Remotes

[Kevin926]

We have three Roku TVs made by TCL. One of them (32S331) will stop receiving the signal from the directional button on the remote after about five minutes.  All the other buttons will continue to work just fine, and it's very interesting that if I power off the TV then turn it back on, the directional buttons will work again. But after about five minutes, the same thing happens. It is not the remote, as I've tried other TCL Roku remotes in the house on this TV, and the same problem occurs.

And yes: I have tried restarting the TV, unplugging it then plugging it back in, and also doing a factory default reset, but the problem persists. Has anyone else experienced this?

[RokuJohnB]

Hi @Kevin926,

Thanks for raising this concern directly to us, and welcome to the Roku Community!

We appreciate the troubleshooting steps you have taken so far. No worries; we will be more than happy to assist you further with this concern you have with the directional buttons on your Roku remote since they were not properly working. Insufficient battery power can sometimes cause certain buttons not to function. We highly suggest that you try to insert a new set of batteries.

Please try doing this and see if it helps with what you're experiencing.

Best regards,
John

[Kevin926]

Hi John,

Thanks for the reply, but the batteries are not the issue.  (That was the first thing I tried.)

We have two other Roku TVs in the house. When I attempt to use the remotes belonging to the other Roku TVs on the TV with the issue, the same problem occurs.  All other buttons on each of the Roku remotes work except the directional button and the OK button.  Note the problem only happens when I'm in the Live TV app.  The problem does not occur when I'm using the directional buttons in other apps, like YouTube, Paramount+ or Netflix.

The only workaround we've discovered is to exit the Live TV app then return.  Or we can turn the TV off and back on again. 

Suggestions?

[RokuJharra-Q]

Thank you for getting back to us @Kevin926!

It seems like you're having some trouble with your Roku remote, especially with the directional and OK buttons. Don't worry, we're here to help! Before we get started, could you kindly share the following details:

• When did you start experiencing the issue?
• Was there any recent update on your Roku TV before the problem occurred?
• What steps have you already tried to troubleshoot?

In the meantime, you can try resetting your remote by pressing and holding the Back and Home buttons simultaneously for about 20 seconds. After that, try pairing it again and see if it makes a difference.

Looking forward to hearing back from you!

Thanks,
Jharra

[Kevin926]

Hmm.  Let's see....  

You asked: "What steps have you already tried to troubleshoot?"

Well, since my original posts already included the steps I've taken to troubleshoot the issue, I'll assume we're gonna play the ole' Q&A dance, eh? 

The irony is that we really like the Roku interface as it allows us to integrate the OTA channels in our Live TV channel guide.  We like Roku TVs so much that all three of our TVs in the house are Roku.  So I guess I'm a bit disappointed with your attempt to "help" me.  Oh, well.  

[RokuJharra-Q]

Hello @Kevin926,

Thank you for keeping us updated.

We completely understand what you're experiencing, @Kevin926, and we genuinely want to do everything we can to assist you. We are truly sorry for the inconvenience and we kindly ask for your cooperation in providing the following details so that we can thoroughly investigate the issue. Have you tried using the Roku mobile app? Were you able to reproduce the same issue there?

To help us in resolving this matter, please share the following information:

• Roku device 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)

We appreciate your patience and cooperation as we work towards a resolution. Thank you very much for your understanding.

Best regards,
Jharra

[Kevin926]

Hi Jharra,

Thank you for the quick reply.  We sincerely hope you're able to help us resolve this perplexing issue.  We really enjoy all three of our Roku TVs (two TCLs and one Onn).

You asked if we had attempted to use the Roku app...  Answer: No, we have not tried that as we prefer to use the Roku remote that came with the TCL TV.

We are providing the following information, as you requested.  I attempted to obtain a Tracker ID after the issue occurred, but pressing Home 5x then Back 5x simply powered off the TV without displaying a Tracker ID. (I tried it twice.)

Roku device model: TCL 32" Class 720P HD LED Roku Smart TV 3 Series 32S331
Manufactured Feb 2022
Serial #: 2202GNA002715A02174
Device ID: NPN22A780959
Software version: 13.1.4 (build 1510-48)
Tracker ID: Unable to obtain

[RokuJharra-Q]

Hi there, @Kevin926!

Thank you so much for sharing the details we needed! We're grateful for your help. We'll pass your information along to the right Roku team for investigation. As we work on this, we truly appreciate your patience and understanding.

Please don't hesitate to reach out if there's anything else on your mind or if you have different concerns. We're here to listen and help however we can.

Best regards,
Jharra

[Kevin926]

Hi Jharra,

Just checking to see if there has been any progress on the issue that we continue to experience.  Please let me know if you need anything else.

[RokuJharra-Q]

Hi @Kevin926,

Thank you for keeping us updated! We are currently investigating this issue and will make sure to provide you with any updates once we have more information. In the meantime, you may install the Roku mobile app as an alternative to your physical remote. It works well with your Roku streaming device.

We're looking to resolve everything soon and appreciate your patience in the meantime.

Best regards,
Jharra