What Do To If You Lose Your Android TV Box Remote.
If you lost your Sheild TV remote or forgot to bring your Mi Box remote to your hotel, thankfully you can still use your Android TV Box without buying a new remote. … Here I have listed 5 ways to use your Android TV if you ever lost your remote.
Before we start
It’s important to understand the problem first. When you set up Android TV for the first time, you use the remote to navigate the interface and save WiFi credentials to the device. However, when you lose the remote, Android TV will still turn on and connect to Wi-Fi. But due to the lack of a remote control, nothing can be done. To fix this problem, you have a variety of options, from using your keyboard and mouse to a third-party remote application. Let’s take a look at the different use cases.
Read: Forgot or Lost the FireStick Remote? Here are your options
Case 1. Use the remote finder button
NVIDIA SHIELD TV 2019 and NVIDIA SHIELD TV Pro are equipped with an intelligent remote control. If you ever lose your remote at home, you can simply press a button on your SHIELD TV Box to turn on a loud beep. It will come from your remote and should be heard in the room. You can follow this tutorial if you need more information.
This method will not work with Mi Box or any other Android streaming device as there is no built-in feature on these devices.
Case 2. Use keyboard and mouse
While not all, some Android devices such as NVIDIA SHIELD TV, Mi Box, Amazon’s cheap Android TV Box, etc., are equipped with a full-size USB A port that can be used to connect a keyboard or mouse. If you’ve lost your remote and have an additional keyboard or mouse, you can use it to navigate Android TV.
It works right out of the box with most Android TV boxes. All you have to do is plug in a USB or wireless keyboard and mouse. And you will be able to control your Android TV Box with your mouse pointer or arrow keys on your keyboard.
However, if it doesn’t work, you can manually enable it in the settings. Use the following method to navigate with the Android TV app and go to Settings Language & Input Under Keyboard & Input Methods, select Default, a pop-up menu will appear. Set the “physical keyboard” to “ON”.
This should offer temporary relief and you will be able to control most aspects of television, however there is no Home button or return option. What’s more, the new SHIELD TV Tube and Mi Stick don’t have a USB port, in which case you can move on to other options.
Case 3. Use the Android TV app
If you are sure that your SHIELD TV or Mi Box remote is lost in the house, you can still use your smartphone to control it. It is very important that your streaming device and smartphone are connected to the same Wi-Fi network. Install the Android TV Remote app on your Android or iPhone. After installing the app, open it and it should automatically detect your Android TV streaming device. Tap the device and you are connected. You can now swipe the touchpad across the screen for navigation.
The app is a worthy alternative to the traditional remote control, and you can use it when you can’t find your remote or you are too lazy to get up and grab it.
Case 4. Create a Wifi hotspot
If you put your Shield TV, Mi Stick, Mi Box on vacation and forgot your remote at home, there is another option. As I mentioned earlier, your Android TV Box automatically turns on and connects to your home Wi-Fi, we can use this to our advantage.
So the trick is to create a Wi-Fi hotspot with the same SSID and password as the old network. This will make Android TV believe it is an old network and it will connect automatically. Then you can use the app to change wifi.
To get started, you need two devices: one smartphone to control Android TV through the app and one computer or smartphone to create an access point. To create a Wi-Fi hotspot, you can use a Mac, Windows, or Android smartphone. Unfortunately, iPhone does not allow you to change the name of the Wi-Fi network.
For the demo, I used two Android smartphones, one to control the TV and the other to create a Wi-Fi hotspot. The Wi-Fi name and password are case sensitive, please make sure you entered the correct information. Go to the Settings app on your phone find Mobile Hotspot & Tethering tap hotspot credentials.
Create a new hotspot with the same name and password that your Android TV Box was connected to at home. It should automatically connect to the Wi-Fi hotspot you just created. You can now use another phone to navigate your Android TV box using the Android TV app as shown in Method 2.
Option 5. Use a TV remote
Finally, there is a popular feature that most people don’t use every day – HDMI-CEC. It is a standard protocol adopted and implemented by most manufacturers. It allows you to control Shield TV, Mi Box, Mi Stick with your TV remote control. It’s an incredibly useful feature when you don’t want to use multiple remotes or lose one.
One caveat: this feature must be enabled on both your TV and your streaming box before you lose your remote.
Most TVs have this feature turned on by default, but just in case, check your TV before proceeding. Now every TV manufacturer labels this feature differently, so you might have to find out what it’s called. For example, LG calls it SimpLink, Philips calls it EasyLink, Hitachi calls it HDMI-CEC, Sony calls it Bravia Sync, etc. Look for the HDMI CEC setting in your TV settings and turn it on. Now you can simply use the arrow keys on your TV remote to navigate your Android TV Box. However, each TV manufacturer sets up the technology and implements it differently, so features may vary and some features may not work.
Last words
These were a few ways that you can try if you lose your Android TV Box remote. If you lose your remote at home, the official Android TV app is a great solution. However, this won’t work if you are away from home. You can easily change Wi-Fi by following the above methods and make the device work even without a remote control. Finally, if all else fails, you can always buy a replacement remote on Amazon. What do you think? Which method do you find most useful and convenient? Let me know in the comments below.