Helping an elderly parent with the TV from far away
"The TV's broken again." If that call is part of your week, here's why it keeps happening, what to set up on your next visit, and the ways to help from your own home, with what each one costs.
The short answer: most "the TV's broken" calls come from three things: a wrong button pressed (the input, the menu, the volume), a box and a TV that don't turn on together, or getting lost inside an app. Fix what you can on your next visit (one remote, the right settings, a written card), and pick one way to help from afar. The TV makers' own phone apps only work on the same Wi-Fi as the TV, so they help when you're there, not from your own home. The hub products that do work from afar cost a monthly fee.
Why it keeps happening
Modern TVs have a lot of buttons that look the same, and several boxes that each want their own remote. When someone forgets which remote does what, the TV ends up on the wrong input, muted, or deep inside a settings menu. Voice remotes don't always help: in one family's thread, an 81-year-old dad could turn the TV on with Alexa but not change channels, and the remote's voice button only worked if held just right (Mumsnet). Every evening on the phone is stressful for both of you.
Fix these on your next visit
- Make one remote turn everything on. Turn on HDMI-CEC on the TV, so the TV and the box switch on and off together and the TV jumps to the right input. Each brand calls it something else: Anynet+ on Samsung, SimpLink on LG, BRAVIA Sync on Sony, T-Link on TCL (TCL's list).
- Hide the spare remotes. Put the ones they don't need in a drawer, so there's only one to pick up.
- Write a card. Three lines, big letters: "To watch TV: press the red button. If it says HDMI or No Signal: press Input. Louder: the + button." Tape it next to their chair.
- Save their channels or apps first in the list, so they're never more than a press or two away.
- Take photos of the back of the TV and every box, and of the remote, so you can talk them through it later and know what they're looking at.
Ways to help from far away, compared
| Option | What it costs | Works from your house? | Good for | The catch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Talking them through on a video call | Free | Yes | Anything, if they can point the phone at the TV | Slow and stressful. They have to hold the phone and press buttons at the same time. |
| A simple big-button remote, such as the Flipper | About $41 | No | Fewer buttons to get wrong: power, channel, volume, up to 30 favorite channels | Works with a TV plus one cable or antenna box. Setup may need help, and it can't fix an app or a settings menu. |
| Voice: Alexa, Google, or a voice remote | Free if they have one | No | Turning on and off, volume, sometimes opening an app | Not every TV or box changes channels by voice, and some people find the voice button hard to use. |
| The TV maker's own phone app (Roku, Samsung SmartThings) | Free | No | A spare remote when you're visiting | Only works on the same Wi-Fi as the TV. Roku says its app can't control a Roku outside its home (Roku community), and Samsung asks for the phone and TV on the same Wi-Fi (Samsung). |
| A care hub with family remote control, such as JubileeTV | Listed at $39 on its pricing page, with a $349 first-year offer at the time we checked; hardware included | Yes | Pressing buttons on their TV from your phone, plus video calls that answer themselves on the TV | A box, a camera and a membership. US only, and some senior communities don't allow cameras. |
Which fix fits your parent?
Answer three questions for a suggestion.
How to judge any option
Whatever you try, three questions sort the options quickly:
- Does it help when you're not there? Many fixes only work while you're in the room.
- What does it cost over a year? Add up the box, the setup and any monthly fee.
- Does your parent have to learn something new? The best help is the kind they barely notice.
Today most options do well on one or two of these, rarely all three. Pick the one that fixes the problem that comes up most often.
A note on patience
Losing track of the remote isn't a sign of anything by itself; TVs really are harder than they used to be. If a parent is also struggling with other everyday tasks they used to manage, that's worth mentioning to their doctor.
Sources
EveryRemote
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