HOT 197: Stop Your TV from Turning On by Itself - How to Fix Automatic Power-Ons with HDMI-CEC
Mikah addresses a listener question about why their TCL TV and cable box sometimes turn on automatically after a power outage. He explains the likely causes and offers troubleshooting tips. Mikah also shares an important follow-up from a previous episode about internet speeds and the limitations of the Apple TV 4K's Ethernet port. Main Topic: • Richard asks why his TCL TV and cable box sometimes turn on by themselves after brief power outages • Mikah explains that TCL TVs have a "Fast TV Start" feature that keeps the TV in a powered-on state to maintain network connections, causing it to turn back on when power is restored • HDMI-CEC (Consumer Electronics Control) allows devices to communicate and control each other, which may cause the cable box to turn on when the TV powers on • Mikah advises checking the TV and cable box settings for features like Fast TV Start, sleep/hibernation modes, and HDMI-CEC to adjust the behavior • Many smart home devices, such as lights and robot vacuums, also have auto-on features that should be configured to prevent unexpected behavior after power outages Follow-up: • Thomas points out that in a previous episode (195), the Apple TV 4K used to test internet speeds has a maximum throughput of about 990 Mbps due to its Gigabit Ethernet port • For the listener (Ross) to accurately test their 2.5 Gbps internet speed, they should ensure their Mac supports the full 2.5 Gbps that the adapter provides • The Apple TV 4K's Wi-Fi 6 support may allow for faster speeds than its Ethernet port, depending on the router and environment Don't forget to send in your questions for Mikah to answer during the show! hot@twit.tv Host: Mikah Sargent Download or subscribe to Hands-On Tech at https://twit.tv/shows/hands-on-tech Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit