Turn your iPhone into a free wireless remote replacement for Samsung, LG, Sony, Roku, Vizio, and other brands. Connects over WebSocket HTTPS / HTTP REST / Protobuf TLS via SSDP / mDNS auto-discovery. Pairing uses Varies by TV brand. No batteries, no hardware, no paywalls.
Download Free AppSix platforms, six different conversations
"Universal" is doing real work here. A smart TV does not speak one language — each platform has its own protocol, its own port and its own idea of whether a phone needs permission before it is trusted. This is the whole matrix in one place.
| Model line / series | TV operating system | How it is controlled over the network | Pairing | On-set button |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Samsung | Tizen | WebSocket over HTTPS on port 8002, found by SSDP | Accept the prompt on the TV screen | Jog controller, rear panel bottom-right |
| LG | webOS | WebSocket over HTTPS on port 3001 | PIN shown on screen | Joystick nub, bottom-centre under the logo |
| Sony, Panasonic (EU), Sharp, TCL Q-Class | Android TV / Google TV | Android TV remote protocol over TLS, ports 6466/6467 | 6-digit PIN on screen | Varies by brand and model year |
| Roku, TCL numbered series, Philips (US), JVC, RCA, Sanyo, some Hisense | Roku OS | Roku ECP — HTTP on port 8060, found by SSDP | None on most units | Single button, underside or rear |
| Fire TV Stick, Toshiba (US), Insignia, Panasonic (US) | Amazon Fire TV | Local HTTP, found by mDNS (_amzn-wplay._tcp) | 4-digit PIN on screen | Varies — a stick has none at all |
| Vizio | SmartCast | HTTPS on ports 7345 and 9000, found by SSDP/DIAL | 4-digit PIN on screen | Discrete buttons, rear corner |
Two things are true of every row: the traffic stays on your local network, and none of it is infrared. A TV that has no network stack at all cannot be reached from a phone by any of these routes.
Reaching the menu with no remote
Samsung uses a jog stick on the rear bottom-right, LG a nub under the centre of the panel, Vizio a stack of plain buttons in a rear corner, Roku TVs a single button that opens the Input List when the set is already on. Sony does not standardise it at all. A streaming stick has no button whatsoever.
Only Samsung’s jog controller and LG’s nub reliably navigate an on-screen menu. On the rest, the network menu wants a remote or a paired phone — and Ethernet into the LAN port is the way through first-time setup when you have neither.
Known Universal TV failure mode
When some sets appear and others do not, the cause is rarely the app. Discovery relies on multicast — SSDP or mDNS depending on the platform — and routers routinely drop it: AP or client isolation, a guest SSID, a mesh that puts devices in separate segments, or IGMP snooping configured badly.
What helps: Put every device on the same SSID rather than a guest network, and turn off AP or client isolation. Where the platform allows it, entering the TV’s IP address by hand bypasses discovery entirely.
Step-by-step guides
Each guide walks you through the exact fix — with a free iPhone app as the solution.
Related guides
The same free app works across all major smart TV platforms.
Free download
Works with Samsung, LG, Sony, Roku, Vizio, and other brands over your home Wi-Fi using WebSocket HTTPS / HTTP REST / Protobuf TLS. Secure Varies by TV brand pairing on first launch. No account, no subscription, no hardware.
Download Free AppAvailable for iOS & Android