CARROT Weather (Apple TV only)

If you travel a lot or you’re simply interested in how the weather is going to be today or tomorrow, then you need to get the CARROT weather app. What’s great about it is that you can use it in order to store multiple locations. Better yet, it also features some pretty great animations that you’ll certainly like. Whatever you do though, just make sure you don’t poke its ocular sensor!

Wikify (universal)

We’re all aware of Wikipedia and we’ve probably used it more than we think. However, having Wikipedia on your TV may seem a little bit weird at first. However, Wikify is more like a travel companion. The way it works is that if you travel somewhere, you can use it in order to zoom on your location. As you zoom, you’ll notice a lot of red pins will start to pop up. Each of those pins actually represents interesting locations that you may want to visit. While this kind of functionality may sound like it’s better suited for a phone, we cannot refute its usefulness.

TVPlayer (universal)

If you have an Apple TV, then there is a chance that it’s plugged into an actual TV that can play live broadcasts. If that’s not the case, then don’t worry about it. Using TVPlayer you can gain access to a lot of TV channels right away. If you want, then you can also pay something extra and access a lot of private channels as well. According to users, this is by far one of the most interesting apps for apple tv, so be sure to give it a shot!

TV Maps (universal)

Many people may scoff at the idea of using maps on their TV. That’s because it’s unrealistic that while traveling, you’ll have your Apple TV with you in your car, trying to zoom up on the highway to find the next gas station. However, you can look at this app in a different way. You can use it in order to explore. TV Maps offers you a three dimensional view of popular landmarks. If you want, then you can also receive directions that you can then send to your mobile device through the TV Maps app. How great is that?

Streaks workout

For those who want to get in shape and never really get to do something about it, Streaks Workout may be the answer they’re looking for. Using this app, you only need some desire to get in shape, a floor, and your Apple TV. In terms of exercising, you can choose the exercises you want to do and how long you want to exercise. With Streaks Workout, you’ll be able to track your workout and see how much fat you burn. Thanks to this great app, you can set weight loss goals and lose fat without having to go to the gym. Just give it a try to convince yourself of how useful it actually is!

Speedtest by Ookla (universal)

We’ve all used a speed test tool or website at least once, but did you know that they’re generally inaccurate? Therefore, if you have trouble streaking your favorite content on the Apple TV, then you may want to use Ookla to test your broadband speed. Based on its reviews, Ookla is one of the best apple tv apps 2016 and you should certainly install it on your TV. Now when it comes to the internet speed test, it takes about a minute. Once it’s over, you’ll know all about your download and upload speed.

Solar Walk 2 (universal)

Have you ever wanted to explore the solar system? If the answer is yes, then we have good news for you! With Solar Walk 2 you can easily do that! This app is available of the Apple TV and it’s simply amazing. You can use it to explore the Moon, the planets in our solar system and also the moon. There are also infographics which tell you a lot about Earth and the rest of the planets in the solar system. Pretty interesting stuff for sure!

Plane Finder

If you’re an armchair plane geek, then Plane Finder may very well be an indispensable app for you. Using it you can see almost live maps of planes that hurtle through the sky. You can also search for certain flights, filter by company, and even zoom to track specific planes. On the other hand, if you like something more conventional, then you may want to give FlightBoard a try.

If you’re looking for the best apps for apple tv, then now you have them. Check them out and see how much you like them, but don’t forget to let us know about it in the comments section below!

The post Top 8 best Apple TV apps you should try right now appeared first on Apple TV Hacks.

Build quality, hardware, size, and price

Even though it’s a few years old, no one can deny that the apple tv 3rd gen looks amazing. It measures 23 millimeters in height, and 100 millimeters square. In fact, it’s has such a small form factor that you can easily place it on your TV without worrying about it taking too much space. If you check the back of the device, you’ll notice there are several ports. These include optical S/PDIF, HDMI, Ethernet (10/100 Megabits), and a micro USB port. However, according to Apple, this port is for diagnostics only.

The Apple TV also features a dual band 802.11n Wi-Fi, meaning that it can effectively connect to 2.4 GHz and also 5GHz networks. If you’re curious about the apple tv 3rd generation price, you can currently get it for as little as $59. The apple tv 3rd generation Amazon may be cheaper, so be sure to check its price on Amazon as well.

