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Darkeyez
Channel Surfer

TCL Roku TV stopped working with remote

I have a pretty old Roku TV: TCL P605.

Everything was fine until I stopped being able to wireless cast/mirror to the tv. I resolved it by putting the tv on a guest network that only uses 2.4ghz. 

A week later I couldn't connect the Roku app to the tv anymore. It would always say reconnect tv and give a countdown but wouldn't connect at all. I left that alone since the remote was working.

Also, sometimes I would watch a streaming app and the wifi would cut off on the tv, followed by my entire wifi at the router. It would restart itself after a few minutes and the tv would reconnect to the wifi automatically. But it would happen again 15mins later. 

A week after that I got a message that the software will automatically re-sort my apps according to the ones I use the most.

A couple days later, I noticed I no longer had a Live TV guide or even streaming channel guide anymore. I can press the OK button to see the information for what's playing on the current channel. But when I press the Left arrow, it brings up a black and white menu showing a list of channels and letting me organize my favorites. But no more channel guides. 

Just a couple days later (today), I press the Home button to watch some Disney+ but I have a bare screen with no apps at all. The only options are to sign in to my Roku account, Reset the tv or do a full Factory reset. I probably should have tried signing in, but I was suspecting some kind of malware and didn't want to risk entering my login. I tried the reset but it didn't resolve anything it just brings me back to the same bare screen. So I finally decided a Factory Reset wouldn't hurt. Boy, was I wrong!

Now, all I have is the welcome screen asking what language. The only button on the remote that works is the power button. I can't select any language at all even the default because the OK button doesn't work. I can't even activate the screen reader because the Home button doesn't work. Nothing works. And of course, the app won't work until I get it set up.

I tried changing out the batteries on the remote to fresh new ones and it still won't work except for the power button. i tried unplugging the tv for a whole 60 seconds but it's still just on the language select screen with the remote unable to select anything. 

Did my TV just simply...die? I suspect my roommate did something malicious as some things were moved around and I'm the only one that (supposedly) uses the tv. Could it just be a bad firmware update issue (strangely, it said the last update was in July, I believe the 17th, but the feature to re-order my apps first appeared just a few days ago)? Has anyone ever experienced this? 

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RokuRiamie-D
Community Moderator
Community Moderator

Re: TCL Roku TV stopped working with remote

Hi @Darkeyez,

Welcome to the Roku Community!

Thanks for letting us know about the issue with your Roku remote not working for your TCL Roku TV. No worries, we'd be more than happy to help you with this.

To further investigate this issue, could you let us know if this is the original remote for your TCL Roku TV? If not, what is the model of your Roku remote? Also, did you receive an update on your TCL Roku TV before this issue started happening?

We look forward to hearing from you and looking closely into this issue.

Regards,
Riamie

Riamie D.
Roku Community Moderator
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Darkeyez
Channel Surfer

Re: TCL Roku TV stopped working with remote

Hi, Thank you Riamie. 

In fact, it's not the original remote, but it is a Roku remote with voice control. The model is RC-GZ1. The orignal remote also stopped working, though after 4 years.

I don't think there was a firmware update, I recall the last update the tv noted was around mid-July, I think July 17 if I'm remembering correctly. But the tv did seem to gain some new features, namely the auto-sorting of apps, just a week ago. So I wonder if there was some kind of soft update? 

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RokuRiamie-D
Community Moderator
Community Moderator

Re: TCL Roku TV stopped working with remote

Hi @Darkeyez,

Thank you for the update.

We appreciate the additional information that you provided about the Roku remote of your TCL Roku TV.

It might be possible that this has something to do with the IR of your TCL Roku TV. Although your Roku remote model is compatible with your TCL Roku TV, there are more precise Roku remotes that work better with this TCL Roku TV. For example, you could try using the Roku TV remote or the remote from the TCL TV manufacturer.

We suggest contacting the TCL TV manufacturer for further assistance, and you can reach them here: TCL TV Manufacturer Support

We hope you'll find this information useful.

Regards,
Riamie

Riamie D.
Roku Community Moderator
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Darkeyez
Channel Surfer

Re: TCL Roku TV stopped working with remote

So I suspected the same and purchased a universal remote. I was able to use that to complete setup. 

But what could have caused all the other issues I had with the television that required me to factory reset? A bad firmware update? 

I'm also curious, could I have simply re-paired the Roku remote using the HOME and BACK buttons to get it working with the tv in setup? I didn't recall that combination puts it in pairing mode and it wasn't mentioned in any of the help articles. The remote works again with the tv perfectly now that it's been re-paired. 

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