Remotes

[ScottDor]

My New Roku express 4k s remote drains the batteries within a week.  I have read ALL of the self help documentation and find that this appears to be a common issue, for years.  Can I please get a replacement remote.  Serial number: X02200KS7C1V

Thank you

[RokuTakashi]

Hi, @ScottDor 

Thanks for posting, and welcome to the Roku Community.
We see that you're having an issue with your Roku remote battery that is draining, and we appreciate you for bringing this to our attention. Rest assured that we would be more than glad to assist. We've sent you a private message regarding this. To check for private messages, kindly check your inbox at the top right corner between your Roku Community profile and the bell icon since we've reached you from there.
We hope to hear back from you.
All the best,
Kash

[jmiller99]

Spoiler

I have the same issue, and based on the other posts on this forum this has been going on for many many years. I have a Streaming Stick 4K, Model 3820X, Serial Number X01700W17F49. Software is up-to-date and the device is plugged into AC for power. The remote drains brand new alkaline batteries within a week or two. This is really annoying and a complete waste of batteries. Please fix this problem or send me a remote that does not eat batteries.

[Emissary35]

I think the main problem with the battery drain in these remotes is that they are draining a lot of power from the batteries even when you are not using your Roku. I suggest removing the batteries from the remote when you are done using the Roku and only keeping them in when using the remote. I have done this and it's made a dramatic difference.

These remotes are power suckers and are always draining the batteries quickly. Replacement remotes won't help because most likely your new one will have the same battery draining issues or other issues not staying paired properly to your Roku player.

[jmiller99]

Removing and replacing the batteries from the remote is not a solution. It is a hassle. The batteries in virtually all kinds of electronic remotes typically last a very long time, easily one year or longer. Here, Roku's remotes eat batteries within a week or two. The problem has been reported at least since 2019 but it seems that Roku has failed to address this. Unless the remotes themselves are defective, I would guess that Roku's basic design is defective, i.e. that the remotes are constantly draining batteries at full power 24/7, even when the TV is off and nothing is being streamed. It should not be hard to design a streaming stick to turn itself off after XX minutes of not streaming anything, and likewise for the remotes to not use any power except when a button is pressed.

[Emissary35]

I agree that removing the batteries from the remote is an absolute hassle and not a permanent solution. I merely am speaking from my experience that doing this will save your batteries and save you money from constantly having to replace them.

Believe me, taking a few seconds to remove the batteries after you are done and then a few seconds to put them back in when you want to use the remote again is worth it to make the batteries last.

These remotes are definitely flawed in their design because they are draining batteries constantly while they are inserted even if you have your Roku unplugged completely. The remotes also have pairing issues and they constantly have to be re-paired for many customers and the TV control buttons sometimes stop working.

Sometimes buttons activate too many presses and scroll too far when you only pressed it once. I've said many times here the remotes need a complete redesign. You are also right about any other remotes, because other than Roku all remotes I've ever used in my life have had batteries last over a year or longer.

My Fire TV Cube and Stick remotes don't ever have pairing issues or battery drain. In fact I'm still using the same batteries in my Cube remote that I got in September 2022 and it still says the battery level is okay. My TV, DVD player and VCR remotes all last a year or more with the same batteries inserted sometimes over two years.

That's how a remote should work, you should get close to a full year or more, not just a couple  of months or weeks. But don't count on Roku doing anything about this, the best you'll get is a new replacement remote sent to you and it will drain the batteries just as quickly.

Also the Voice Remote Pro which doesn't take batteries because it has a rechargeable battery inside is also full of issues. Mine won't charge to 100% and is constantly dropping into the low 90% range even after leaving it plugged in for over three hours.

I like the Roku devices a lot but the remotes are absolutely pathetic and Roku seemingly doesn't care. If I were a conspiracy theorist I might think Roku intentionally designed remotes to be battery killers because they are in cahoots with the battery companies and the faster they drain the faster you buy more! Because it just blows my mind how inefficient the battery usage is.

[winston3338]

