Alex Ruben
How To Remove or Unpair the Second Remote from Google TV Streamer 4K and Chromecast with Google TV
If you’ve ended up with multiple remotes paired to your Google TV Streamer 4K or Chromecast With Google TV, it can be kinda annoying. Sometimes, remotes get left paired after upgrades, or maybe someone else added their remote, and now your device’s acting weird or slow to respond. Unpairing or removing extra remotes helps clear out the clutter, reduce control conflicts, and just makes everything more straightforward. This isn’t always obvious or intuitive, especially since Google’s menus can be a bit janky, but after a few minutes experimenting, it’s doable.
How to Unpair a Remote from Google TV
Access the Settings menu
First, turn on your Google TV device (obviously). From the home screen, hit the Settings icon — it’s usually a little gear in the top right corner. If you don’t see it there, sometimes you need to long-press the Home button on your remote or go through the Quick Settings menu. Once you’re in, you want to find the Preferences or direct Settings section, depending on your version.
Oh, and if you have trouble reaching the menu, a shortcut I often use is pressing Home then navigating via the gear icon or via the Quick Settings panel (swipe down from the top). Anyway, once inside, look for Remotes & Accessories — it’s usually under the main menu but can sometimes be buried under Device Preferences.
Locate and identify the remote you want to remove
Inside Remotes & Accessories, you’ll see a list of all paired devices. It might show up as “Voice Remote,” “Chromecast Remote,” or some custom name if you’ve renamed it. If there’s more than one, try to figure out which one is the extra or unknown one. If it’s still on, you can usually tell by the device type or, on some setups, by the battery status or last used timestamp.
Pro tip: On early versions, this list can look flaky or sometimes won’t refresh instantly, so if you don’t see your remote right away, give it a second or try restarting the device.
Unpair or forget the remote
Once you’ve picked the right remote, select it, and look for options like Forget or Unpair. Sometimes it’s a button, other times a long-press. Choosing Forget should prompt a confirmation, which is where some people get tripped up — it’s a good idea to confirm because, on some setups, the remote may still try to connect afterward.
This step helps really disconnect the remote from the device, clearing up any control conflicts. If nothing happens or the remote keeps showing up, try to restart the Google TV — because of course, Android TV’s trying to make things complicated when they don’t need to be.
Verify the remote is gone
After unpairing, head back into Remotes & Accessories and check if the remote still appears. If it doesn’t, great — it’s unpaired. If it’s still listed, try to repeat the process, or consider restarting the system and doing it again. Sometimes, the device just doesn’t want to unpair the remote at first, and a reboot helps it forget the device properly.
Extra tips & troubleshooting
- Make sure the remote you’re trying to unpair isn’t actively being used—sometimes, that messes with unpairing.
- In case the remote is acting weird or the menu is unresponsive, turn off the TV, unplug it for a few seconds, then plug back in and try again.
- If the remote is really stubborn, resetting it or removing the batteries temporarily can help trigger a fresh unpair.
- For some remotes, especially third-party or certain voice remotes, you might need to reset them via button combinations (check the remote’s manual).
- Sometimes, on one setup it works just fine, but on another, remote lists are glitchy. Patience is key.
Wrap-up
Getting rid of that extra remote isn’t always straightforward — Google’s menus can be less than user-friendly. But with a few clicks, a restart or two, and some patience, you can streamline things and avoid control conflicts. Remember, this process helps keep your device clutter-free and operating smoothly, which is kinda the point of all this tech mess in the first place.
Summary
- Access Settings > Preferences > Remotes & Accessories.
- Find and select the remote you want to unpair.
- Choose Forget or Unpair, confirm if needed.
- Double-check it’s gone, restart if necessary.
Final thoughts — fingers crossed this helps
Unpairing a remote can be a bit hit-or-miss, but once it’s done, the control landscape gets way easier. Sometimes the menus are sluggish, or a restart clears up any lingering hiccups. Overall, not a big deal once you get the hang of it, and hopefully this saves some frustration down the line. Worked for me on a few setups — just something that helps keep things tidy.