Setup and control

You can easily control the Apple TV via its sleek and small, yet very thin aluminum remote. Even better, the remote is very simple to use, features a central Select button, but also a 4 way cursor pad that you can use to navigate through menus.

It’s possible to also use the Remote application for your iPad or iPhone. With it, you can control your Apple TV from your tablet or phone. What’s great about the app is that you don’t require line of sight, since it works over Wi-Fi.

To set up the Apple TV, you just have to plug in the soft-touch power cable and then hook it up to the HDMI port of your TV. Keep in mind that Apple doesn’t provide an HDMI cable, so you should get one separately. Next, all you have to do is enter your Apple ID and password. Once you do that you’ll be taken to the home screen.

Interface

What many will love about the Apple TV is the fact it has one of the simplest interfaces you’ll ever find on a media streamer. The icons on the home screen are large, therefore easy to navigate through. It’s important to mention that the top row is dedicated to Apple Services. You cannot delete them, but you can reorder them. The Apple TV runs on TVOS which works very smoothly. Even though it’s a bit old, the Apple TV 3rd gen has hands down one of the best operating systems ever put in a streaming device.

Content and AirPlay

The reason why people get an Apple TV is to consume content and there are many ways for them to do that. You can use apps, but you can also use AirPlay. AirPlay allows you to beam content from your Mac, tablet or smartphone to your Apple TV. This means that almost any content you can watch on your smartphone can also be beamed to your Apple TV.

If you want, you can also use AirPlay’s Mirroring function. As the name suggests, you’ll be able to send what you see on your laptop, tablet or smartphone to your TV. This can be very useful if you want to watch a movie with your friends or someone else.

Apple movies and TV

One of the best things about the Apple TV is that you can rent and also purchase TV shows and HD movies from Apple’s collection. In fact, Apple has the second largest collection of content (Sky Now ranks first) you can choose from, so no matter what TV show or movie you want to see, there’s a good chance Apple has it.

If you want, then you can also watch content you purchased from another device. Dolby Digital surround tracks are also supported by Apple (where available). Therefore, if you’re into surround sound, then just plug your Apple TV into an audio video receiver and enjoy it! One thing to bear in mind when purchasing live shows from Apple is that its version is usually a day behind the live broadcast.

Photos and iCloud

With photographs from your Mac, iPad, and iPhone going into iCloud, you can easily view them on your Apple TV at any given time. Not only that, but all the content you uploaded, such as your shared streams, photo stream, movies, etc can be accessed from the interface. Based on your internet connection, the content can be viewed pretty fast.

You may also have photographs that have yet to be uploaded to iCloud. If that’s the case, then you can use AirPlay to view on them your Apple TV.

Apple music

By using the music app, you can easily browse through the music store to play any songs that you may have purchased. If you have an iTunes Match subscription, then the songs you ripped from CDs are also made available.

Summary

If you’re the type who wants to have access to all his favorite TV shows and movies at any given them, time you certainly need to buy apple tv 3rd generation. Its impressively simple interface, great functionality, amazing build quality, but also low price make it a solid choice for anybody looking for an affordable, yet top quality streaming device.

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AirPlay requirements

One thing you need to know about AirPlay is that you can use it on basically any device that Apple currently sells. This important and incredible feature was introduced with iTunes 10 for the Mac. Later on, Apple decided to also add it to the iOS with version 4.2 on the iPad and version 4 on the iPhone.

To run AirPlay, you need to have the following:

1. At least iOS 4.2
2. A 2011 Mac or newer
3. An Apple Watch
4. At least an iPhone 3GS
5. Any iPad model
6. At least a second Gen iPod touch

Unfortunately, you cannot use AirPlay on the original iPod touch, iPhone, and on the iPhone 3G.

AirPlay for Photos, videos, and music

With AirPlay, you can stream video, music, and photos from your iOS device to Wi-Fi connected stereo components, speakers, and computers. However, they all need to be AirPlay compatible to begin with.

While that’s not possible for all components, a lot of manufacturers have begun to release products that support AirPlay.

