TV Control

For LG webOS TVs and monitors

Your TV behaves like a Mac display. Set it up once.

TV Control lives in your menu bar and keeps your LG TV in step with your Mac. It turns off when you sleep or lock, comes back when you return, lands on your Mac’s input, and answers to your volume keys.

A native macOS menu-bar app. No account, no cloud.

The TV Control menu: an LG OLED that’s On, a volume slider at 20, inputs with MacBook selected, and Pause

Automation

It follows your Mac. You don’t have to.

Choose once what should happen when your Mac sleeps and wakes, and when you lock and unlock. A plain-language summary tells you exactly what TV Control will do.

Automation settings: a summary of what TV Control does, Pause automation, and Turn TV off and on chosen for sleep and wake and for lock and unlock
  • Off when your Mac sleeps, on when it wakes

    The TV goes dark with your Mac and comes back when you do.

  • Lock and unlock, separately

    For sleep and wake, and again for lock and unlock, pick Turn TV off and on, Do nothing, or Custom.

  • It makes sure the screen came on

    After waking the TV, TV Control checks the screen actually turned on, and retries briefly if it didn’t.

  • Back on your Mac’s input

    The TV switches to your Mac’s input automatically, so you’re never left on another HDMI port.

Safeguards

Careful about when it acts.

TV Control only steps in when the TV is really yours to switch off.

TV settings: an LG OLED that’s On with current input MacBook, its name, and MacBook chosen as the Mac input

In the menu bar

The remote, without the remote.

See what the TV is doing, and change it, in one click. The volume keys on your keyboard just work.

The TV Control menu with automation paused: volume, inputs and power still available, and a Resume button
  • Status you can trust

    See what the TV is actually doing: On, Standby, Turning On or Unavailable.

  • The input it’s really on

    Switch inputs in a click. The menu shows the TV’s current input, even if it was changed from another Mac or the remote.

  • Volume keys that know where sound is going

    They control the TV only while your Mac’s sound is going to it. The menu’s volume slider always controls the TV.

  • Pause automation

    Pause it from the menu bar when you want the TV left alone. Power, inputs and volume keep working.

  • Sized for your screen

    Choose a Compact, Standard or Large menu, so the controls stay easy to read on a big TV.

Help & Diagnostics

When something’s off, you’ll see why.

Help & Diagnostics shows how things stand, checks the connection, and puts together a report for support. Nothing is sent unless you send it.

Help & Diagnostics: No issues detected, with TV, Pairing, Wake from standby, Automation and Volume keys, and a Check Connection button
  • Health at a glance

    See whether everything’s working, and what needs attention if it isn’t.

  • Check Connection

    Test the connection to your TV without ever turning it on or off. An off-and-on test is there too, if you want it.

  • A support report you control

    Preview it, save it, or email it to support. It’s never sent automatically.

Privacy

Between your Mac and your TV.

TV Control talks to your TV directly over your local network. Nothing else.

Setup

Ready in about a minute.

Set it up once. After that, it reconnects by itself.

  1. Find your TV

    TV Control looks for LG TVs on your network by itself, or you can enter one manually.

    Step 1 of 4, Looking for TVs: scanning the network, with Enter Manually and Set Up Later buttons
  2. Connect

    Choose your TV from the list and connect.

    Step 1 of 4, TVs Found: LG OLED selected, Bedroom TV below it, and Connect to Selected
  3. Approve it on the TV

    Accept the prompt on your TV with its remote. That’s the last time you’ll need it.

    Step 2 of 4, Approve on your TV: look at your TV screen and press Accept, waiting for approval

“I use an LG OLED as my main display every day, and got tired of reaching for the remote just to change the volume, switch inputs or turn it off. TV Control started as a utility for myself, and it’s the tool I use daily.”

Alan Bryden, developer

FAQ

Questions & answers

Which TVs are supported?

LG TVs and monitors running webOS, on the same network as your Mac. Other brands aren’t supported.

Does it work over Wi-Fi?

Yes. Your Mac and your TV just need to be on the same network.

Can it turn the TV off when I lock my Mac?

Yes. In Settings › Automation, sleep and wake and lock and unlock each have their own choice: Turn TV off and on, Do nothing, or Custom. The summary underneath says exactly what will happen.

Will it switch the TV off while someone else is watching?

Not with the safeguards on (they are by default on new installs): TV Control only turns the TV off while it’s showing your Mac, and on a laptop it leaves the TV alone when the laptop isn’t connected to it. You’ll find both in Settings › Automation.

Can I stop it for a while?

Yes. Choose Pause in the menu bar, and TV Control stops turning the TV on and off by itself. Power, inputs and volume still work. Choose Resume when you’re done.

Why don’t my volume keys change the TV?

The volume keys follow your Mac’s sound output. They control the TV only while sound is going to it, and your Mac otherwise. The volume slider in the menu always controls the TV. Audio options are in Settings › Audio.

The app can’t find my TV.

Make sure the TV is on and on the same network as your Mac, then scan again in Settings › TV. You can also enter its address yourself there.

Something isn’t working. Where do I start?

Open Settings › Help & Diagnostics. It shows what needs attention, and Check Connection tests the link to your TV without turning it on or off.

Do you collect any data?

No. The app has no analytics, and nothing leaves your Mac unless you choose to send a support report.

Still stuck?

Send a support report from Help & Diagnostics, or email support@tvcontrol.io with your macOS version and TV model.

Your TV behaves like a Mac display.

Set it up once, and let your Mac take it from there.

Download on the Mac App Store

For LG webOS TVs and monitors on the same network as your Mac.