Our way of using technology is changing thanks to Smart Voice Assistants and AI. One of the popular voice assistants is Alexa that connects smart devices and makes controlling them easier through Voice. If you don’t know, you can also connect your Smart TVs with Alexa.
After connecting to Alexa you can control your TV with Voice without using the Remote and even control other devices connected to the Alexa. Here you will learn how to connect and control your TV with Alexa and what commands you can use.
Even though the Alexa voice assistant is commonly used with smart home devices like the Echo Dot, it works just as well on Smart TVs. If you have a TV with Alexa built in, you can easily connect Alexa to your TV. However, if your TV does not have built-in Alexa, you can use alternatives like using Fire TV Stick or Roku Stick.
- You can control your TV with your voice after connecting it to Alexa.
- It’s possible to connect TV that do not have Alexa built-in, but only a few basic commands will work like play/pause, turn on/off, and volume up/down.
- Mostly all the Smart TVs now come with Alexa built-in these days.
Prerequisites:
- Your Smart TV
- Alexa app for iOS or Android
- Connect your TV, Mobile Phone, Alexa device to same WiFi network
How to Control Your TV with Alexa Voice Remote?
If you have a Fire Edition TV or a Fire Stick, you can easily control the TV using Alexa voice commands with the included Alexa voice remote. Here’s how you can do this:
- First of all, turn on your TV and Fire TV devices.
- Press the Voice button and give a command.
- To be able to power on or off your Fire device with Alexa, navigate to Settings > Alexa, then enable Turn on TV with Alexa option.
How to Connect a Fire or Roku TV Stick with Alexa?
If you have a Fire or Roku TV Stick, you can easily connect it to your TV to control your TV with Alexa. If you have Fire TV, then you can already use its Remote to command Alexa. And you can pair it with your app without its Skills, but for Roku you will need to add skills. Here’s how you can connect a Roku stick with Alexa:
- First of all, open the Alexa app on your Android or iOS device.
- Tap on the More tab and select Skills & Games.
- Click on the search box and search for Roku.
- Next, select Link Your Alexa Device or Enable to Use. On the next screen, use the same account as your TV to link your device.
- Log in to your account to complete the process.
- Finally, choose the Alexa device and tap Link Device.
How to Connect Alexa to a Sony Smart TV?
All the Sony Smart TV models released in 2019 and later came with built-in Alexa. Here’s how you can connect them to control your TV with Alexa.
- Press the Home button on your TV Remote. Then open the app with one of the steps below.
- Your Apps > See All > TV Control with Smart Speakers
- Apps > TV Control Setup with Amazon Alexa
- Select your Google account and name your TV. If your TV has TV control with Smart Speakers app, you can use Amazon, Google, Sony, Apple, or Facebook account to sign in.
- On the Alexa app, go to More > Skills & Games and select Sony TV.
- Select Sony’s TV – Basic Skill (If your TV has TV Control Setup with Amazon Alexa)
- Select Sony’s TV Skill (If your TV has TV Control with Smart Speakers)
- Next, click on Enable to Use and follow the instructions to link your account.
How to Connect Alexa to a LG Smart TV?
Alexa functionality comes built-in to all LG OLED TVs and NanoCell TVs with WebOS 4.0 released in 2019 and later. Here’s how you can connect them:
- Press the Home button on the LG remote.
- Open Amazon Alexa App or press the Alexa button on your Remote. 2020 LG TV Remote has Prime Video button that act as Alexa button.
- Tap on the Get Started option, then follow the on-screen instructions to log in to your Amazon account and link to your TV. You can also enable Alexa Hands-Free to command Alexa without pressing the Alexa button on Remote.
- Install and Setup LG ThinQ app on your Phone.
- On your phone, open Alexa app, tap More followed by Skills & Games.
- Search for LG, and open LG ThinQ skill.
- Next, tap Enable to Use. Log in to your LG account.
