Hands-On With the New Plex App for the Apple TV

Earlier this week, Plex released its highly anticipated app for the tvOS App Store, making Plex officially available on the Apple TV for the first time. Given Plex's popularity, we decided to check out the new app and do a quick video overview for those who might be interested in getting a new Apple TV to use with Plex.

Plex is a media server and personal library that's able to organize the media stored on your computer, like videos, TV shows, music, and stream that content to iOS devices, the Apple TV, and other set-top boxes.

When you install Plex and let it organize your content, it'll add artwork to movies, TV shows, and music, along with information like cast members, plot summaries, and Rotten Tomatoes ratings. On the Apple TV, this turns into a nicely organized media library that largely resembles iTunes or Netflix.

Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.

Plex has been available for a long time on set-top devices like the Chromecast and the Fire TV, but it has not previously been available on older versions of the Apple TV in an official capacity. Those who have jailbroken an Apple TV in the past have been able to unofficially install the Plex software.

The Plex app for the Apple TV can be downloaded from the tvOS App Store. The app is free to download, and unlike the iOS version does not require a $4.99 in-app purchase or Plex Pass subscription to unlock functionality. Apple TV and iOS App Store apps are universal, so if you've already downloaded the app for iOS, it can be found in the Purchases section of the tvOS App Store. [Direct Link]

Related Roundup: Apple TV
Tag: Plex
Buyer's Guide: Apple TV (Don't Buy)

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro 34ths Perspective

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 10 New Features

Sunday March 23, 2025 10:00 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
iOS 18

iOS 18.4 Expected Next Week - Here Are the Release Notes

Friday March 28, 2025 2:01 pm PDT by
With the second release candidate of iOS 18.4 that Apple seeded out today, the company finally provided us with release notes that give a full rundown on what to expect. There's an Apple Vision Pro app, new Apple Intelligence features for notifications and additional language support, plus an Apple News Food feature for Apple News+ subscribers, and several updates that should improve the...
Magic Mouse Green

What to Expect From the Magic Mouse 3

Saturday March 29, 2025 10:15 am PDT by
Apple is reportedly working on a new Magic Mouse. Below, we recap what to expect. The two key rumors for the Magic Mouse 3 so far include a relocated charging port, along with a more ergonomic design. It was briefly rumored that the Magic Mouse 3 would also feature voice control, but that was misinterpreted information. Relocated Charging Port While the Magic Mouse switched from...
top stories 2025 03 29

Top Stories: WWDC 2025 Announced, iPhone 17 Pro and iOS 19 Rumors, and More

Saturday March 29, 2025 6:00 am PDT by
Apple's big developer event is a little over two months away, and rumors about what we can expect to see in Apple's next major operating system updates are becoming increasingly frequent. A public release of iOS 18.4 is also imminent with a number of updates and improvements, although we won't be getting the major Apple Intelligence Siri upgrades that had reportedly been planned for this...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature Homescreen

Six Things to Know About Apple's Upcoming Foldable iPhone

Friday March 28, 2025 3:54 pm PDT by
We've been hearing rumors about a foldable iPhone for almost a decade now, but it looks like we might finally see the device come to fruition in 2026. We're going to be waiting many more months for the foldable iPhone, but so far we're hearing good things. Apple wants to make it creaseless. It's taken Apple multiple years to design a foldable iPhone that it's satisfied with because Apple ...
iOS 19 visionOS UI Elements

Apple Codename Provides Clue About iOS 19's Rumored New Design

Sunday March 30, 2025 6:40 am PDT by
Multiple sources have claimed that iOS 19 will introduce a new design with more translucent buttons, menus, notification banners, and more, and there is now another clue that points towards this glass-like appearance. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman today said the new design project is codenamed "Solarium" internally. A solarium is a room with glass walls that allow in plenty of sunlight, so this...
Facebook Feature

Facebook's New iPhone App Feature Turns the Clock Back to 2007

Thursday March 27, 2025 1:59 pm PDT by
In the mid-to-late 2000s, Facebook was all about staying connected with friends and family. However, as the social media platform added new features and grew over time, that core experience began to get drowned out. That changes starting now, according to Meta, which today introduced a new feature that will "bring back the joy" of classic Facebook. Specifically, Meta has redesigned the...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature Homescreen

iPhone Foldable Display Said to Feature iPad-Style 4:3 Aspect Ratio

Friday March 28, 2025 3:44 am PDT by
Apple's upcoming "iPhone Fold" will feature a foldable screen with a 4:3 aspect ratio, according to a Chinese leaker who previously leaked the book-style device's display dimensions. The Weibo-based account Digital Chat Station claims that Apple will adopt a "roughly" 4:3 aspect ratio on the inner display in order to achieve consistency between the outer display, as well as to ensure parity...

Top Rated Comments

budselectjr Avatar
123 months ago
Plex just didn't live up to my expectations. I installed it on my NAS and only asked it to share out one folder. It goes and catalogs everything which is mess. I'm not a fan of it's slow buffer speed and recommendations littered about.

I would highly recommend Air Video HD over Plex, even with the $4 cost. It has a very simple interface which allows for quick browsing and playback. It can play more file types than Plex and every type of subtitle, something I was surprised Plex can't do.

Plex sure does look better and has some nice extra features but if you have lots of movies that need subtitles and loads up files in an instant, I would recommend Air Video HD.
Your problem is running Plex Server on a NAS with a slow processor.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
camnchar Avatar
123 months ago
Plex is super speedy running on a Mac Mini as the server and the Apple TV 4 as the client (my Synology NAS just acts as storage). Using a NAS as your server is always a bad idea.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Fabian90 Avatar
123 months ago
Plex is super speedy running on a Mac Mini as the server and the Apple TV 4 as the client (my Synology NAS just acts as storage). Using a NAS as your server is always a bad idea.
Yes same here. Super fast. :)
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
benjitek Avatar
123 months ago
Yeah, you should really go with the Air Video tvOS App of you want something easier and quicker.
How so...? You didn't back up your statement with any examples of 'easier' or 'quicker'...
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
camnchar Avatar
123 months ago
Plex is the reason I bought the new Apple TV. It is hands down the best server-client combination I've used, and to have one device that supports Plex, iTunes purchases, and Netflix is awesome.

Amazon, get your app on there.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
grundoon Avatar
123 months ago
If it needs a server process to be executed on a Mac or a NAS then it's worthless. We need an app that runs the server on the TV itself, that can scan network for media files during all day's idle time in background, so there's no need to keep a computer turned on. Having a Mac AND the TV running at the same time it's nonsense in 2015. Talk about sustainability and power savings too. Sorry Plex, I think I'll pass.
Please tell us more about this magical storage device that sits on your network serving up files, without using a CPU, or power.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)