How to Play 4K Video on the Apple TV (ATV 2015 Included)

Currently, there're a large scale types of HD video formats like HD 720p, HD 1080p, 2K, etc. yet "4K" and "Ultra HD" are definitely the hottest words in the digital photography and video field this year since the effect of 4K video is splendid. Although as popular as it being, it is still quite tricky to import 4K videos into Apple TV for enjoying since Apple TV(even ATV 4) won't support 4K streaming. So what if we happen to have some 4K movies and wanna play them on Apple TV for better visual experience? Don't worry! This article, I will offer two common solutions to help you fix the annoying issue.

Solution One: Play 4K videos on Apple TV with 5KPlayer?

To watch 4K videos on Apple TV would be as easy as rolling a log with 5KPlayer. There are many ways to achieve Apple TV 4K streaming, and 5KPlayer for both Mac (El Captain)/Windows (10) provides the most stable approach of all.

5KPlayer supports playing and downloading 8K/4K videos from hundreds of online websites. It empowers your Windows PC and Mac to directly stream UHD content to Apple TV 4/3/2 as smooth as cream. AirPlay iPhone 6S/ 6S Plus, AirPlay Netflix, AirPlay on Windows 8/10, AirPlay TV Shows, there's almost nothing that 5KPlayer AirPlay cannot handle.

Step 1: Free Download AirPlay Sender - 5KPlayer (Windows Ver.) on your PC, or Mac Ver. on your Mac.
Step 2: Play the saved 4K content on your Mac/PC with 5KPlayer
Step 3: Click the AirPlay button on the top right corner of the main interface to view AirPlay 4K video receivers.
Note: Check if your Mac/PC and Apple TV connect the same WIFI network.
Step 4: Click Apple TV and you'll see the 4K video playing on the big HDTV.
Note: AirPlay has limitations on file format, so make certain that the 4K contnets are in MOV, M4V, MP4.

Solution Two: Play 4K videoso on Apple TV via Transcoding and Compressing 4K Videos

If you are tired of installing extra video players then you can turn to a more easier method: Convert/Compress 4K videos to Apple TV with the help of Brorsoft 4K Video Converter for Mac. Developed with the most advanced converting technology, this professional 4K video converter truly and fully supports input and output videos at upto 4K resolution. With it, you can freely enjoy your 4K videos/movies, 4K YouTube clips on Apple TV 4/3/2/1 without any hassles. If you are a Windows user, please turn to the Windows version, now just read further to know things you can do to successfully do 4K encoding/decoding for Apple TV on Mac.

Guide: Downscale and Convert 4K videos to Play on Apple TV

STEP 1. Load the 4K videos to the program

Download and install the best 4K to Apple TV Converter, and then import the source 4K videos to it. To do so, you can directly drag & drop the files onto the main interface, or you can click the "Add" icon on the upper left to locate the videos from your local disk. Note that batch conversion is supported, so you can add several files to the converter at one time.

Step 2: Click "Format" bar and turn to the Apple TV category. The program has a number of presets for Apple TV, Apple TV 2, and Apple TV 3rd Generation. Here "Apple TV 3 1080p Dolby Digital Pass-through (*.m4v)" preset is recommended.

Note: If the default video/parameters can't meet your needs, just click Settings icon to adjust the video codec, bitrate, frame rate, audio sample rate, etc to get a decent video as you want.

STEP 3. Begin to convert 4K videos

When you finish the settings, you can press the big "Convert" button to kick off the conversion. By using future-proof technology, the conversion will be finished with ultrafast speed and the best video quality kept. After the conversion, you can then enjoy your 4K videos on HD TV via Apple TV with easy.