What does the star symbol on your Roku remote mean?

Roku streaming devices are incredibly popular for their ease of use and access to a wide range of platforms, from major streaming services to more specialized applications. One of the biggest benefits of these smart TVs and add-on devices is that it’s incredibly easy to replace your Roku remote or control the TV interface with your smartphone. Unlike the big remotes that came with old TVs and DVD players that had a surplus of buttons that you never needed to use, the Roku remote is pretty simple. That being said, there is one button whose function is not immediately obvious: the star symbol.

Located below the D-pad and just above the fast-forward button, the star (or asterisk) symbol functions as an options button for apps on the home screen and when watching video content. Highlighting an app and pressing the star button will bring up a pop-up with information about that app, while using it with a show or movie will often open a settings menu on the left side of the screen.

As for details, using the star button on most apps on your home screen brings up information about the app, including version and build numbers. There are also options to move the app on your screen (either manually, by automatically moving it up, or by pinning it to Quick Access), check for updates, and delete the app.

There are a few exceptions to this, such as video game consoles or Blu-ray players that you have plugged in via an AV or HDMI cable – these can be renamed by pressing the star button. There’s also Roku’s Live TV Guide, where the star button can perform tasks like searching for channels, but doesn’t provide the ability to delete the app. It’s worth mentioning that pressing the star button while highlighting an app in the Quick Access menu will only give you the option to remove it from Quick Access. So you will have to scroll down to the “Your apps” section if you want to check for updates or delete the app.

If you have an app open, pressing the star button will usually give you nothing more than a clicking sound unless you have something playing or are using an add-on like a console. If so, it will open a settings menu with a sleep timer, picture and sound settings, accessibility and language options, and a button to turn off the screen while keeping your content running. As with the various shortcut buttons on Roku remotes, there is no option to remap the star button to perform other functions.