How To: Set Up Apple TV

So you bought an Apple TV…now what?  Well, if you are anything like me, it will sit in the box for a while until you find the time to set it up.  The great thing about Apple TV, however, is that it only takes about 10 minutes to set up.  So no more excuses, get it done!

1.)    HDMI: Buy an HDMI cable if you don’t already have one because Apple TV doesn’t come with one.  Plug your Apple TV into an outlet and connect the cable from your Apple TV into your HDTV or receiver.

2.)    Menu: Follow the menu prompts using the remote.  The up and down arrows move the highlight up and down.  You can select by using the center button.

3.)    WiFi: The Apple TV will then scan for available WiFi networks to connect to.  If you don’t have WiFi, you can connect directly via Ethernet.  Choose your WiFi network and input the password, then hit “done.”

4.)    Diagnostic: Choose whether you want your Apple TV to report diagnostic information to Apple or not.  If you say yes, this will share information about how the Apple TV is running with Apple, but will not send personal information.  The Apple TV may also need to be updated so you are going to need to check for software updates.

5.)    Updates: From the main Apple TV menu, choose the Settings menu at the far right, and then choose General.  In the next menu, scroll down to Update Software and select it.  If there are updates, the Apple TV will give you the option to install them or update later.  If you download the updates, the Apple TV will automatically restart and have the newest software.

6.)    Sharing:  If you enable Home Sharing (which you should), you can stream content from your iTunes library to the Apple TV.  Just sign into Home Sharing with the same iTunes account you use on your computer.  Note: even if you don’t enable Home Sharing, you can still connect to the Internet.

Enjoy!  You should now be good to go and able to play music or video from your iTunes library via AirPlay or access web content at the iTunes Store.