Itsytv says “No Apple TVs found.”

Itsytv needs local network access to discover Apple TV devices. If you declined the permission prompt, open Settings → Privacy & Security → Local network and enable Itsytv. Your iPhone and Apple TV must also be on the same Wi-Fi network.

My Apple TV doesn't show a PIN code when pairing.

Your Apple TV is probably restricting which devices can connect. Open Settings → AirPlay and Apple Home, set Allow access to Anyone on the same network, and make sure Require password is Off. Then check Settings → General → Restrictions and confirm AirPlay Settings and Remote App Pairing are both Allow. Keep them there — Itsytv needs them that way to maintain a connection.

The remote panel closes a few seconds after connecting.

Your AirPlay access is set to Only people sharing this home. Open Settings → AirPlay and Apple Home on your Apple TV and change Allow access to Anyone on the same network. Done.

Now playing information isn't showing.

Itsytv relies on AirPlay to receive now playing updates. Open Settings → AirPlay and Apple Home on your Apple TV and make sure AirPlay is set to On.

Now playing shows the wrong show or movie.

Apple TV occasionally reports now playing information from a previously used app instead of the current one — a known quirk of the Apple TV protocol itself. Restarting the streaming app on your Apple TV or switching playback usually clears it.

Netflix doesn't show now playing details.

Netflix recently updated their Apple TV player and no longer reports show information to the system. That means Itsytv can't display the title, artwork, or episode for what's playing in Netflix. This is a Netflix-side limitation. Disney+, HBO Max, Prime Video, Apple TV+, and most other streaming apps continue to work normally.

Volume buttons aren't working.

Volume control depends on your Apple TV configuration. If your TV uses HDMI-CEC for volume, the buttons will work. If your Apple TV is set to control volume over IR (infrared), commands from Itsytv won't reach the TV. Check Settings → Remotes and Devices → Volume Control on your Apple TV to see which mode is active. The mute button isn't supported by the protocol yet.

On Mac: I launched the app and nothing happened.

Itsytv on Mac is a menu bar app — a tiny TV icon in the top-right, not a Dock tile. On MacBooks with a notch, macOS silently hides menu bar icons that don't fit behind the notch. Hold ⌘ Cmd and drag unused icons off the menu bar; when Itsytv reappears, ⌘-drag it somewhere safe.

Itsytv · Guides

Apple TV remote not working? Every fix, in order

Updated 2 July 2026

An unresponsive Siri Remote is almost always one of three things: a dead battery, a lost Bluetooth connection, or tvOS stuck in a bad state after an update. Charge the remote for 30 minutes, restart it with the button combo below, and restart the Apple TV – in that order. One of those three fixes it in the vast majority of cases.

Before touching anything else, rule out the battery. The Siri Remote has no charging light and no on-screen warning until it is nearly empty, so a remote that "suddenly died" has usually just run flat.

The fix, in order

Charge the remote for 30 minutes. Plug the remote into power using a Lightning cable (1st and 2nd generation Siri Remote) or USB-C cable (3rd generation, sold since late 2022). There is no charging indicator on the remote itself, so wait the full 30 minutes before testing. A completely flat remote will not respond at all during the first few minutes of charging.
Restart the remote. Press and hold the TV/Control Center button and the Volume Down button together for about five seconds, until the status light on the front of the Apple TV turns off and back on. Release, wait ten seconds, and try the remote. This reboots the remote's firmware without unpairing it and fixes most "connected but ignoring me" states.
Restart the Apple TV. Unplug the Apple TV from power, wait ten seconds, and plug it back in. If you can still navigate with another device, Settings → System → Restart does the same thing. A restart clears stuck Bluetooth state on the Apple TV side, which is the usual culprit when the remote stopped working right after a tvOS update.
Re-pair the remote. Hold the remote close to the Apple TV (within a few centimetres), then press and hold the Back/Menu button and the Volume Up button together for about five seconds until an on-screen message confirms pairing. On the 1st generation Siri Remote the combo is Menu + Volume Up.
Check for interference and distance. The Siri Remote talks to the Apple TV over Bluetooth, so it does not need line of sight – but an Apple TV buried in a closed metal cabinet, or sitting directly on a router or game console, can lose Bluetooth range. Move it into the open and test again.
If nothing works, test with a software remote. Open Control Center on an iPhone and tap the Apple TV Remote icon, or pair Itsytv – the Apple TV shows the pairing PIN on screen, so you never need the physical remote to authorise it. If a software remote controls the Apple TV fine, the box is healthy and the physical remote itself is faulty; if the software remote also fails, the problem is the Apple TV or the network, not the remote.

Old aluminum or white Apple Remote?

The slim aluminum Apple Remote (and the white plastic one before it) uses infrared, not Bluetooth. It needs direct line of sight to the front of the Apple TV, and its CR2032 coin-cell battery is user-replaceable – pop the tray open with a paperclip. If an IR remote works up close but not from the sofa, replace the battery; if it never works, check nothing blocks the Apple TV's IR receiver.

While the remote is dead

You do not need to wait for a replacement to keep using the Apple TV. Any iPhone or iPad has the free Apple TV Remote in Control Center, and Itsytv turns an iPhone, iPad, or Mac into a full remote with an app launcher, a now-playing panel, and a real keyboard – a one-time $4.99 purchase, no subscription. Pairing shows a PIN on the TV screen, so a broken physical remote is never a blocker.

Frequently asked questions

How do I restart my Siri Remote?

Press and hold the TV/Control Center button and Volume Down together for about five seconds, until the status light on the Apple TV turns off and on again. Release and wait ten seconds. This works on the 2nd and 3rd generation Siri Remote; the 1st generation restarts only by re-pairing.

Why did my Apple TV remote stop working after a tvOS update?

Updates occasionally leave the Apple TV's Bluetooth stack in a bad state. Unplug the Apple TV from power for ten seconds and plug it back in, then restart the remote with the TV button + Volume Down combo. Re-pair only if that fails.

How do I know if my Siri Remote battery is dead?

You often don't – the remote has no charging light and tvOS only warns when it is nearly flat. Charge it for 30 minutes over Lightning or USB-C, then check the level under Settings → Remotes and Devices on the Apple TV.

Can I use my Apple TV without the remote at all?

Yes. The free Apple TV Remote in iPhone Control Center covers the basics, and Itsytv ($4.99 one-time, iPhone, iPad, and Mac) adds an app launcher, now-playing details, and a real keyboard. Pairing uses a PIN shown on the TV screen, so the physical remote is not required.

Related guides

Get Itsytv

Itsytv turns your iPhone, iPad, and Mac into a full Apple TV remote – circular d-pad, app launcher, now-playing panel, real keyboard, and multi-room switching. A one-time $4.99 purchase, no subscription. The Mac version is free and open source via Homebrew. Download on the App Store →