Remotes

[MissMyBike]

My 3810RW stick Roku came with a voice remote. I have been battling inconsistent remote keystroke execution failures for months. I wrote the Roku Support and Community and tried all the suggestions to no avail. As I moved the Roku to a different house, internet service and TV the problems went away. Yesterday, after use with no issues for over four months, the issues resurfaced. Again, I went through reboots, resets, restarts, re-pairing, batteries, of all the equipment including the modem, router, TV, and the Roku, but as before nothing helped. Then for the first time ever, I switched the wifi connection from 5G to the regular 2.5G and the problem went away. So, I checked for compatibility of the Roku with 5G and seems it is compatible, but I could not verify for sure. Also, I cannot find anything online about any issues involving 5G service. The question here is whether anyone out there has had a similar experience and can shed some light on the susceptibility of the Roku to 5G service, stated compatibility not withstanding. 

[RokuCarly]

Thank you for posting here in the Roku Community, @MissMyBike.

Thanks for letting us know about the issues you've been having with your Roku voice remote. We appreciate the steps you have taken to troubleshoot the problem.

Kindly provide us with the following details below so we can assess your concern better and provide you with an accurate resolution:

• When did the issue initially start? 
• Is this the remote that comes with your Roku player? 
• Have you tried manually resetting it by pressing and holding the Back and Home buttons simultaneously for about 20 seconds? If not, we highly suggest so. 

In the meantime, you can install the Roku mobile app to turn your mobile device into a control center for your Roku streaming player. Not only can you control channels, navigate Roku's interface, issue voice commands, and share personal media, but you can also listen privately with headphones and more.

We'll be looking forward to your response!

Best regards,
Carly

[MissMyBike]

Hi Carly,

Thanks for your follow up. To address your specific questions:

1. Looking at my posts here, the issue bagan in April 2022, and as I stated in my previous post, the problem has been intermittent.
2. The Roku was connected to a Samsung 6 Series (49) TV.
3. This is the first time I see the procedure for pressing the Home & Return button simultaneously for 20 seconds, and will try this should the issue resurface, but I did reboot all the devices per the published instructions, which as I had stated, did not help.
4. I have had the Roku remote mobile app for years and it has always worked fine, saving the day during the Voice Remote issues.

To reiterate, to my knowledge, I have tried everything suggested by Roku reps as well as those posted by the Community members to no avail. The only step that seems to have resolved the issue - as of now - is switching the Roku and TV wifi connection from 5G to 2.5G. As such, I would greatly appreciate if you can provide whatever insight to any known Roku remote compatibility issues with 5G service.

Regards

[makaiguy · Accepted solution]

@MissMyBike

I can only give you anecdotal information re my own experience.

My Rokus have always been connected via WiFi.  Most of them have not had Ethernet ports, and none of my TVs are located in the room with my router.

I normally use the 5 GHz WiFi band with my Rokus because it gets no interference from my nearby neighbors systems and I don't bog down all the other devices in my house (thermostat, smart switches, newer appliances, etc.) that can only connect to the 2.4 GHz band.  Plus microwave ovens and Bluetooth also use the 2.4 GHz band to add more congestion.

Adding up the remotes from all my Rokus, I have six WiFi remotes in use from 1 to 8 years of age (plus one IR remote for the Roku TV in the bedroom).  I've had no difficulties using any of the WiFi remotes in the 5 GHz band.

I'd consider

• External interference in the 5 GHz channel being used.  This is less likely in this band because it doesn't penetrate walls or travel distances as well as the 2.4 GHz band, but it's still possible.   This seems especially likely for a problem that comes and goes as nearby equipment configurations may get changed. 
  
  Did you ever try to set the router to use a different channel in the 5 HGz band?  I use an app on my phone that analyzes my local WiFi and shows me which channels have the least interference.  This can be very handy in selecting a channel to use.  All dual-band Rokus use 5 GHz channels 36-48 and 149-165.  A few Roku models with newer chips can also use the so-called DFS channels 50-64 and 100-144.
• WiFi components in the Roku and/or remote not being up to snuff.  This seems less likely to me for a problem that comes and goes.