If you do have a pair of speakers though that doesn’t support AirPlay, you can still use AirPlay with them. How? Well, with an AirPort Express of course! This is a small Wi-Fi base station that you can easily use with AirPlay. All you have to do to use your speakers with AirPlay is connect AirPort express to the Wi-Fi network and then use the appropriate cables to connect the speakers to it. Once you do that, you’ll be able to stream music to your speakers.

If you have a 2nd Gen Apple TV, you should know that it works in the same way with your home theater system or your big screen TV.

Just keep in mind that you need to make sure all devices use AirPlay and share the same Wi-Fi network. For example, you cannot use your iPhone at work in order to stream music to your car.

AirPrint: AirPlay for printing

Did you know that AirPlay also makes it easy for you to print content from your iPhone or any other compatible iOS device to Wi-Fi connected printers that support this technology? You may actually have a printer that doesn’t support AirPrint and if that’s the case, then don’t worry about it. You can easily connect it to an AirPort express (as you did with the speakers) and make it compatible.

AirPlay Mirroring

Generally speaking, AirPlay Mirroring is used in order to display content from devices with smaller screens to bigger screen devices (such as your HDTV). Thanks to AirPlay, you can show the video, game, website or any other content you’re currently watching to your friends, family, coworkers, and more. You can do this via Wi-Fi, but the good news is that you can also achieve it via wire mirroring.

Using this method, you’ll need a cable that connects the iOS device to the TV (basically, an HDMI cable). For this type of mirroring you do not need to have an Apple TV. As for the devices that support AirPlay Mirroring, they include:

1. 2nd Gen Apple TV or newer.
2. Mac.
3. iPad 2 and newer.
4. iPhone 4s and newer.

How to enable AirPlay and stream music/movies on the iPhone

To do this, the first thing you need to do is download 5KPlayer and then launch it. By doing so, you’ll enable iPhone to PC/Mac AirPlay that is otherwise not possible by using independent AirPlay.

Thanks to this connection, you’ll be able to turn your iPhone into an AirPlay sender to PC/Mac to enjoy your favorite music or video content.

Instructions:

1. Connect the iPhone and the PC/Mac so you can activate AirPlay. Prior to turning on AirPlay, you need to ensure that your PC/Mac and iPhone are on the same Wi-Fi network.
2. If your iOS version is 8, 9 or newer, you need to launch the control center and then enable AirPlay from there.
3. Thanks to the AirPlay server 5KPlayer, you can enable AirPlay to your PC or Mac so you can then stream videos from your personal computer to your Apple TV.

To turn on AirPlay on your Mac, be sure to take the following steps:

1. Download 5KPlayer on your Mac and install it.
2. Tap the AirPlay icon to activate AirPlay. A user guide will appear if you click the AirPlay icon in the main interface. Please note that if 5KPlayer acts as a receiver on the Mac, the process ends here.

AirPlay supported files

AirPlay supports a lot of files, including MP3, AAC, M4A, MOV, M4V, and MP4. If you want to stream files of a different format, then you’ll need to cover them to one of the supported file formats before you can play them.

AirPlay is by far one of the best features Apple has introduced to its devices, making it a great way to share content with friends, family, and coworkers in a few simple taps. Now that you know how useful it is, how about you give it a try and let us know how you like it?

The post What is Airplay Mirroring and why should you care? appeared first on Apple TV Hacks.

Squirrels, the company behind the popular AirParrot and Reflector apps, has just released AirParrot Remote – a new app that allows you to control AirParrot 2 from your iPhone or iPad. It adds new features to AirParrot 2 and allows you to easily control what’s being mirrored or streamed from your computer to Apple TV, Chromecast and Reflector-enabled devices from the palm of your hand.

AirParrot Remote lets you stream media files from your computer, build playlists, begin presenting your computer screen, and even preview your computer’s desktop before mirroring to make sure you’re sharing the right content.

Added keyboard and mouse controls let you change between applications on your computer without touching it.

The main features include:

• Build Playlists: easily build playlists containing files found on your computer. You can queue files for continuous playback.
• Remote Control: in addition to controlling AirParrot 2, AirParrot Remote also allows you to control the keyboard and mouse of your computer.
• Live Previews: View your computer desktop on your phone or tablet before you begin mirroring.
• Easy Pairing: Connect AirParrot Remote to any computer on your network running AirParrot 2.
• Familiar Interface: The AirParrot Remote interface closely mirrors its desktop counterpart.

