Roku Voice Narration: How to Make Your Roku Stop Talking

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Easy steps to disable text-to-speech on your Roku TV or streaming player
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Is your Roku suddenly narrating everything you see on screen? If you want to make your Roku stop talking, you've come to the right place! Roku TVs and streaming devices have an accessibility feature called Screen Reader which reads on-screen text aloud. While having a text-to-speech screen reader is useful for visually impaired users, it can be annoying if turned on accidentally. Fortunately, it's easy to disable Roku's screen reading feature: Just press the star button on your remote 4 times in a row, or switch off Screen Reader in your Accessibility settings. This wikiHow article will teach you the easiest way to stop your Roku from talking.

Things You Should Know

  • Press the Star key on your Roku remote 4 times (quickly) to make your Roku stop talking.
  • You can also disable Screen Reader in Settings > Accessibility > Screen Reader.
  • If you keep hearing voice narration even with Screen Reader off, you may need to turn off audio descriptions in your streaming app.
Method 1
Method 1 of 3:

Using the Star Key on the Remote

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    If Roku won't stop talking because Screen Reader is enabled, pressing the asterisk key on your Roku remote four times (quickly) will turn it off. [1]
    • To turn Screen Reader back on, just press the Star key 4 times again.
    • If you don't want to worry about accidentally turning on Screen Reader, go to your Roku's Settings , select Accessibility > Screen Reader > Shortcut , then choose Disabled .
    • Screen Reader is available on all Roku TV models, as well as most streaming Roku streaming players including Streambar, Express, Premiere, Ultra, and Streaming Stick. [2]
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Method 2
Method 2 of 3:

Using Accessibility Settings

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    You can find it on the Roku's homepage.
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    This may be called Audio Guide on some devices.
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    Once you disable Screen Reader, your Roku will no longer narrate the screen aloud.
    • If you still hear your Roku talking after turning off Screen Reader, it's likely that you've enabled voice narration in one of your TV apps .
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Method 3
Method 3 of 3:

Disabling Voice Narration in Apps

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    Open the streaming app on which you hear a voice-over narration. If your Roku continues to talk even after you have disabled Screen Reader, it's likely that the app you're using to stream a movie or TV show has voice narration enabled.
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    The steps to turning off voice narration on streaming apps will be a little different depending on the app, but here is a quick breakdown:
    • Max (formerly HBO Max): Press the Play/Pause button as you're watching something with narration, select the Audio and Subtitles icon (the chat bubble with two lines inside), then select English – Original under "Audio" (instead of "English – Audio Description"). [3]
    • Netflix: Press the up or down arrow on your remote while watching a show or movie, select Audio & Subtitles (or the chat bubble icon), and choose a language that does not say "Audio Description" at the end. [4]
    • Hulu: Press the Up button on the Roku remote while watching a show or movie, select Settings , then select a language that does not say "Audio Description" at the end. [5]
    • Disney+: During playback, press the Star key on your Roku remote, then select a language option that does not say "Audio Description. [6] "
    • Amazon Prime Video: During playback, press the up arrow on your remote, then select a language option that does not say "Audio Description."
    • Apple TV+: Pause playback and select the gear icon. Select Accessibility and disable Audio Descriptions. [7]
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      Tips

      • If your Roku still won't stop talking after changing these settings, a software update may be available. In your Roku Settings , go to System > Software update > Check now to check for and install updates. [8]
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      References

      1. ↑ https://support.roku.com/article/231584647
      2. ↑ https://www.roku.com/accessibility
      3. ↑ https://help.hbomax.com/do-en/answer/detail/000001265
      4. ↑ https://help.netflix.com/en/node/25079
      5. ↑ https://help.hulu.com/s/article/audio-description
      6. ↑ https://help.disneyplus.com/article/disneyplus-en-us-video-language
      7. ↑ https://support.apple.com/en-eg/guide/tvapp/atvb372a82a4/web
      8. ↑ https://support.roku.com/article/208755668

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