One feature I always take advantage of on pretty much any streaming device — whether it’s an Apple TV, Roku, or Fire TV — is the ability to use my phone as a backup remote. So, when your actual remote is out of reach (say, because your cat is asleep on you, or it’s vanished into the couch cushions), you can just pull out your phone and keep watching.
With Apple TV, Apple offers a backup remote app for the iPhone, iPad, and even the Apple Watch, but not for the Mac. That’s always struck me as strange, and it reminds me of how long the iPad went without an official Calculator app.
Think about it: you can control your Apple TV from your wrist with an Apple Watch, yet not from your Mac, which is probably often with you as well. I often have my MacBook Pro open while the TV is on, so being able to control my Apple TV from it would be quite useful.
Thankfully, one developer has decided to solve this problem once and for all by creating a macOS app that lets you control your Apple TV right from your Mac, since Apple clearly isn’t in a hurry to make one.
The app is called Itsytv, and you can download it for free from GitHub (via 9to5Mac). The developer, Nick Ustinov, describes the app as “the missing Apple TV remote app” for Mac, and, best of all, it’s completely open-source and packed with features.
- Brand
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Apple
- Bluetooth codecs
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5.0
- Wi-Fi
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6
- Ethernet
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Gigabit (128GB model only)
The app looks exactly like an Apple TV remote
It requires macOS Sonoma or later to run
What I find particularly neat about Itsytv is that it’s a menu bar app, which makes it incredibly quick to access whenever you need it. Even better, the app’s interface looks exactly like an Apple TV remote, which makes it instantly familiar and super easy to navigate your Apple TV with (as you can see in the image above).
In terms of features, there’s a Now Playing section at the bottom of the remote interface, letting you quickly pause whatever you’re watching on your Apple TV or scrub through the timeline to jump to a specific moment. Also, at the top of the remote, there is an Apps option. Clicking it opens an app launcher where you can browse all the apps installed on your Apple TV and launch any of them directly from your Mac with a single click.
I’m really impressed with this Apple TV remote app for Mac. The fact that it’s been designed to perfectly imitate the Apple TV remote is genius, and it honestly looks like something Apple could have made themselves.
Fortunately, running Itsytv on your Mac is pretty straightforward, with the only requirement being that your Mac is running macOS Sonoma (released in 2023) or later.
Personally, I’m really impressed with this Apple TV remote app for Mac. The fact that it’s been designed to perfectly imitate the Apple TV remote is genius, and it honestly looks like something Apple could have made themselves. So props to developer Nick Ustinov for putting it all together. If you want to try Itsytv for free, it’s currently available exclusively on GitHub. Once you install it, all you have to do is pair it with your Apple TV, and after that, you’re good to go.
While I’m happy to see a free, open-source app like this land on the Mac, it also makes me even more excited about the new Apple TV 4K that is supposedly coming. After years of waiting, it’s rumored to launch sometime this year, and I’m hoping it arrives after Apple rolls out its updated Siri in the spring.
