How to control your TV without a remote
Whether the remote is lost, broken or just across the room, there are four ways to run a TV without it. Here they are, from the one that works on every TV to the one you'll keep using.
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Four ways to do it
- The buttons on the TV. Every TV has at least a power button, usually on the back, the side or under the bottom edge. Many also change the volume and the input, and some open a menu.
- Another remote, through HDMI-CEC. If a streaming player, games console or soundbar is connected over HDMI, its remote can often switch the TV on and off and change its volume. TV makers give CEC their own names, like Anynet+ (Samsung), SimpLink (LG) and BRAVIA Sync (Sony).
- A universal remote. An infrared universal remote can stand in for the original on most TVs, once it's set up with your TV's code.
- Your phone. A remote app controls smart TVs and streaming players over your Wi-Fi, with no extra hardware.
Set up your phone as the remote
The phone is the option you'll keep using, because it's always with you. It takes a few minutes, once.
- 1
Switch the TV on
Use the button on the TV, or another remote through HDMI-CEC. - 2
Connect the phone and the TV to the same Wi-Fi
Both need to be on your home network. A guest network usually keeps devices apart, so use the main one. - 3
Install a remote app and allow local network access
Install Rimokon or your TV maker's app. On iPhone, allow it to find devices on your local network when it asks. - 4
Pair the phone with the TV
Pick the TV the app finds. Type in the code the TV shows, or accept the connection on the TV. How pairing works. - 5
Keep it one tap away
If your app has widgets or Control Center buttons, add them, so you don't even need to open the app to change the volume or pause.
Where Rimokon fits
Rimokon is a remote app for iPhone and Android that controls every supported TV in your home from one place. It does more than the remote did: on Google TV and Android TV you can type into the TV's search with your phone's keyboard, or press Talk and say it.
It needs your phone and the TV on the same Wi-Fi. It works with Google TV and Android TV, Apple TV, Samsung, LG, Sony, Fire TV, Roku, Philips, Panasonic and VIZIO, but not with every TV: Hisense VIDAA, Titan OS and the newest Fire TV Sticks (Vega OS) aren't supported yet. See which TVs work.