You should utilize your iPhone (and even your Apple Watch!) as a distant to your Apple TV. It’s a handy characteristic whenever you’ve misplaced the distant within the sofa cushions. (You should utilize your iPhone to assist discover it as nicely.)
Even when your distant’s not gone lacking, typically it’s sitting on the desk method over there and also you don’t wish to interrupt a present by asking for somebody to move it to you. Or possibly, somebody is deliberately hogging the distant and also you wish to pause the video your self. Both method, it’s very easy to do from an iPhone or an Apple Watch.
Management the Apple TV with out the distant
First, you must be sure your iPhone is on the identical community as your Apple TV. If these are each your individual private units arrange in your individual house, that is nearly definitely already the case. In the event you’re at a pal’s home, remember to get their Wi-Fi password earlier than you angrily fumble across the Distant app and curse Tim Prepare dinner.
Management Apple TV from iPhone
The distant is simple to entry from Management Middle.Screenshot: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac
In the event you’ve arrange an Apple TV earlier than, it’s best to mechanically have a Distant icon added to your iPhone’s Management Middle.
On a more recent iPhone (iPhone X, XS, XR, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16) you’ll be able to pull down from the highest proper to open Management Middle and faucet the Distant icon. In the event you don’t see it, faucet and maintain on the display screen, faucet Add a Management on the backside, then add Distant to Management Middle.
How does the distant work?
On the iPhone’s digital distant, you will note all the identical controls as on the Siri Distant.
You may swipe on the higher half to maneuver round. Tapping anyplace will choose.
The Play/Pause button will begin or cease no matter present, film or music is enjoying.
The large again button goes again a display screen or closes no matter menu you could have open. In the event you faucet it sufficient instances, it’ll shut the app, return to the House Display screen, and play the screensaver.
The TV button will open the Apple TV app by default, however you’ll be able to change that to go to the House Display screen as a substitute. (In your Apple TV, open Settings > Remotes and Units > TV Button > House Display screen.)
What about Siri? When the Distant app is open, your iPhone’s aspect button will activate Siri on the Apple TV as a substitute of your cellphone.
When you’ve got AirPlay-compatible audio system related, like a stereo pair of HomePods, then your iPhone’s quantity buttons will management your Apple TV audio, too.
When you’ve got a number of Apple TVs in your family, you’ll be able to swap which one you’re controlling by choosing the menu on the high.
The channel button within the backside proper and the menu button on high may management your TV you probably have it arrange appropriately.
Use your iPhone as a substitute of the Siri Distant for textual content enter
I can get a strong two phrases per minute on the Siri Distant. That is an order of magnitude higher.Screenshot: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac
Making an attempt to sort in something utilizing the Apple TV’s Siri Distant is simply plain painful. Whereas I discover that holding down the Siri button to make use of dictation on the bodily distant is extraordinarily quick and dependable (why can’t Siri be so correct in every single place?), you won’t wish to shout your password out loud in a room of friends.
Wherever you must enter textual content on the Apple TV, open the distant in your cellphone and use the keyboard as a substitute. If it doesn’t pop up, you’ll be able to faucet the keyboard button within the backside left — it replaces the play/pause button.
Utilizing the iPhone to enter textual content on Apple TV proves particularly useful if you must sort in an extended, advanced password for a streaming service or to confirm your Apple ID.
Even higher, relatively than typing out a ridiculous (however safe!) string of random numbers and symbols, you’ll be able to make the most of the iPhone’s copy-paste performance. Merely copy your password out of your password supervisor, then paste it into the Distant app. Downside solved!
Management Apple TV from Apple Watch
In the event you see a tiny grid of icons as a substitute of this simply scrollable listing, faucet and maintain and choose “List View.”Screenshot: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac
Go away your cellphone sitting on the espresso desk? Effectively, you should utilize your Apple Watch as an Apple TV distant, too. To take action, simply click on the Digital Crown as soon as to deliver up the app listing and faucet Distant. You don’t have all the identical controls right here — however you’ll be able to nonetheless swipe round to maneuver the cursor, faucet within the center to play/pause, or faucet the buttons to return or go house.
Add an Apple TV distant shortcut to your iPhone House Display screen
In the event you like this characteristic, or regularly lose your Apple TV distant, you may want sooner entry to the Distant app in your iPhone. However sadly, you’ll be able to’t add it to your House Display screen straight. There’s a workaround, although: You may put a Shortcut in your House Display screen that opens the Distant.
Add the shortcut and faucet the ellipsis button in Shortcuts.Screenshot: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac
Click on this hyperlink proper right here and faucet Get Shortcut to obtain it. Faucet Add Shortcut when it opens the Shortcuts app. Subsequent, faucet on the ⋯ subsequent to Distant to edit the shortcut.
Edit the shortcut to pick out your Apple TV earlier than you add the Distant icon to your iPhone’s House Display screen.Screenshot: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac
Faucet Apple TV, then faucet the title of the Apple TV you need this shortcut to open. When you’ve got a number of Apple TVs in your life, you’ll be able to choose Ask Every Time.
Subsequent, faucet the Share button and faucet Add to House Display screen. Now, you’ll be able to open the Distant straight with out citing Management Middle first.
We initially revealed this text on the right way to use an iPhone as an Apple TV distant on February 22, 2023. We up to date it with new info.
