I use the “Apple TV Remote” app to control my Apple TV 4K (A1842). From Settings I can see that I have version 2.2 (344.28) of the app (it’s called merely “Remote” in there, but the info screen confirms it is “Apple TV Remote”).
I can access the app in three different ways:
- Via its icon in the Control Center (this is my normal method)
- By telling Siri to ”Open Apple TV Remote”
- By tapping the app’s icon (labelled “Remote”) on my iPhone
HOWEVER: the main screen I get using method 1 looks different from what I get with the other two methods. They look like the following, with method 1 producing the first view and methods 2 and 3 producing the second view:
It almost looks like the first method is running a different app from the other two methods.
However, if I go to Settings>Control Center and see what remote app is in there, I find that it is called Apple TV Remote.
So, what’s going on? When I go into Control Center and tap on what Settings claims is Apple TV Remote, why do I get something different from what I get if I tell Siri to open Apple TV Remote (or if I simply find the Remote app and choose it).
Thanks!
Best Answer
They are different "apps". The one in Control Center is not even a full-fledged app. You can't switch to it, or close it, like regular apps. I think I end up using the one from the Control Center more, since it's easy to launch, and I think that's the one that integrates better with Apple Watch (I can use my watch to control the ATV, if I start the remote on my phone first).
Notice the multiple uses of the word "think". This is not an obvious design choice by Apple. The Control Center icon should just call a single full app, just like if you click on the Camera, Alarm, etc, in the Control Center.