Slides Remote Help

Slides Remote lets you change slides on your computer (a Mac or a Windows PC) from your iPhone or Apple Watch, see your notes for each slide and keep to time. Questions not answered here: georgeturner308@icloud.com.

Contents: Getting started · Pairing · How the devices connect · Apple Watch · Notes · Timers · The unlock, free trial and restoring · Settings on the computer · Troubleshooting · Privacy

Getting started

You need:

• A computer with Slides Remote on it:
  • On a Mac: macOS 26 or later and the free Slides Remote app from the Mac App Store.
  • On Windows: Windows 10 (version 2004 or later) or Windows 11 and the free Slides Remote for Windows from the Microsoft Store.
• An iPhone with iOS 26 or later and the free Slides Remote app from the App Store. The Apple Watch app (watchOS 26 or later) comes with it.
• The computer and iPhone on the same Wi-Fi network, or close enough for Bluetooth (about 10 metres). No internet connection is needed.

1. On the computer

On a Mac:

1. Open Slides Remote. It explains why it needs to press keys: that's how it changes slides in Keynote, PowerPoint and other apps.
2. Click Open System Settings…. macOS shows its own message; open System Settings and turn on Slides Remote under Privacy & Security ▸ Accessibility. Back in the app, the next screen comes by itself.
3. Click Continue and Allow Bluetooth, so your iPhone and watch can find the Mac without Wi-Fi.

You can choose Not Now on either screen; the dashboard's Status section then shows what's missing, with a button to turn it on later.

Why Accessibility? macOS lets an app press keys for another app only with this permission. Slides Remote presses a key only when you choose a command (Next, Previous, Start Show…) on a remote or on the Mac. It doesn't read your screen, other apps or what you type.

On Windows:

1. Open Slides Remote. The first time, it shows two screens: Let Your Phones and Watches Find This PC and Connect Without Wi-Fi (Bluetooth, so your iPhone and watch nearby can connect where there's no shared Wi-Fi). Click Continue on each.
2. Set your Wi-Fi network to Private (Settings ▸ Network & internet ▸ Wi-Fi, then your network): Slides Remote is allowed through Windows Defender Firewall on private networks only. If Windows asks, allow it on private networks. To change it later: Windows Security ▸ Firewall & network protection ▸ Allow an app through firewall.
3. The dashboard opens, and Slides Remote's icon appears in the notification area at the right of the taskbar (Windows 11 may put it under ^; drag it onto the taskbar to keep it in view). Closing the dashboard keeps Slides Remote running; open it again from the icon (Open Dashboard…). Under Status, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth say On when your iPhone and watch can find the PC.

Windows needs no Accessibility permission. Slides Remote presses a key only when you choose a command on a remote or on the computer.

2. On the iPhone

1. Open Slides Remote. Tap Continue and Allow Bluetooth, then Continue and Allow Local Network (that's how it finds the computer on Wi-Fi). Either one is enough to work; both is best.
2. Your computer appears under Computers Nearby. Tap it and pair (next section).

3. Present

1. On the computer, open your presentation and click its window so it's in front. Start the slideshow there or with Start Show on the iPhone.
2. Tap Next and Previous. That's it.

Slides Remote works with PowerPoint, Google Slides (in a browser) and most other presentation apps, plus Keynote and Preview on a Mac and LibreOffice Impress, Keynote for iCloud (in a browser) and PDF viewers on Windows, by pressing the keys you would press yourself. On Windows it can also control PowerPoint directly and follow its slide.

Pairing

You pair each iPhone or watch with your computer once. It keeps others nearby from controlling your slides.

1. On the computer, click Pair New Device… on the dashboard (on a Mac, also in the Slides menu; on Windows, also in the Slides Remote icon's menu in the notification area).
2. On the iPhone or watch, tap your computer.
3. Both screens show the same 6-digit code. Check they match, then tap Confirm on the iPhone (or watch) and click Confirm on the computer. If they don't match, choose Doesn't Match on either and try again.

After that, the iPhone and watch reconnect by themselves whenever Slides Remote is open on the computer.

Removing a device: on the computer, under Paired Devices, click Revoke… next to it. It has to pair again to connect.

How the devices connect

The badge at the top of the iPhone and watch shows the link in use, with signal bars:

• Wi-Fi: the computer and iPhone are on the same Wi-Fi network. Fastest; used whenever it's available.
• Bluetooth: used when there's no shared Wi-Fi (for example on a venue's network that blocks devices from seeing each other). The iPhone switches between Wi-Fi and Bluetooth by itself, and back to Wi-Fi when it returns.
• Via iPhone (watch only): the watch talks to the computer through your iPhone when it can't reach the computer over Bluetooth itself, then switches back.

"No reply for 5 s" means the computer hasn't answered for a while; it usually recovers by itself. Everything between your devices is encrypted.

The slide number on the remotes is counted from the commands sent (shown as Tracked). If you also press keys on the computer's keyboard, it can drift: use Resync… (More menu on the iPhone) to tell it which slide is showing.

