Best Xbox Series X Media Remote: What Works on X and S

If you want a real remote in your hand, buy the 8BitDo Media Remote for Xbox. It is the only dedicated remote we found whose maker still lists it for the Xbox Series X and Series S. Before you spend anything, though, try the remote control inside the Xbox app on your phone, which costs nothing.

Your TV’s own remote is a different matter. Xbox’s support pages describe HDMI-CEC as a way for the console and the TV to switch each other on and off, and for the console to change the TV’s volume. They do not describe steering the Xbox with the TV remote.

We have not handled any of these remotes. The details below come from 8BitDo’s product and support pages and from Xbox Support, and most of the 2021 version of this list has gone.

Some links on this page go to Amazon. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

The options compared

8BitDo Media Remote for Xbox

8BitDo’s product page carries the “Designed for Xbox” label and lists the Xbox Series X, Series S and Xbox One as compatible. The remote comes in two sizes:

• Long edition: 197.5 mm long and 95 g, with number keys, navigation, media controls and the Xbox button.
• Short edition: 134.25 mm long and 68 g, the same remote without the number keys.

It works by infrared. 8BitDo’s FAQ says no pairing is needed, and that you should aim it straight at the console from within 8 metres with nothing in the way. Strong light can shorten that range. It runs on two AAA batteries, which the spec sheet lists as included.

The remote has a backlight, and the FAQ says it goes off after five seconds without a press. A backlight that keeps blinking, or stops coming on, means the batteries need changing. A dedicated Home button wakes the console.

Three limits, all from 8BitDo’s own pages:

• The volume buttons change your TV’s volume through the Xbox, over HDMI-CEC. Your TV has to support CEC and the Xbox’s HDMI-CEC options have to be on.
• It moves a selection up, down, left and right. There is no pointer mode.
• Some buttons do nothing in some countries, because the features behind them are regional.

8BitDo’s page gives no price. It sends buyers to Amazon’s US and UK stores, and the remote is not in 8BitDo’s own online shop.

Get the long edition if you want number keys. Otherwise the short one does everything else, and it is about 6 cm shorter and 27 g lighter. 8BitDo Media Remote for Xbox on Amazon

The Xbox app as a remote

The Xbox app for Android and iPhone has a remote control built in. Xbox Support says it lets you navigate menus, control media playback and enter text on the console from your phone. Typing a search is the job where a phone keyboard beats any remote with arrow keys.

To switch it on, Xbox Support gives these steps:

1. Press the Xbox button on the controller to open the guide.
2. Go to Profile & system, then Settings, then Devices & connections, then Remote features, and tick the box to enable remote features.
3. Go back to Settings, open Power options and choose Sleep.
4. In the app, signed in with the same Microsoft account, tap the Console icon on the Home tab and then Open remote control.

Xbox Support adds two notes. Remote control is not the same thing as Remote Play, which streams games to the phone. And the app and its features may not be available in every region.

Your TV remote and HDMI-CEC

The Xbox Series X and S have no infrared blaster, according to Xbox’s own FAQ. They talk to the TV over the HDMI cable using a feature called CEC. The settings are under Profile & system, Settings, General, TV & display options, TV & A/V power options.

Xbox’s HDMI-CEC page lists six options you can tick:

• The console turns other devices on.
• The console turns other devices off.
• Other devices can turn the console on, which includes switching the TV to the Xbox input.
• Other devices can turn the console off.
• The console sends volume commands to the TV, receiver or soundbar.
• Pressing the Xbox button on the controller switches the TV to the Xbox input.

The list has no option for moving around the Xbox with the TV’s remote, and we found no Xbox support page that describes one. So treat CEC as the thing that keeps power, input and volume in step, and use a media remote or the app for the menus.

If CEC does nothing, Xbox Support’s advice is to check the TV first. Most TVs ship with it off, under a brand name of their own: the FAQ gives SimpLink on LG sets as an example. Some TVs support it only on certain HDMI ports, and a device sitting between the console and the TV can block it.

Voice and the Google Home app

Xbox Support still documents voice control for the Series X and S. It says the Xbox skill for Alexa is available in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Mexico, Spain, the UK and the US, and that the Xbox action for Google Assistant is supported in all markets in English. Both need the console set to Sleep and digital assistants enabled under Devices & connections. The commands it lists cover power, volume, pause and play, and launching games and apps.

The Google Home app can also act as a touch remote. Xbox’s update notes list power, directional navigation, home, back, play and pause, skip, volume and mute among its controls.

None of this depends on a particular speaker, so we no longer name one here. If you are choosing one anyway, see our guide to smart home hubs.

Does the Xbox One Media Remote work on Series X?

Xbox Support gives two answers. Its Series X and S FAQ says the consoles are compatible with most Xbox One accessories, “including the Media Remote”. Its page about the Xbox One Media Remote asks the same question and answers no: the remote works only with the Xbox One console.

We cannot settle that from the pages, and we would not buy one for a Series console on the strength of either. If one is already in a drawer, pointing it at the console costs nothing.

What happened to the old list

• PDP Talon Media Remote: PDP’s website now forwards to Turtle Beach, to a page headed “Where’s PDP?”. The address of PDP’s Xbox media remote now lands on a general accessories page, and we found no media remote in Turtle Beach’s US store. Shops may still hold stock, but there is no maker’s page left to check it against.
• Inteset INT-422: still on its maker’s site at $25.95, fully backlit, able to learn codes and control four devices. The page names the Xbox One and Xbox 360, not the Series X or S, so we cannot list it as verified.
• Logitech Harmony Elite: Logitech has stopped manufacturing Harmony remotes. It says support continues and that remaining stock is sold through retailers.
• Amazon Echo Dot and Google Nest Mini: these were voice control under another name. Voice control is covered above, without the speakers.

We also looked at SofaBaton and One For All, two makers of universal remotes. One For All’s support page names the Xbox, Xbox 360 and Xbox One for its Smart Control 8, and we found no page from either maker that names the Series X or S.

Which to pick

• A remote on the sofa arm: the 8BitDo, short edition unless you want number keys.
• Nothing to buy: the Xbox app’s remote control.
• TV and console on and off together, and volume from the Xbox: turn on HDMI-CEC on both.
• Hands full: Alexa or Google Assistant, where Xbox supports them.

Quick answers

Can you control an Xbox with a TV remote?

Not the menus, going by Xbox’s support pages. HDMI-CEC lets the TV and the console turn each other on and off, and lets the console change the TV’s volume. The pages list no option for navigating the Xbox with the TV remote.

Is there an Xbox media remote app?

Yes. The Xbox app for Android and iPhone includes a remote control for menus, media playback and text entry, once remote features are enabled on the console.

Does the 8BitDo remote control TV volume?

Yes, through the console. 8BitDo says the TV must support HDMI-CEC and the Xbox’s HDMI-CEC options must be enabled.

Does a media remote need pairing with the Xbox?

The 8BitDo does not. It uses infrared, so it needs a clear line to the console, and 8BitDo gives its range as 8 metres.