- It should then prompt you to discover devices, just tap Discover.
- Finally, navigate to Devices > Add Device on the Alexa app, and add your LG TV.
How to Connect Alexa to a Vizio Smart TV?
If you have a Vizio SmartCast TV that comes with built-in Alexa support, follow the below steps to connect it:
- Navigate to the Vizio TV SmartCast home screen.
- Tap on the Extras tab, then select Voice Settings > Pair Display.
- On your phone, go to dms.vizio.com/alexa and enter the PIN visible on your TV screen.
- Go back to the Alexa app when prompted and enable the Vizio SmartCast skill (from More > Skills & Games), and you’re ready to control your Vizio TV with Alexa.
How to Control Samsung Smart TV with Alexa?
Many new Samsung TVs come with Alexa support. If your TV has Alexa app installed, this means your TV is Alexa supported. You can also connect Samsung TVs that do not come with Alexa, but only limited commands will work. To connect your Samsung smart TV with Alexa, follow the below steps:
- Open Alexa app on your TV and select Get Started.
- Follow the on screen instructions to link your Amazon account. Also enabled Alexa Hands-Free, if you want to use Alexa commands without using buttons on TV Remote.
- Install the SmartThings app on your phone, and use the Add Device option to find your TV. You can follow our guide to setup Smartthings app.
- Open the Alexa app on your phone and navigate to Settings > Skills. Search for the SmartThings skill and ensure that it’s enabled.
- Now, go to the Devices tab at the bottom.
- Click on the + icon at the top-right corner, then tap Add Device.
- Scroll down and click TV. Select your Samsung TV.
- Follow the on-screen instructions to pair your Samsung TV.
We also wrote a dedicated article earlier on how to connect a Samsung TV to Alexa.
How to Connect Alexa to TV with No Alexa built-in?
No matter which brand of smart TV you have, here are the general steps for connecting a smart TV to Alexa:
- First, open the Alexa app on your device.
- Click on the Devices tab at the bottom of your screen.
- Tap the + icon at the top-right corner, then select Add Device.
- Select your TV from the list.
- Next, select your smart TV brand.
- Follow the instructions to complete the setup process.
You can only use few basic commands if your TV is not Alexa supported by default.
Alexa Commands
After connecting your Smart TV to Alexa, you might be wondering what command you should perform. If so, we have listed some commands below that you can try:
- “Alexa, turn [on/off] the TV.”
- “Alexa, turn the volume [up/down] on the TV.”
- “Alexa, mute the TV name.”
- “Alexa, open [app name] on the TV.”
- “Alexa, fast forward/rewind [TV name].”
- “Alexa, change the input to [source name].”
- “Alexa, channel [up/down] on the TV.”
- “Alexa, play [movie name] on [streaming app].”
- “Alexa, change channel to [channel number] on the TV.”
- “Alexa, change the input to [input name] on the TV.”
- “Alexa, [play/pause/stop/resume] on the TV.”
- “Alexa, show [comedy/drama/romance] movies.”
Note that, some of these commands may not work if your TV doesn’t come with Alexa built-in.
TV and Streaming Brands You Can Control With Alexa
While the list is constantly expanding, here are some of the most prominent platforms that Amazon Alexa supports.
- Amazon Fire TV
- Roku
- Xbox
- Sony
- Samsung
- Vizio SmartCast
- Altice One
- Verizon Fios
- NVIDIA Shield TV
- Philips
- Panasonic
- TCL
- Logitech Harmony
Frequently Asked Questions
Can Alexa turn on my TV?
Yes, if you have enabled the Turn on TV with Alexa feature before, you can turn on and off your TV with Alexa. The Power Off/On command works even if the TV does not come with Alexa built-in.
Where are the skills in the Alexa app?
You can easily find the skills in the Alexa app. Open the Alexa app on your device, click on the More tab, and you will find the Skills & Games option. Tap on it, scroll through the list, and tap on the Skill you want to add.
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