Turning on smart tv with a routine

Devices & Integrations
1

Hey there, can anyone tell me how I can turn on my tv at a pre selected time. I heard you can somehow do that with routines in the app but I don’t know how.
Thank you.

2

Brand and model of the television?

3

Going to make the assumption that you have a Samsung TV or at least some other TV you’ve managed to load into SmartThings that offers on/off control (fingers crossed on this assumption):

  1. Open the App.
  2. Click on “+” in upper right-hand corner.
  3. Click on “Automations.”
  4. In the “IF” section, click “Add condition.”
  5. Select “Time.” Input desired time as well as days this should happen (towards the bottom).
  6. Click “Save.”
  7. In the “Then” section, click “Add action.”
  8. Click “Control devices.”
  9. Locate your TV device in your list.
  10. Click into it. Your screen should return to the Automation Builder.
  11. Make sure it is set to be “On.” (depending on TV model you may be able to set other settings.)
  12. Click “Done.” Click “OK” unless you want to edit name of Automation.
4

I just tried to validate this and I have no option to control my TV (QE55Q80TATXXU). In the automation creation builder, its not listed as a controlable device so I thought I’d setup a scene which also doesnt allow the TV to be powered on/off.

5

Welcome to the list of Samsung Tv owners that don’t have an ON option… sadly it is common ish

I have 2 different Samsung Tvs 2017 model used to but now does not have ON as an option

And a 2019 Samsung Tv which does… its a lottery tbh

2 Likes
6

There are couple of things to try but this usually does not work

Connect the Tv via a lan cable if possible see if that helps, if you are already using WiFi and it does not work then that option is out

Going by the Smartthings instructions for tv connection, the proper recommended method is wifi

7

I’m using wifi at the moment and a physical cable connection isnt possible because of locations.

8

I will let others discuss the various options with the television itself.

I had exactly this issue with a different brand of smart television. Once it was turned on, I could control it with a voice assistant. But there was no way to turn it on through the standard integration.

If you are willing to spend about $40, there is a small IR blaster from switchbot that you can use. It has a smartthings integration, as well as an integration with Alexa and with Google Home. It is easy to setup and use. So one extra device, and the problem is solved. :sunglasses:

I know not everyone will want to go this way, but it has worked very well for us.

Here’s my project report on it. (The topic title is a clickable link.)

1 Like
9

@Pogga Was the TV on at the time? If not, try again with it on. That model appears to be a 2020, so this option should be there for you.

1 Like
10

Nope, tv wasnt on and I’ve just tested again. It doesnt matter if the tv is on or off. Looking in the IDE, the tv is listed as type “placeholder”. Could that the root of the problem? @Justus_Gorlich, what device type do you see for your tv in the IDE?

11

@Pogga “placeholder” is normal for a non-Device Type Handler backed device, such as TVs. When I tested this out last night, the TV was missing from the “Control devices” portion of the Automation Builder until I turned it on with SmartThings. I’m not sure why your’s is not doing the same.

12

Did a little more playing around and I got it working. I switched on my TV, went into the ST app and then on my phone, went into the TV device, selected 3 dots in the upper right corner and “Update data”. I got a prompt on the TV asking to grant access to my phone which I did.

Now when I go into the automation creation wizard, I can control the TV as a device regardless of whether the TV is on or off. I can also now use the TV device status as an IF condition when creating an automation.

Hope these steps help others.

4 Likes
13

Tried that, but SmartThings is only showing the “Off” option. I have a new Samsung TV UN40N5200AFZC, I believe it’s a 2019 model bought in 2025. My previous Samsung SmartTV bought in 2016 must have been smarter because I was able to set this automation with its remote. Is there a way to get this setting? I’m thinking of returning it.

14

I have similar vintage Samsung TV’s and as I recall reading if the TV is off you can’t turn it on using the native ST tile. For the last couple of years I have been using the Logitech Harmony hub that integrates into ST with a custom Harmony Bridge Simple V2 driver. It’s a bit old school as it communicates to the TV using a IR transmitter and you need one hub for each TV. But once configured you can turn the TV on and off and set routines to run as needed. My routines are very simple but I believe once the TV is on you can use the native ST tile to perform other TV functions like change channels, inputs and volume.