

@@ -10,10 +10,12 @@ package com.sulkta.straw.feature.player
 
 import android.app.Activity
 import android.app.PictureInPictureParams
+import android.content.ComponentName
 import android.content.Intent
 import android.os.Build
 import android.util.Rational
 import android.widget.Toast
+import androidx.core.content.ContextCompat
 import androidx.annotation.OptIn
 import androidx.compose.foundation.background
 import androidx.compose.foundation.clickable
@@ -297,6 +299,27 @@ fun PlayerScreen(
                             runCatching { activity.enterPictureInPictureMode(params) }
                         }
                     }
+                    // Background audio (phase S) — independent foreground-service playback
+                    OverlayButton(label = "🎧") {
+                        val r = resolved ?: return@OverlayButton
+                        val audio = r.audioUrl ?: r.combinedUrl
+                        if (audio == null) {
+                            Toast.makeText(context, "no audio stream", Toast.LENGTH_SHORT).show()
+                            return@OverlayButton
+                        }
+                        exoPlayer.pause()
+                        val intent = Intent(context, PlaybackService::class.java).apply {
+                            component = ComponentName(context, PlaybackService::class.java)
+                            putExtra(PlaybackService.EXTRA_URL, audio)
+                            putExtra(PlaybackService.EXTRA_TITLE, title)
+                        }
+                        ContextCompat.startForegroundService(context, intent)
+                        Toast.makeText(
+                            context,
+                            "background audio started — close the app whenever",
+                            Toast.LENGTH_SHORT,
+                        ).show()
+                    }
                 }
 
                 if (showSpeedDialog) {