How to Control Apple TV from Mac, iPad, and iPhone.
Is your Apple TV Remote faulty, lost, or damaged? You don’t need to spend more than $ 50 on a new remote if you can control your Apple TV from your iPhone, iPad, iPod, or Mac. These Apple devices come with built-in remote controls that control your Apple TV just like a physical remote.
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You can also use third-party apps to navigate your Apple TV without a remote control. This guide walks you through all the available methods, apps, and tools to control Apple TV from iPhone, iPad, and Mac.
Control Apple TV From an iPhone or iPad
The Apple TV Remote is automatically added to Control Center on your iPhone or iPad when you set up your Apple TV with your device. It is also added when you enter text with the Apple TV keyboard on the TV screen.
You won’t find the Apple TV Remote in Control Center if your iPhone is running iOS 11 or earlier. IPad requires iPadOS 13 or later.
However, you can manually add your Apple TV Remote to Control Center without updating your device.
Open the Settings app on your iPhone or iPad. Select “Control Center”, scroll down to the “Additional Controls” section. Click the plus sign (+) next to Apple TV Remote. Open your device Control Center and tap the remote icon to launch the Apple TV Remote interface.
Advice. To access the iOS Control Center on iPhone using the physical Home button, swipe up from the bottom of the screen. On an iPhone with a notch, swipe down from the top-right corner of the screen. On iPad, swiping down from the top-right corner of the screen opens Control Center.
If you have multiple Apple TVs associated with your Apple ID, tap the up arrow at the top of the screen and select the Apple TV you want to control.
Understanding the Apple TV Remote Interface on iPhone and iPad
The Apple TV Remote interface is pretty straightforward. The gray rectangle is the touch area. It mimics the touchpad on the Siri Remote (2nd generation) or the touchscreen on the Apple TV Remote 1st generation. You will find the basic options for controlling media playback in the remote control interface.
Swipe your finger across the touch area to navigate between apps and objects. To select an item, tap anywhere on the touch area.
Please note that additional controls will appear in the touch area when content is played in certain applications. For example, when watching a movie on Netflix, the Go Back and Go Forward buttons appear on the remote interface. Press any of the buttons to skip playback backward or forward 10 seconds, respectively.
The functions of the other buttons speak for themselves.
The microphone button activates Siri and lets you search and control your Apple TV using voice commands from your iPhone or iPad. Click the TV icon to go to the Apple TV Home screen. Double-click the TV button to open Apple TV’s App Switching mode, and hold the same button to access the Apple TV Control Center.
The play / pause button in the lower left corner pauses and resumes media playback. The Menu button is multifunctional: tap it once to return to the previous screen, or hold the button to open the Home screen. Press the Menu button on the Home screen to activate the Apple TV splash screen. Click the Search button in the lower-right corner to launch the Apple TV Search app. The search button will then change to a keyboard icon. Click the Keyboard button to enter your search term using the iOS or iPadOS keyboard.
Control Apple TV From Mac
Mac laptops and desktops don’t have an Apple TV Remote. All you can do from your Mac is pause or resume media playback. You can’t search for TV shows, activate the Apple TV screensaver, perform voice searches, or navigate apps.
Follow the steps below to pair and control your Apple TV from your Mac. Make sure your devices (like Mac and Apple TV) are using the same iCloud account before proceeding.
On Apple TV, go to Settings> Users & Accounts, choose a default user account, and note the iCloud address under Apple ID.
Open Mac System Preferences, select Apple ID, and check if your iCloud email or Apple ID matches the address on Apple TV.
Launch the Home app on your Mac. You will need to give the Home app access to your iCloud Keychain if this is your first time launching the app. Then select “Enable iCloud Keychain†to continue.
Check the Keychain Access box.
Select “Continue”.
Enter your Apple ID password and click Next to continue.
Enter your Mac administrator password and click OK.
Return to the Home app and select Turn on iCloud Keychain again.
Enter your iPhone or iPad passcode and wait for the Home app to download all accessories connected to your Apple ID.
Select “Continue”.
If your Apple ID and Apple TV are linked, you should see a pop-up message asking you to add yourself to Apple TV. Select “Add me to Apple TV” to continue.
Your Apple TV should now appear in the Home or Rooms tab in the sidebar.
You can only control media playback on Apple TV from the Mac Home app. Select Apple TV to play or pause media playback.
Apple TV will change from “Playing†to “Pause†(and vice versa) when you pause or resume media playback.
Control Apple TV on Mac Using Third-Party Apps
There are third-party apps that offer more control options than the Home app. The Ezzi Keyboard, for example, has navigation controls and keyboard support – you can enter searches on Apple TV from a Mac keyboard. But this is a paid app ($ 0.99).
CiderTV, on the other hand, is completely free but does not support keyboard input. You can only use the app to navigate and select apps and items. It comes with Bluetooth and is easy to set up and use to control your Apple TV from your Mac.
Install CiderTV from the Mac App Store and launch the app. Select Add in the sidebar to link the app to your Apple TV.
Select Open Bluetooth Preferences, turn on Bluetooth on your Mac, and leave the Bluetooth Preferences window open.
Choose Preferences> Remotes & Devices> Bluetooth and select your Mac under Other Devices on Apple TV.
If your Mac doesn’t appear, turn off Bluetooth on the Mac and turn it back on. Remember to leave the Bluetooth settings window open during the pairing process.
Your Mac should display a prompt to connect from Apple TV. Select Connect to connect your Mac to Apple TV.
Return to the CiderTV app and use the navigation controls to control your Apple TV.
Tap the arrow icons to navigate Apple TV, and tap OK to select apps or items. The Menu button will return you to the previous or home screen.
CiderTV should be enough to navigate Apple TV. But if you’re often looking for TV shows and apps, or just typing unusual keyboard input, the Ezzi Keyboard app costs $ 0.99.
Navigate Apple TV Remotely
In my experience, iOS and iPadOS Remote work best when all devices are on the same Wi-Fi network. For example, we tried to control an Apple TV over a Wi-Fi connection from an iPhone using a cellular connection. The iPhone remote worked the first time I connected it, but stopped detecting Apple TV after a few minutes.
So, if the Apple TV Remote on your iPhone or iPad keeps showing the “Searching†message in the touch area, connect your devices to the same Wi-Fi network and try again. You should also update your Apple TV software to the latest version.
How to Control Apple TV from iPhone, iPad and Mac
How to Control Apple TV from Mac, iPad and iPhone
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