Trying to use my iPhone as a remote for Google TV but can’t find a reliable solution. Has anyone been able to control Google TV from their iPhone, and if so, how did you set it up? Any help would be appreciated as my physical remote isn’t working.
If you’re looking to control your Google TV or Chromecast with Google TV using your iPhone, the official Google TV app is your best bet. It offers remote control features, voice search, and easy navigation all from your phone.
Getting Started Without Throwing Your Phone
So, first: you want your iPhone to play nice with your Google TV or Chromecast with Google TV. Solution? The “Google TV” app, which does WAY more than just swap channels.
- Grab the Google TV app from the App Store.
- Hook your iPhone up to the same Wi-Fi as your Google TV doodad. Do NOT gloss over this or you’ll be yelling at your router.
- Pop open the Google TV app, spot the little remote icon (bottom of screen), and tap it. Fancier than any boring physical remote.
- Now you get slick on-screen controls, a keyboard for password pain, and voice search so you can shout “Play cat videos” and skip the typing.
Pro tip: When it works, you feel like tech royalty. When it doesn’t, you’ll remember to charge your old remote’s batteries instead.
Swapping It Up: The Universal Remote TV App
I’ve hopped between TV brands so many times, it’s a wonder my HDMI ports haven’t unionized. If you’re juggling more than just Google devices—or if you like pushing buttons until you get a “Connected” message—there’s another route: Universal Remote TV Control.
What’s cool?
- Works with Samsung, LG, Roku, TCL, Vizio, Sony, and probably that off-brand TV your dad bought on Black Friday.
- Touchpad for smooth scrolling (feels weirdly futuristic).
- Keyboard input and casting stuff so you can “accidentally” stream family photos on Thanksgiving.
- Haptic feedback, which is basically like your phone congratulating you for touching buttons.
- Layout mimics a real remote—so, hey, some nostalgia.
How to wrangle it:
- Make sure your iPhone and TV are neighbors on the same Wi-Fi network.
- Fire up the app and let it sniff around—usually finds your TV in seconds.
- Tap your TV’s name in the list and pair it.
- Some bonus tricks and features are hidden behind a premium paywall. You know how it goes.
TL;DR Verdicts from the Couch
- Google TV App: If your house is all about Google’s ecosystem, just go for it. Reliable, pretty fool-proof, gets you from episode one to the finale fast. Handles basic navigation, keyboard stuff, and voice commands. Not much fluff.
- Universal Remote TV Control: Juggling a bunch of TV brands? This app’s a lifesaver. Feels more like holding a remote, with casting, touchpad, and some advanced features—though you might trip over the occasional “subscribe to unlock” message.
Don’t forget: Both require your TV and iPhone to chill on the same Wi-Fi. If nothing’s being detected, start with turning your stuff off and back on again. Ninety percent of my problems: solved by the good ol’ reboot.
If you hit a wall, ask away—there’s always a workaround, a hack, or, worst case, a reason to eat snacks while things update.
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I’ll be honest, the Google TV app does work for turning your iPhone into a remote, like @mikeappsreviewer covered, but “reliable” isn’t the word I’d use every time. It tends to be, let’s say… selectively cooperative? Sometimes it won’t see my Chromecast unless I restart everything, then the remote button vanishes; then comes back. Also, the Universal Remote TV thing is cool IF your TV is compatible and not ancient (learned that the annoying way).
Here’s an option that’s lower key but saved my bacon once: If you have a Google Home device in the same room, you can use the iPhone Google Home app to control playback (pause, play, volume, casting stuff) on your Google TV—more like basic controls, but sometimes that really is enough. To set up: open the Google Home app, tap your Google TV/Chromecast device, and you get some playback buttons. It’s not as “remote-y,” but the lag is less and you skip the annoying lost connection stuff the TV app sometimes pulls.
On the downside, you can’t do complex navigation—no home/back button, so if you’re deep menu diving, it’s not much help. But if your physical remote’s basically compost at this point and you just need something to keep streaming rolling, it’s a decent backdoor.
TLDR: No perfect all-in-one app. Google TV app = best shot, but it’s buggy. Universal TV remote = nice if you have new-enough gear and pay for features. Google Home app = clutch for the basics. Wish Google would just give us a plain old virtual remote widget in Control Center… is that too much to ask?
Let’s be real, the “Google TV” app should just work as your remote and make you feel like Tony Stark, but honestly, half the time it’s as moody as my cat. I keep seeing recommendations (like @mikeappsreviewer and @hoshikuzu have mentioned) to go the Google TV app route or the universal remote direction, but—brace yourself—that’s not always golden, especially if you have older gear or if your Wi-Fi is being a jerk that day.
What no one talks about is how Apple’s own “Remote” built into Control Center doesn’t support Google TV AT ALL. I mean, Apple’s fine making friends with Samsung, but Google? Nah, let’s keep it complicated. And those “works for everything” universal apps? Please. Unless your TV is newer than your last birthday party and running the right Android TV version, you might as well train your dog to fetch the remote instead.
One trick that sometimes gets overlooked: using the Android TV Remote Control app, which used to be on iOS before Google merged it into Google TV. The only upside to this is if you had it downloaded before, it’ll sometimes still function, but it’s not actively supported. I had to sideload an old IPA via AltStore purely out of spite. (Wouldn’t really recommend unless you relish frustration.)
And word of warning about third-party “universal” apps—if they’re bloated with ads or try to trick you into subscriptions on Day 1, skip ‘em. They’re rarely better than the official Google TV app, and way sketchier on privacy.
The Google Home shortcut is actually my fallback too (s/o to @hoshikuzu), though I hate how barebones it is. Sometimes, though, just being able to pause the show when you need to stop the chaos is enough, right?
Bottom line: No, there isn’t a seamless, perfect iPhone/Google TV remote app experience—it’s either buggy, missing features, or too paywalled. But the Google TV app is still your closest bet, just keep expectations low and your rebooting finger ready. If anyone knows a legit better solution, share it.