Apple Watch

• Open Slides Remote on the watch and tap your computer (pair with the code the first time, as above).
• Change slides with the big buttons, by turning the Digital Crown, or with Double Tap on watches that have it.
• Swipe up for the current slide's notes, then the Show page: Start or End Show, Blank, the timer's controls, and Keep in Front.
• Timer cues: the watch taps your wrist at each warning, when time's up and when a section runs over.

Keep in Front and Return to Clock

Normally a watch goes back to the clock a couple of minutes after you lower your wrist, and the app is paused. During a talk, Slides Remote stays in front instead: while the slideshow or the timer is running, it keeps the app on screen (dimmed, showing the slide and minutes left), connected to the computer, and taps your wrist on time. A pin next to the link badge shows it's on. It stops when the show ends or the timer is paused, and lasts up to an hour at a time; raising your wrist near the end starts a new hour.

• To turn it off: Show page ▸ Keep in Front.
• If you leave the app (press the Digital Crown), it stops until you come back.
• Without it (or if it's turned off), you can make the watch wait longer before returning to the clock: on the watch, Settings ▸ General ▸ Return to Clock ▸ Slides Remote ▸ After 1 hour. The app then stays visible, but cues may be late and the link may need to reconnect when you raise your wrist.

Notes

Notes are part of the unlock (below); you can try them free for 7 days.

• On the computer: click Edit Presentations and Notes… on the dashboard. Add presentations with +, give each a name and its number of slides, pick a slide and type its notes. They save as you type.
• On the iPhone: the current slide's notes are on the main screen; tap Edit to change them. If the same notes were changed on the computer at the same time, the iPhone asks which to keep.
• On the watch: swipe up from the controls to read them (read only).
• Several presentations: choose the one you're giving in the computer's Presenting menu or the iPhone's More ▸ Presentations…. Each has its own notes and timer.

Notes are plain text, up to about 16,000 characters per slide. They're kept on the computer and sent to your paired iPhone and watch.

Timers

Timers are part of the unlock (below).

• Set up: on the computer, Edit Timer… on the dashboard; on the iPhone, More ▸ Set Up Timer…. Enter the talk's length (for example 20 or 19:30), the warnings (times left, such as 5:00, 1:00, 0:00) and optionally sections: a range of slides with its own budget (Intro, slides 1–3, 2 minutes). You can also give a single slide its own time.
• Run: Start Timer on the computer, iPhone or watch; Pause, Resume and Reset from any of them.
• Reading it: time left, the current section and its time left, and whether you're ahead or behind the section plan. The watch taps at each warning and when a section runs over.

The unlock, free trial and restoring

• Free: remote control (changing slides, Start/End Show, Blank, Go to Slide, the connection) and creating presentations.
• Unlock (a one-time purchase): notes and timers. No subscription.
• An unlocked device shares notes and timers with the devices connected to it. The unlock is bought on the computer or on the iPhone (the iPhone's unlock includes its Apple Watch), and either one is enough: a paid computer unlocks every iPhone and watch connected to it, and a paid iPhone or watch unlocks the computer it's connected to. While that's how a device is unlocked, it says "Unlocked while name is connected" (Mac: Settings ▸ General ▸ Notes & Timers and under the dashboard's notes; iPhone: the More menu and beside Notes). The share ends when you disconnect, or revoke the device on the computer, or about a minute after the connection is lost (so a short drop or a change of link doesn't lock anything). It isn't passed on: a paid iPhone unlocks the computer, not the other devices connected to that computer. A free trial isn't shared.
• Free trial: tap Unlock… on a locked card, then Start 7-Day Free Trial. It unlocks everything for 7 days and then simply ends: nothing is charged and nothing renews. You can buy the unlock at any time during the trial.
• Family Sharing: the unlock is shared with your family group (the trial isn't).
• Restore Purchases: after reinstalling, or on another iPhone or Mac with the same Apple Account (on Windows, with the same Microsoft account; the PC's unlock is bought in the Microsoft Store). iPhone: More ▸ Restore Purchases; Mac: Settings ▸ General ▸ Notes & Timers ▸ Restore Purchases (also in the unlock sheet).
• The watch reads the iPhone's purchase; there's nothing to buy on the watch ("Unlock on your iPhone").
• Refunds are handled by Apple: reportaproblem.apple.com.

Settings on the computer

On Windows, click Settings… on the dashboard.

• General: Keep this PC awake while remotes are connected (the display also stays on while the slideshow plays); Notes & Timers status, Unlock and Restore Purchases.
• Presentation: Control with: Automatic (controls PowerPoint directly when it's in front, and follows its slide; key presses for every other app), Keystrokes or PowerPoint.
• Keys: the key each command presses, for each app (PowerPoint, LibreOffice Impress, Google Slides in a browser, Keynote for iCloud in a browser, PDF viewers, Other Apps). Click a key and press a new one, choose None, or Use Default.

On a Mac, open Slides Remote ▸ Settings… (⌘,).

