With the latest Apple TV, you may experience issues where its remote controller become unresponsive. You can follow this troubleshooting guide at Seeking Tech to find some potential fixes to your remote when it is not working as intended.
Apple TV Models
This guide will cover the following Apple TV models:
- 2021 32GB Apple TV HD (MHY93LL/A)
- 2021 32GB Apple TV 4K (MXGY2LL/A)
- 2021 64GB Apple TV 4K (MXH02LL/A)
The remote controller that is included with these three models is called the Siri Remote.
How to recharge the 2021 Apple TV HD and 4K Remote
There is a chance that the unresponsive remote controller for the 2021 Apple TV may be related to a depleted battery.
To recharge the Siri Remote, you need to take the following steps:
1. Use the Lightning to USB cable that came with your Apple TV and plug the Lighting end to the Lighting port of the remote controller.
2. Plug the USB end of the Lightning to USB cable into a power source, which could be a computer, power bank, power adapter and other devices.
3. The Siri Remote takes around 3 hours to fully charge.
With that said, you should be able to wait approximately 30 minutes for it to recharge enough where you will get a good amount of battery life to test whether or not the remote is working normally with your 2021 Apple TV.
How to avoid Siri Remote Interference
You should make sure that there is nothing blocking the direct line of sight between the remote and your 2021 Apple TV. Otherwise, the signal will be weak or even non-existent.
If your Apple TV is behind your television, try to relocate it upfront. You should also remove any objects that could be blocking the front side of the media player.
Last but not least, you need to make sure that you aren’t using the remote too far away from your Apple TV.
How to pair Siri Remote to 2021 Apple TV HD and 4K
If your remote is still unresponsive after recharging it and removing any connection interference, you can try pairing the controller to the Apple TV again.
In order to do so, you need to take the following steps:
1. First off, make sure that your remote controller still has some battery life left. If you believe that the battery is depleted, you should recharge it for at least 30 minutes.
2. Point the Siri Remote directly at the front side of the 2021 Apple TV. The remote and media player should be three inches away from each other.
3. With the remote pointed directly at the Apple TV, press and hold the Back (<) and Volume Up (+) buttons at the same time for at least two seconds.
4. If the Apple TV shows something on your television screen that ask you to place the remote on top of the media player, then you should follow the instructions that appear.
How to turn off the 2021 Apple TV
Your remote issues may be related to the Apple TV device instead as the media player could have crashed, frozen or encounter other errors.
If you believe that recharging, removing interference and re-pairing the remote does not fix unresponsive remote problems, then you can try turning off the Apple TV instead.
In order to shut down the 2021 Apple TV HD and 2021 Apple TV 4K, you need to do the following:
1. Unplug the Apple TV from the power outlet. The media player will lose its power source, forcing it to shut down.
2. Wait at least six seconds.
3. Plug the Apple TV back into the power outlet. The media player should automatically turn on again.
Other remote options for 2021 Apple TV HD and 4K
You can also try using other compatible remote controllers with your 2021 Apple TV.
The 2021 32GB Apple TV HD (MHY93LL/A), 2021 32GB Apple TV 4K (MXGY2LL/A) and 2021 64GB Apple TV 4K (MXH02LL/A) should work with other Apple TV remotes.
You can also use your smartphone as a remote controller for your Apple TV.
To do so, you need to do the following:
1. Download the Control Center app on a compatible iOS device.
2. Open the Control Center app.
3. Tap the Apple TV Remote option.
4. Tap your Apple TV device from the list.
5. Enter the four-digit passcode from the Control Center app to your Apple TV.