Apple TV - dckiller51/astrion-custom-dashboard GitHub Wiki

Astrion can pair with an Apple TV directly, like the Apple TV Remote app on an iPhone, without Home Assistant or a Harmony hub. You get remote-control keys, app launching, and optionally what's playing (title, artwork, progress).

Your Apple TV and the remote must be on the same network.

Pair

On the remote's web page › Apple TV › + Add Apple TV:

  1. Astrion searches your network. Pick your Apple TV.
  2. A 4-digit code appears on the TV: type it and click Pair. Give it a name (e.g. Living room).
  3. Now Playing info (optional, recommended): click Also get Now Playing info. The TV shows a second code: enter it. This separate pairing gives title, artist, artwork and position. You can skip it and add it later from the list (+ Now Playing info).

The list then shows the Apple TV, its entity (media_player.appletv_living_room) and whether it's reachable.

What you get

Each paired Apple TV becomes a media_player.appletv_… entity that Astrion answers itself. It works like a Home Assistant media player, without Home Assistant:

  • state (playing / paused / idle), volume, the list of installed apps;
  • with Now Playing: title, artist, artwork, position.

It's added to the device catalogue automatically, so the builder offers it everywhere a media player fits:

Where
Apple TV remote card Trackpad, buttons, apps. Classic, compact (with a now-playing strip) or full (artwork, seek bar, ±10 s) layout
Media player card Now playing, play/pause, volume
Source select card Launch an app
Hotkeys Apple TV command: menu, home, play/pause, ±10 s, previous/next, Siri, screensaver, guide, volume, wake/sleep… (see Hotkeys)
Activities Wakes the Apple TV when the Activity starts and puts it to sleep when it ends. Can open an app. Its player becomes the dock clock's "Now playing"

Long presses on the trackpad (direct pairing)

  • Hold the centre: context menu (e.g. remove an item from Up Next).
  • Hold left / right: jump back / forward 10 s.

Rename or remove

  • ✎ renames it. The entity id is kept, so your cards keep working.
  • ✕ removes it. Cards using it stop working until you pair again. You can also remove the remote from the Apple TV under Settings › Remotes and Devices.

Troubleshooting

Symptom Check
"No Apple TV found" Is the Apple TV awake and on the same network (same VLAN, no client isolation)? Search again.
Pairing fails Codes expire quickly: start over from the list and type the code right away.
Keys work, but no title/artwork Pair Now Playing info (second code). Some apps don't share their info.
Shows ○ not reachable The Apple TV is off the network or deep asleep: press a key on its own remote, or check its IP.