The app is available from the App Store for $6.99.

AirParrot Remote requires the AirParrot 2 application running on your computer. You can download AirParrot 2 from here.

Also read:

• Review: AirParrot – taking AirPlay Mirroring to the next level
• AirParrot 2: the ultimate companion app for Apple TV 4
• AirParrot 2 for Mac and Windows released

Be sure to follow Apple TV Hacks on Twitter, Facebook or Google+ for all the latest Apple TV-related news.

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Remote Buddy Display is a new tvOS app that lets you wirelessly mirror your Mac onto your TV. Unlike the native OS X AirPlay Mirroring and other mirroring solutions, it also enables you to control your Mac using the Apple TV’s Siri Remote.

In order to use Remote Buddy Display, you will need to install a companion app on your Mac. After that you will be able to bring your Mac apps onto the big screen via high-speed screen sharing while turning your Siri Remote into a trackpad, keyboard and remote to control them.

Remote Buddy Display lets you turn your Siri Remote into a presentation tool with mouse spot. For example, you can connect your Apple TV to a projector in your conference room and use it as a shared Mac display and remote control solution for the whole team.

Here’s a complete list of features:

• Remote Control: Turn the remote of your Apple TV into a remote for over 100+ popular Mac apps, for which Remote Buddy provides tailor-made plugins.
• Screen Sharing: Beam your Mac’s screen right onto your TV. Remote Buddy Display uses its own high-performance screen sharing engine and protocol, developed from ground-up for tvOS and iOS, with a focus on high framerates and low latency. Audio is not supported at this time.
• Keyboard: Use Remote Buddy’s full keyboard to type text or control apps. Complete with character previews, modifier and cursor keys.
• Trackpad: Turn the touchpad of your Apple TV Remote into a mini-trackpad for your Mac. Supports clicking, dragging and scrolling.
• Automatic Mousespot: While in trackpad mode, rest a finger on the remote’s touchpad for two seconds to highlight the area around the mouse cursor. When you’re done, just lift the finger for two seconds and the highlight effect disappears. A terrific tool to bring more life and expression to presentations – or just locate the mouse cursor on screen.
• Actions and App Control: Pick from Remote Buddy’s huge library of app-specific actions, launch, switch and quit apps right from your Apple TV. Mark frequently used items as favorites for quick access.

Search for “Remote Buddy Display” on your Apple TV to download the app.

Be sure to follow Apple TV Hacks on Twitter, Facebook or Google+ for all the latest Apple TV-related news.

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AirParrot 2, one of the best AirPlay mirroring solutions out there, is 30% off today. It’s the only time it’s been on sale this year.

Squirrels’ AirParrot is a little pice of software for Mac, Windows and Chrome OS that takes AirPlay mirroring to the next level. AirParrot lets you wirelessly mirror your Mac, PC or Chromebook’s screen to your Apple TV (2nd, 3rd and 4th gen.), all without any additional hacks or jailbreaks.

As a part of Squirrels biggest sale of the year, Reflector 2, a wireless receiver for mirroring and streaming phones or tablets is on sale too.

Get it directly from Squirrels Store.

More deals: 

• Best deals on Bluetooth speakers for Apple TV 4
• Best deals on Bluetooth headphones for Apple TV 4
• Best deals on AirPlay speakers for Apple TV (2nd, 3rd and 4th gen.)
• Best deals on skins/stickers for Apple TV (1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th gen.)
• Best deals on Bluetooth keyboards for Apple TV 2 & 3
• TotalMount Pro for Apple TV (2nd, 3rd and 4th gen.) now 33% off

Be sure to follow Apple TV Hacks on Twitter, Facebook or Google+ for all the latest Apple TV-related news.

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If you got a new Apple TV but you find native AirPlay mirroring in OS X too limited or you own a Windows or Chromebook machine, you may want to check out AirParrot 2. It’s the go-to app for all of your mirroring and streaming needs.

