Vizwriting on Apple TV, iPhone and iPad, with the news in picture-in-picture

The Apple TV and iPhone setup, in seven steps

1. Check the software and the PiP setting

   On an iPhone or iPad, Settings, General, About shows the iOS or iPadOS version; on Apple TV the same path, Settings, General, About, shows tvOS. Compare it with the minimum on the player’s App Store page before buying anything. While you are in Settings on the iPhone, open General, then Picture in Picture, and make sure Start PiP Automatically is on. It lets a playing channel shrink into a corner when you leave the app, in players that support it.

   Line up a login: terms from $15

2. Choose a player that suits Apple TV

   The free option is Smarters Player Lite, available for the phone, the tablet and the Apple TV alike. It takes an Xtream login and opens Live TV, Movies and Series sections. iPlayTV is a paid alternative made only for Apple devices, and many Apple TV owners like its guide. Both handle a long list of news channels; start with the free one and move if its layout does not suit you. Anything named to sound like TiviMate is not TiviMate.

3. Install on Apple TV, then on the phone

   Apple TV’s home screen holds its own App Store; search it by the player’s name. On iPhone or iPad the familiar App Store icon does the same. An app bought on the iPhone can also be downloaded on the Apple TV from the Purchased section of its App Store, provided the developer made a tvOS version and the same Apple ID is signed in on both.

4. Copy the details instead of typing them

   On an iPhone or iPad, open the WhatsApp message with your login, press and hold each value to copy it, and paste it into the player’s matching field: username, password, server URL. Typing on Apple TV is slower, but when a text field is active an iPhone nearby usually shows an Apple TV Keyboard notification; tap it and type on the phone instead. Dictating a password aloud tends to introduce errors, so avoid it.

5. Sign in and let the list load

   Choose the Xtream Codes option. The wording varies between players and versions, so look for Xtream, Xtream Codes or Xtream API among the sign-in choices. Confirm, then leave the app in front while it loads the channels and the guide data. A first load of a list this size takes a minute or two, and moving to another app in the meantime can interrupt it.

6. Shape a news list for the Siri Remote

   On Apple TV, a swipe across the clickpad covers a long list quickly and a click selects. Rather than swiping through a whole country group every evening, build a favorites list of the news and factual channels you watch, such as BBC News, Sky News, PBS or Discovery. On iPhone and iPad the search field is usually quicker than scrolling: type the first few letters of the network’s name.

7. End with picture-in-picture and AirPlay

   On iPhone or iPad, play a news channel and swipe up to go home. If the player supports picture-in-picture, the bulletin keeps running in a window you can move and resize; if it stops, the player does not offer it for live channels. Finally, try the big screen: tap AirPlay inside the player, or use Screen Mirroring in Control Center, and pick an Apple TV or a television that supports AirPlay. Two devices playing different channels at once count as two connections.

Once it plays: where the factual side lives

With the player signed in, the rest is finding things. Live channels arrive in groups, and the on-demand library keeps non-fiction on shelves of its own; the Vizwriting documentaries and news channels page explains how both are arranged. What airs next on most channels, the 9 p.m. bulletin included, is in the Vizwriting program guide. A bulletin that aired an hour ago can often be replayed through catch-up, on the channels that carry it.

Apple TV and iPhone faults, by what the screen shows

The App Store says the app is not available for this device

The player either has no tvOS version or needs a newer system than your device runs. Check the compatibility section of the listing. On an older Apple TV HD, try the other player; on a phone or tablet, update the software if the device supports a newer version.

The login is accepted but the channel list never appears

Keep the app open on the loading screen, because Apple devices pause apps sent to the background and that interrupts a first load. If nothing appears after two minutes, delete the profile in the player, add it again, and leave the device untouched until the list fills.

Picture-in-picture does not start when you swipe home

Check Settings, General, Picture in Picture, Start PiP Automatically. If it is on and the channel still stops, the player does not support picture-in-picture for live streams; some players put a PiP button among the playback controls instead. On Apple TV, picture-in-picture works only in apps built for it.

AirPlay shows the picture but the sound stays on the phone

Open Control Center, press and hold the audio card and check the output: it should name the Apple TV or the television. A Bluetooth headset that is still connected can claim the sound, so disconnect it and send the channel again.

The stream stops when the iPhone locks

Locking the phone pauses most video apps, unless the channel is on a television through AirPlay or running in picture-in-picture where the player supports it. For a long documentary, send it to the television, or lengthen Auto-Lock under Settings, Display and Brightness while you watch.

Apple TV blanks for a second when you switch countries

News channels from different countries arrive at different frame rates, and with Match Frame Rate on, the television re-syncs at every switch from, say, a European desk to an American one. A blink of a second is normal. If the blank lasts longer or the TV complains, turn off Match Frame Rate under Settings, Video and Audio, Match Content.

Nothing above matches? A photo of the screen sent on WhatsApp usually settles it faster than a description, and the Vizwriting not-working page covers faults that are not tied to one device.

Read next: the players for Apple TV and iPhone

Prepared by Vizwriting Team · Updated September 5, 2026