Turn on a Samsung TV without the remote
You can switch on a Samsung TV without its remote in a few ways. The TV's own button always works if you can find it. Wi‑Fi methods work only if the TV was set up for them beforehand.
1. Find the button on the TV
Samsung puts a small control button on the TV itself. On many models it is a joystick under the middle of the bottom edge, and on others it sits at the back near a corner or along the right side. Run your fingers along the frame. One press switches the TV on. If a small standby light is lit, the TV has power and is waiting.
If you cannot find it, look at the back panel for a small diagram, or search for your model number in Samsung's online manual. The model number is on a sticker on the back.
2. Let another device switch it on
Samsung's HDMI-CEC feature is called Anynet+ (HDMI-CEC). With it on, some devices on an HDMI port can wake the TV and select their input. Games consoles often do this when you turn them on, and so do some streaming boxes. The setting lives in the External Device Manager settings. It only helps if it was already switched on, and each device also needs its own CEC option enabled.
3. Use a wake signal from your phone
Some Samsung TVs can be woken over the network while they are in standby. Samsung calls the setting Power On with Mobile. You find it here, and you need to do this while you still have a way to navigate:
- Settings, General, Network, Expert Settings, Power On with Mobile.
- On 2025 sets: Settings, All Settings, Connections, Network, Expert Settings, Power On with Mobile.
Samsung's SmartThings app also lets you switch a TV on from your phone. It asks you to sign in with a Samsung account. Tuned does not.
What Tuned can and cannot do
- Once Tuned has seen your Samsung on the network, it remembers the TV's address. The power button then sends a wake signal.
- That works only from standby, with the setting above on. A wake signal tends to be more reliable when the TV is on a network cable than on Wi‑Fi.
- It will not work on a TV that is unplugged, or that has never been on your network with Tuned.
- The very first connection needs the TV on. Use the TV's button once, then connect.
Some Android phones have an infrared blaster. Tuned has an infrared mode for those, which needs no Wi‑Fi and no network at all, so it can switch a TV on that is not online. iPhones have no infrared.
Set it up now
- Switch the TV on with its button.
- Put your phone on the same network and open Tuned. Tap your Samsung in the list.
- Choose Allow on the TV when it asks.
- Turn on Power On with Mobile in the settings above.
- Next time, press the power button in Tuned while the TV is in standby.
Questions about switching on a Samsung TV
Why does the TV not wake from my phone?
The most common reasons are that Power On with Mobile is off, the TV is unplugged or fully powered down, or the TV has dropped off your Wi‑Fi. A TV on a cable is more likely to wake than one on Wi‑Fi. If it stays asleep, press its button once and Tuned reconnects.
Can an iPhone switch a Samsung TV on?
Only with a wake signal over the network, as above. An iPhone has no infrared, so it cannot copy the remote's own signal.
Does the TV light blink when I press its button?
A standby light that stays lit means the TV has power. If there is no light at all, check the power cable and the wall socket before anything else.
Can I use Tuned if the TV only came with a plain remote?
Yes. Tuned does not use the remote at all. It connects over your network once the TV is on.
Get Tuned
Free to download for iPhone and Android.