Forum Discussion

mczimmy's avatar
mczimmy
Reel Rookie
9 months ago
Solved

backdrops- cannot remove

called customer service to get some help removing backdrops or disabling it.  the person i spoke to first said it could not be removed,  then i asked if it could be disabled.  She said it could not be disabled.  I searched on the internet and it seems that many people are frustrated with the backdrops app, add me to the list i want backdrops removed from my tv.  i used to be able to simply press the off button and turn off the tv, now i have to go thru a cumbersome process after backdrops starts and it takes much more time to turn off my tv.  turning something off should not be this difficult.

  • RokuMaryEF's avatar
    RokuMaryEF
    9 months ago

    HI Roku Community users,

    Thank you for engaging with us here!

    We understand that some of you are looking for ways to remove the Roku Backdrops feature. 

    Let's guide you through removing the Backdrops app from your Roku device:

    Method 1: Removing the App

    1. Press the Home button: Locate and press the Home button on your Roku remote.
    2. Navigate to Backdrops: Use the directional buttons to move right and highlight the Backdrops app.
    3. Open Options Menu: Press the Star button on your Roku remote to open the Options menu.
    4. Select Remove: Choose the "Remove the app" option and confirm when prompted.
    5. Restart Roku: After removing the app, it's essential to restart your Roku device for the changes to take effect.

    Method 2: Disabling Backdrops

    1. Open Backdrops App: Locate and open the Backdrops app from your home screen.
    2. Access Settings: Navigate to the Settings menu within the Backdrops app.
    3. Disable Backdrops: Select the option to disable Backdrops.

    For more detailed information, check out this Roku Support FAQ: How to use Backdrops on your Roku streaming devices | Official Roku Support.

    Still, Seeing Backdrops?

    If you're still encountering Backdrops after removing or disabling the app, please let us know. We'll be happy to assist you further.

    Best regards,
    The Roku Community Team

45 Replies

  • How to Disable Backdrops

    If "Backdrops" kicks in when pressing [Power] on a Roku TV and you want to disable that: 

    1. When Backdrops is active (showing e.g. a painting), then 
    2. Press the star [*] button on the TV remote
    3. Select "Browse Backdrops" from the menu sliding from the left 
    4. Select the gear icon ⚙︎ for Settings in the new screen 
    5. item Backdrop preferences > Backdrops - change to "Disabled"
    6. Exit by using back [<-] button on the remote and test deactivated by pressing TV remote's power button - now TV goes to sleep instead of showing images 

    Steps 2, 3 and 4 are not too obvious but if you follow the list, the feature would be disabled. 

    • casmys's avatar
      casmys
      Reel Rookie

      I followed this procedure because, contrary to what the moderators seem to think, there is no backdrops app to click on, not on my tv.  Backdrops just appeared out of the blue one day even though I've had this tv for years and it never did this before.  This procedure worked.  And then four days later backdrops was back, uninvited.  Got rid of it again, but I have a bad feeling it will be back.

      • RokuJharra-Q's avatar
        RokuJharra-Q
        Retired Moderator

        casmys 

        Thanks for letting us know about the backdrop issue!

        Have you tried turning off the Backdrop feature? Open the Backdrop app, hit the Settings icon, go to the Backdrops preferences, and select Disabled.

         


        Let us know how it goes.

        Thanks,
        Roku Community Team

    • garystan1952's avatar
      garystan1952
      Streaming Star

      En Terr :

         I tried ALL that, and it doesn't work !   I looking at getting an LG TV.  Which has the WEB OS.

         But, I can STILL  get YOUTUBE, FREEVEE, PRIME Video and TUBI.  and NO  BACKDROP 

        interference !

          garystan

      • mczimmy's avatar
        mczimmy
        Reel Rookie

        did not think it was possible to screw up the on/off button but someone at roku succeeded 🙂

        the sheer volume of comments on the web is amazing.  people really hate backdrops app. 

    • KevDawg2011's avatar
      KevDawg2011
      Newbie

      I literally created an account on this website just to post that having Backdrops turn on by default when pressing the power button is incredibly stupid, but, that EnTerr's method of disabling worked for me - thank you!

  • 10/9/24

    STILL can't remove BACKDROP App.  This just shows how much Roku thanks of it's users !

    garystan

    • OgSlimNasty's avatar
      OgSlimNasty
      Newbie

      It took me a total of 10 seconds to disable and remove the app. I did both to see if both ways worked and they both do. 

    • RokuRiamie-D's avatar
      RokuRiamie-D
      Community Moderator

      Hi garystan1952,

      Thanks for the response.

      We wanted to follow up regarding the ongoing issue with the Backdrops feature on your Roku TV. It appears that you are still encountering difficulties in removing it. We'd like to inquire if you have attempted the troubleshooting steps previously suggested by RokuMaryEF.

      Additionally, we would like to gather some information about your Roku TV to investigate the issue further.

      • Roku TV model, serial number, device ID, and OS version. (this can all be found in Settings > System > About)
      • Tracker ID (when you see this issue occur, press the Home button 5 times, followed by the Back button 5 times, and provide us with this ID)

      Providing these details will help us to further look into the issue. We look forward to your response.

      Regards,
      Riamie

  • Problem not solved as of November 19th of 2024.