AirParot 2 allows you to wirelessly send your Mac/PC screen or media files to Apple TV. Among the main features are:

• Specific window or app mirroring
• Ability to mirror to multiple devices simultaneously
• Ability to stream audio around the house to AirPlay-enabled speakers
• Mirroring support to Apple TV, Chromecast and Reflector
• High-quality streaming for video and audio files (5.1 Surround Sound, 1080p mirroring)
• Compatibility with every mirroring-enabled generation of Apple TV

Check out our review of AirParrot.

Related articles:

• Pangea releases five tvOS games with support for 3DTV
• MAME emulator running on Apple TV 4
• VLC coming to the new Apple TV
• tvOS not coming to Apple TV 2 and Apple TV 3
• How Apple is fixing what’s wrong with console gaming today

Be sure to follow Apple TV Hacks on Twitter, Facebook or Google+ for all the latest Apple TV-related news.

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We’re hearing from some developers that iOS 9 and OS X El Capitan use a new AirPlay encryption, which is not compatible with older Apple TV firmwares and software mirroring solutions like AirServer and Reflector.

In iOS 9 and El Capitan, Apple TVs running firmware version older than 6.2 appear as an audio only destinations:

In order for AirPlay to work, both iOS 9 and OS X El Capitan require Apple TV running firmware 6.2 and newer, meanwhile the latest jailbreakable Apple TV software version is 5.3.

People with jailbroken Apple TV’s running 5.3 will need to upgrade to 6.2 or newer to continue using AirPlay.

Of course, if you’re using a jailbroken Apple TV, you may choose not to update to iOS 9 or/and El Capitan and keep AirPlaying your content to the Apple TV.

Some developers told us they are re-implementing the encryption in their software to be ready for the final iOS 9/El Capitan update.

It is expected that iOS 9 will be released in mid-September. OS X El Capitan will launch sometimes in October.

This Wednesday, Apple is hosting an event where it is expected to unveil a next-generation Apple TV, which is rumored to be be thicker and slightly wider than the current-generation model and feature Apple’s A8 chip, a new, “drastically improved” remote with touchpad, more on-board storage, an improved operating system with support for Siri voice control and a long-awaited App Store.

Read more on Apple TV 4: 

• Apple TV 4 specs and price revealed
• Apple TV 4: big focus on gaming and Siri, support for Bluetooth game controllers
• Apple TV 4 will cost $149-$199, available in October

Be sure to follow Apple TV Hacks on Twitter, Facebook or Google+ for all the latest Apple TV-related news.

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AirMyPC lets you mirror your Windows computer screen and sound to your Apple TV using Apple’s AirPlay technology. Once installed, AirMyPC is able to wirelessly send everything you see on your computer screen and everything you hear on the computer speakers to your TV.

It also brings specific-app mirroring (which means you will be able to send just one window to Apple TV in the background, while doing something else on your PC) and it can even mirror the computer webcam and microphone.

Check out the complete list of features.

Partnering with the developer of AirMyPC, we’re giving away 10 free copies of this amazing piece of software.

Here’s how to participate:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Be sure to follow Apple TV Hacks on Twitter, Facebook or Google+ for all the latest Apple TV-related news.

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AirParrot for Mac, one of the best AirPlay mirroring solutions out there, has been updated to version 2.2.1 with improved hardware acceleration, cast mirroring and more.

AirParrot for Mac 2.2.1 release notes:

• Hardware acceleration now more intelligently defers to software encoding if performance would be better in software
• Improved Cast mirroring and streaming support, especially on lossy networks
• Added a preference to manually toggle between hardware and software encoding
• Added better support for “Dark Mode” in OS X 10.10 and later
• Miscellaneous bug fixes and stability improvements.

You can download this update by selecting “Check for Updates” from the AirParrot preferences menu. The new version of AirParrot 2 can also be downloaded from here.

Back in June Squirrels released version 2.2 of AirParrot for Mac adding support for audio streaming to 1st gen. AirPort Express and hardware encoding, meaning that AirParrot 2 uses available hardware encoding to capture screens and transcode media files at much lower CPU usage when streaming to Apple TV and Chromecast (OS X 10.9 and greater).

Read our review of AirParrot.  

Be sure to follow Apple TV Hacks on Twitter, Facebook or Google+ for all the latest Apple TV-related news.

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