Hello Roku buyer's, not employees. You are beating a dead horse by playing games with Roku. Tony Wood was someone we thought we could trust to stand behind his products. You see I'm 70 years old and I come from a Time when people who built a product and sold it to the public we're thankful to that public so they should behind their products. When Tony would come out with the roku's we thought it was going to be the answer to the ever-changing TV world. Keep in mind a lot of us dinosaurs were born in the fifties and it was a time when companies and individuals who built the products would guarantee it stand behind it. At the end of the 50s TVs came about and that we had two channels. They both went off the air at midnight. Has the TVs developed we were so thankful for technology. TV started to produce in color and when the remote came along we were so thankful. As time went by TV's got better and better because companies took forever to develop the remote to the way you see it everywhere but Roku. We've got quality TVs over the years because companies didn't waste their time redesigning the remote. It took decades to see the remote that you use everywhere but here. We believed Roku was going to be the future and they were going to save our parents from an ever-changing TV world where everybody started wanting money for channels. When we brought Tony woods roku's home the first thing our parents said was get that garbage out of the house. You see we were raised that you never leave anything plugged in or turned on that you weren't using. That was because in the 50s 60s 70s people's houses totally burned down from electrical problems. Tony woods was such a cheap loser the early Roku wouldn't even shut off our parents refused to let us plug them in they were afraid of them. They had great reason back then if you didn't hear sirens or howling dogs you wouldn't even know there was a fire. Even when we got our parents to give the roku's a chance Tony the moron change the remote so bad our fathers would want to kill us. Every time they touch the a****** remote it would change the volume that it would mute it over the years and when they went to lower the volume because the phone would ring they were actually moving what Tony was trying to show us. It took a bunch of stupidity for him to put so much money so much labor into changing the remote and the only one who suffered was us customers. You see while he was playing with the remote he was skimping on the quality of the roku's. When you see these young kids come on and tell you oh gracious good morning we hope this post finds you having a great day you're not having a great day. Years later Tony the cheap ass learn to just ignore the people. They started answering in the beginning and then they just fade away the same thing you see today. You would think young people of today would say I'm going to go get a real job I'm not going to sit here and bowl people with will turn it over to support and thank you for bringing this to our attention they're a little morons who see a job and not a career and not an honest living you see. But you'll see them pile on in the beginning your thread

[winston3338]

Forget it guys I was going to tell you everything I was typing with the microphone and then I was going to come back and clean it up but just like their product the website that bounced me out of what I was writing and apparently they took away our ability to erase a thread or go in and edit it. I'll tell you the bottom line Tony wood was a bum who took our money and didn't honor his product so we went years bouncing around this with this guy and he ignored us anyway. Now late in our lives he sold out to the TV people and he sold out Lock stock and barrel they went from telling people your remote is out of warranty sorry to contact the TV builder if you have problems with the remote. The TV people bought Tony's garbage and Tony skipped the word well over a billion dollars. That's who you have to go to the the people who are making the TVs because just because the TVs brought a whole batch of new problems black screens sound problems they built low cost TVs and then they put in the the the speaker systems that needed I can't even think of the name we're so sick of freaking Roku and Tony. I would tell you that we never dreamed so every so many companies would come out with streaming boxes if you could get away from Roku get away from Roku. And if you want to stick with Roku you have to go to the people who build them just like these little kids are telling you and it's just another excuse. With the amount of money Tony made he could have said to us I know we've had our problems with the remotes but we'll take our latest remote and will give you a discount. That's all at this time $10 off $15 off and we would have walked away and said well at least the guy came back and tried. But he's such a little rat he took the money and ran don't play with Roku people they're only sitting there now they're only building their little units and they're not going to change. In our day you were raised to stand behind your product you were so faithful people bought your products you would never leave them hanging. So Tony got his wish he's got a ton of money and by now he should realize he's old he can't take it with him and you know what I'd rather have a good reputation than a whole ton of money and leave so many people out in the cold forget Roku if you like Roku it's a blessing that Tony sold out because these other companies like ONN and the other ones they seem to be serious about giving you customer service. People know Roku that's why you buy it at Walmart I'm going to go cuz I'm typing with a mic cuz we've been doing this years with him and it takes a real piece of garbage to get the support he got out of us the believing in him that we did and he just walks away throughout his whole career he's a freaking bum who put out another product sold it for overpriced money and then came up with the Roku idea we supported him we believed in him and when these kids tell you oh thank you for bringing the dead batteries to our attention we'll send this over to the support team they're fooling themselves this has been going on for decades you little fools go get a job with a company that appreciates this employees and its customers you folks take care of I'm an old man now it's time to lay down and die and if everything they thought is true my next stop is St Peter and the pearly Gates and where I've done nothing to be refused entry don't play with Roku anymore they're a bunch of has been and these young people are wasting their lives on a problems have been going on forever go to the people who are making the new TVs and be calm with them cuz they really want to come up with a product most of them already realized Tony would screw them with this remote and **bleep** he just sold out Lock stock and barrel he's a waste of life take care of you young people enjoy your life the days may see long but the years fly by don't waste them on Roku and Tony would bye

[Rus298]

Hi Takashi. 

My Roku Voice Remote drains the removable batteries within a week.  I have the Roku 4k Stick.  I have never had a problem with the remote until 2 weeks ago when I confirmed that the batteries are draining within a week.  After reading the Roku Community Forums, I see that this is a widespread issue affecting many customers.  I have tried several pairs of new fully charged batteries, and all the batteries drained within a week.  The batteries continue to drain within a week after I did all of the recommended troubleshooting steps including: factory reset, ROKU Stick updates, resetting the voice remote into pairing mode to complete a new pairing sequence. And I turned of all the voice assistance settings/voice enhancement settings and all other settings that would create greater drain on the battery.  I have included all the product specifications below. Do you have a solution to my voice remote batteries draining within a week?

Sincerely, Rus

Roku Stick Model: 3800x

Roku Stick Software Version: 12.5.5

Roku Stick Build: 4174

Remote Firmware: 2.01.19.108

Remote Model: RC127

[Asssjjj]

Before getting a new remote, make sure to check if the batteries are working properly or there's a conductivity error on the circuit board of your remote.