LG hides the power button well, which is why this trips people up. Once you know where it is, turning the TV on without the remote takes a second.
1. Press the button under the LG logo
On most modern LG TVs — including the OLED and webOS sets — there’s a single button on the underside of the panel, at the centre-bottom, directly behind or just below the LG logo. Reach under and press it once to turn the TV on.
On many models that button is a joystick:
- Press to turn on or select.
- Push up / down for volume, left / right to change channel or move through a menu.
- Press and hold to open a small menu with power off and input (HDMI).
That’s enough to switch inputs and get back to whatever you were watching.
2. Turn it on from a connected device (SimpLink)
If something is plugged into the TV over HDMI — a console, a soundbar, an Apple TV — turning that device on will often wake the TV and switch to its input automatically. LG’s name for this HDMI-CEC feature is SimpLink, and it’s on by default on most sets.
3. Control it from your phone
Once the TV is on and on your Wi-Fi, your phone becomes the remote. LG’s own ThinQ app does this, and so does Zapp, which also gives you the Magic Remote pointer — drag on the phone and the on-screen cursor follows — plus the real input list and a keyboard for search, with no subscription.
One honest caveat: a TV that is fully off can’t be switched on by an app, because its network sleeps with it. An LG in standby is different: with the TV’s Mobile TV On setting switched on (on some models it’s called Turn on via Wi-Fi), Zapp can turn it on from the phone, once it has connected to that TV one time while it was on. That’s part of Zapp’s one-time Pro upgrade. For the very first time, you still use the methods above.
4. A replacement remote
An LG Magic Remote or a universal remote will pair with the TV and is the right permanent fix if the original is gone — but it won’t help you tonight, so use the button or a connected device to get going now.