    I FOUND NO SOLUTION ON THIS SITE OF THIS PROBLEM WITH REMOVING BACKDROPS, SHOULD HAVE BEEN WORKED OUT BEFORE IT WAS EVER ROLLED OUT

  • RokuRiamie-D's avatar
    RokuRiamie-D
    Community Moderator

    Hi mczimmy,

    Welcome to the Roku Community!

    We understand that you want to remove Backdrops from your Roku TV. We would be more than willing to assist you with this.

    Let's see if this will work for you. Kindly follow the troubleshooting steps below:

    Remove the Backdrops:

    1. Highlight the channel tile of the Backdrops
    2. Press the Star (*) button on your Roku remote
    3. Select Remove app

    Restart your Roku TV:

    1. Press Home on your Roku remote
    2. Scroll and select Settings
    3. Select System
    4. Select Power. If you do not see a Power submenu, skip to the next step.
    5. Select System restart

    In either case, your Roku device will complete a system restart and hopefully return to normal operation after a moment.

    Thank you for your cooperation. Please keep us posted.

    Regards,
    Riamie

    • RokuMaryEF's avatar
      RokuMaryEF
      Community Moderator

      HI Roku Community users,

      Thank you for engaging with us here!

      We understand that some of you are looking for ways to remove the Roku Backdrops feature. 

      Let's guide you through removing the Backdrops app from your Roku device:

      Method 1: Removing the App

      1. Press the Home button: Locate and press the Home button on your Roku remote.
      2. Navigate to Backdrops: Use the directional buttons to move right and highlight the Backdrops app.
      3. Open Options Menu: Press the Star button on your Roku remote to open the Options menu.
      4. Select Remove: Choose the "Remove the app" option and confirm when prompted.
      5. Restart Roku: After removing the app, it's essential to restart your Roku device for the changes to take effect.

      Method 2: Disabling Backdrops

      1. Open Backdrops App: Locate and open the Backdrops app from your home screen.
      2. Access Settings: Navigate to the Settings menu within the Backdrops app.
      3. Disable Backdrops: Select the option to disable Backdrops.

      For more detailed information, check out this Roku Support FAQ: How to use Backdrops on your Roku streaming devices | Official Roku Support.

      Still, Seeing Backdrops?

      If you're still encountering Backdrops after removing or disabling the app, please let us know. We'll be happy to assist you further.

      Best regards,
      The Roku Community Team

      • RoweKooSux's avatar
        RoweKooSux
        Reel Rookie

        App has been removed and that did not stop it. App was reinstalled then disabled and it still did not stop it. This is in essence a virus which Roku allowed to be downloaded to my television. If you can't fix it, I have no choice but to start  legal proceedings due to the fact that it is a virus.

    • PineyPat's avatar
      PineyPat
      Reel Rookie

      I tried this restart procedure very carefully and still have Backdrops.  I want it off my TV

      • PineyPat's avatar
        PineyPat
        Reel Rookie

        After my second try the TV now turns off .  Believe me, no one wants the TV not to turn off when they push off. 

    • mczimmy's avatar
      mczimmy
      Reel Rookie

      tried the 'restart' as suggested.   restarting it did not remove the app, it just restarts the tv.

  • mczimmy :

                  10/8/24

                  If ROKU  hasn't fixed this by now,   it WON'T get solved !

                  I was looking into getting an LG TV.  It has the WEB OS. And I can still

                  get YOUTUBE, TUBI, FREEVEE and Prime Video !

  • I  have no answer for you but I did want to post the same problem. I couldn't see how to do that independently so I'm using this as an answer. It's likely easy enough but we're not all techie whizzes. Perhaps if those who run these things learn how many customers want backdrops gone, dead, and buried, they'll do something about it. I may have to go back to cable because at least they'll never give you anything for free since whether you want it is unimportant to those companies. I had naively believed Roku was better than that. It has shown up without being downloaded to the Roku TVs and through the Roku devices.  I'm beginning to be sorry we invested in so many. We despise this addition. It has made things more difficult than they need to be, 

    • RokuEmmanuel-D's avatar
      RokuEmmanuel-D
      Community Moderator

      Hey Ggggggggggg.

      Thanks for joining us here in the Roku Community!

      We appreciate you sharing your feedback and experience with us. We apologize if this feature causes any inconveniences or trouble, and we're interested in looking into it. 

      Could you tell us more about your experience?

      • What are the difficulties or issues you've encountered with Backdrops? 
      • What specific Roku device/TV model do you have?
      • What are the troubleshooting steps you took in attempting to resolve the issue?
      • If possible, can you provide a photo of the exact behavior of it?

      Let's keep the conversation going, and let us know your thoughts!

      The Roku Community Team

  • I finally removed it after many tries about 3 weeks ago, and today its back!! 

  • I followed these exactly- it worked.

    In step 5 only Hit back arrow once. don’t fully exit. After hitting back arrow once then hit the power button and it should be disabled.
      

    1. When Backdrops is active (showing e.g. a painting), then 

    1. Press the star [*] button on the TV remote
    2. Select "Browse Backdrops" from the menu sliding from the left 
    3. Select the gear icon ⚙︎ for Settings in the new screen 
    4. item Backdrop preferences > Backdrops - change to "Disabled"
    5. Exit by using back [<-] button on the remote and test deactivated by pressing TV remote's power button - now TV goes to sleep instead of showing images