• General: show the menu bar item; Keep Mac awake while remotes are connected (on by default; the display also stays on during the slideshow; closing the lid still sleeps the Mac); Notes & Timers status, Unlock and Restore Purchases.
• Presentation: Presentation app (Automatic, or always a chosen app); Control with (Keystrokes); Return to Slides Remote after Next or Previous (off by default; see below).
• Keys: the key each command presses, for each app (Keynote, PowerPoint, Preview, Google Slides in a browser, Other Apps). Click a key and press a new one, choose None, or Use Default. Useful if your app uses different keys, for example W for a white screen in Keynote.
• Shortcuts: the Mac's own Next Slide and Previous Slide shortcuts (⌘] and ⌘[ by default).

Next and Previous on the computer itself

The dashboard's buttons change slides too. On Windows, so do Next Slide and Previous Slide in the Slides Remote icon's menu in the notification area; click your presentation's window once first so Slides Remote knows which it is. On a Mac, so do the Slides menu, the Dock menu (right-click the Dock icon) and the menu bar item. If Slides Remote is in front, it first switches to your presentation (the app chosen in Settings ▸ Presentation, or the one you were using before), then presses the key. With Return to Slides Remote after Next or Previous on, it comes back to the front afterwards; handy while rehearsing at the Mac.

Troubleshooting

My iPhone won't connect over Bluetooth (it works on Wi-Fi), or says the Bluetooth pairing is out of date

An old system Bluetooth pairing between this iPhone and Mac gets in the way (Slides Remote doesn't use the system's pairing). Remove it on both:

1. On the Mac: System Settings ▸ Bluetooth, find your iPhone (often under "My Devices", shown as not connected), click ⓘ ▸ Forget This Device….
2. On the iPhone: Settings ▸ Bluetooth, tap ⓘ next to your Mac if it's listed, Forget This Device.
3. Try again. You don't need to pair Slides Remote again.

The iPhone can't find my computer

• Is Slides Remote open on the computer? It has to be running (on a Mac it can be in the menu bar; on Windows, in the notification area).
• On Windows: is the Wi-Fi network set to Private, and is Slides Remote allowed through Windows Defender Firewall on private networks? See On the computer. The dashboard's Status says whether phones can find the PC.
• Same Wi-Fi network? Many guest, hotel and conference networks stop devices seeing each other: turn Wi-Fi off on the iPhone and it uses Bluetooth instead.
• Local Network turned down? The computer list says so. Turn it on in Settings ▸ Apps ▸ Slides Remote ▸ Local Network. Bluetooth still works without it.
• Bluetooth off or not allowed? Check Settings ▸ Bluetooth and Settings ▸ Apps ▸ Slides Remote ▸ Bluetooth on the iPhone, and System Settings ▸ Privacy & Security ▸ Bluetooth on a Mac (on Windows, Settings ▸ Bluetooth & devices).

"Waiting for <your computer>…" / the computer went to sleep

When the computer sleeps, quits Slides Remote or goes out of range, the iPhone and watch wait and reconnect by themselves when it's back (within about 10 seconds of it waking). After 10 minutes they stop waiting; tap the computer to connect again. To stop a Mac sleeping during a talk, leave Settings ▸ General ▸ Keep Mac awake while remotes are connected on, and keep the lid open. On Windows, leave Settings ▸ General ▸ Keep this PC awake while remotes are connected on (on a laptop, closing the lid can still sleep it).

The remote says it worked but the slides don't move

• Click your presentation's window on the computer so it's the app in front. The keys go to whichever app is in front. If Slides Remote itself is in front, the remotes say so.
• Is the slideshow playing? Some apps (PowerPoint, Google Slides) only use the arrow keys for slides while presenting.
• "The computer can't change slides…": Slides Remote doesn't have permission to press keys in your presentation. On a Mac, turn on Accessibility for it in System Settings ▸ Privacy & Security ▸ Accessibility (if it's already on, turn it off and on again). On Windows, the slideshow is running as administrator, so Windows won't let Slides Remote press keys in it: run the slideshow normally, or run Slides Remote as administrator too. Notes and the timer still work meanwhile.
• A particular app ignores the keys or uses others: change them in Settings ▸ Keys for that app, or under Other Apps.
• Google Slides: the browser tab with the presentation has to be in front, and the presentation playing.
• The slide number is off by a few: use Resync… in the iPhone's More menu.

The watch went back to the clock during my talk

Check Keep in Front is on (Show page), and that the show or timer was running (it starts with them). If watchOS ended it, the watch says so; raise your wrist to bring it back. See Keep in Front and Return to Clock.

Notes or the timer are locked

They're part of the unlock. Start the free trial, buy the unlock, or Restore Purchases if you already bought it. Or connect to a computer or iPhone that has the unlock: it shares notes and timers while you're connected (see The unlock, free trial and restoring).

The iPhone's screen stays on

While connected to a computer, the iPhone doesn't lock by itself, so the remote is ready mid-talk. Turn this off in More ▸ Keep Screen On.

Privacy

Slides Remote has no accounts, no servers, no analytics and no ads. Your presentations and notes are stored on your computer and sent only to your own paired iPhone and Apple Watch, over an encrypted connection on your local network or Bluetooth. Purchases are handled by Apple. Full policy: Privacy Policy.