Depending on your source file (and/or your hardware), there are several ways how to get your MKV video working with Apple TV:. Remuxe the video file so that it's compatible with the Apple TV. Transcode / Re-encode the MKV file (that means converting it). Play the MKV file on a Mac and use AirPlay Mirroring. On your Mac QuickTime Player can mostly handle the 4K side, but MKV? It’s not pretty. That’s why it’s handy to know of third party apps that can solve the problem, and that’s what I’m going to focus on to solve your challenge: 5KPlayer, a free video player for Mac and Windows with a whole lot of additional features that make it a. Unfortunately, QuickTime doesn’t support MKV format. In fact, the component for QuickTime that allowed playing MKV files on Mac no longer exists. Therefore, the easiest way to play MKV is to download a 3rd party video player like Elmedia, which can easily run MKV files without the need to install extra codecs and plugins. Otherwise, the only other option available is to convert MKV files to MOV, the most Mac-friendly format. Open.mkv files on Mac by right-clicking the file in the Finder, then use “Open with” menu and choose Elmedia Player from the list. Straight from the Elmedia Player menu, click on File - Open and open MKV Mac that way. Watch all your favorite videos!
'Hi, I just downloaded an MKV format movie on my Macbook, is there a way I can stream it to my Apple TV so that I can watch it on my TV?
This is a common question a lot of Apple TV users have. It's actually kind of easy to solve because there are a lot of ways to make that happen. Apple's been trying to create an ecosystem with its own products. With the help of iOS devices, it's easy to stream MKV to Apple TV and watch it on your TV. This guide would give you a few ideas as to how to stream MKV to Apple TV.
Part 1: Stream MKV to Apple TV using iOS Devices
Streaming MKV to Apple TV via iOS device requires the MKV files to be converted into a format that's supported by iOS devices. And the key of streaming MKV to Apple TV is AirPlay. With AirPlay MKV to Apple TV streaming is just a piece of cake. Detailed steps are as followed:
So what we need to do first is to convert MKV to MP4 or AVI. In this case, we are going to need a video converter for Mac to do the job. I would recommend the Leawo Video Converter for Mac. It's a practical video converter on Mac with useful video editing features.
Video Converter for Mac
☉ Support any video and audio format conversions.
![Watch Mkv On Mac Watch Mkv On Mac](https://tellyseries.co/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/Cold-Case-season-5-poster-e1492499165634.jpg)
☉ Support to convert 2D to 3D video. Photoshop app for mac free download.
☉ Convert video with unique editing features.
☉ Output file to multiple devices for playback.
Part 1.1: Convert MKV to Apple TV related iOS devices' compatible format
Now that we have the Leawo Video Converter, it's time to start to convert MKV to Apple TV related iOS devices' compatible format:
1. Add source video files to the converter by clicking “Add Video” button or directly dragging the video file to the main interface of the converter.
2. Click the button on the left of the big green “Convert” button and click “Change” button on the drop-down menu to enter the format selecting panel.
3. Click the “Edit” button on the above mentioned drop-down menu to enter the parameter setting panel, you can adjust detailed parameters like Video Codec, Quality, Video Size, Bit Rate, Frame Rate, Aspect Ratio, and Audio Codec, Audio Quality, Bit Rate, Sample Rate, Channels.
4. Click the above mentioned big green “Convert” button and a sidebar shows up. Set the output directory for the output video and click “Convert” button to start to convert MKV to Apple TV's supported format.
Part 1.2: Transfer the converted video to your iOS device
After you finish the conversion, the next step is to transfer the converted video to your iOS device. Other than iTunes, we can use other applications with a more simple and straightforward interface, like Leawo iTransfer for Mac.
Why choose Leawo iTransfer for Mac
- 1. Supports transferring files among iOS devices, iTunes and Mac computers easily.
- 2. Supports backing up iPhone, iPad and iPod files to Mac computer effortlessly.
- 3. Supports using iPhone, iPad and iPod as flash drive.
- 4. Supports managing the playlists of iTunes library and iOS devices.
The following content is the guide of using iTransfer to transfer video files to iPhone
(1) Open Leawo iTransfer for Mac
Open Leawo iTransfer for Mac on your computer, Connect your iOS device to the computer. And the software would detect your device and show the libraries of your device on the sidebar on the left.
(2) Transfer M4V and AVI files from Mac to iOS device
Add M4V and AVI files to the iTransfer by dragging the file directly into the main interface of the software, or going to “File > Add > Add File/Add Folder” at the top left corner of the menu bar; or right-click the blank area on the interface and click “Add > Add File/Add Folder“.
(3) Transfer Settings
After finish adding files to the iTransfer, there’ll be a pop-up window for transfer settings. Tick “Transfer to List” and select “iTunes/iDevice” before transferring the video files. Tick “Save to Folder” and click “Change” to choose a folder on your computer to save the files tranferred from your iOS device. Then click “Transfer Now” at the right bottom of the dialog to start transfer.
Step 1.3: Use AirPlay to stream the video to your Apple TV
Now that the video is transferred to your iPhone, you can start to use AirPlay to stream the screen content of your iPhone to your TV. The detailed steps are as followed:
1. Make sure that your iPhone and Apple TV is connected to the same network.
2. Call out the Control Center on your iPhone, click the 'AirPlay' button to enter the setting panel.
3. Click your Apple TV to connect your iPhone to your Apple TV, choose 'Mirroring', and 'Bam', the screen of your iPhone is being mirrored on your Apple TV.
4. Play the video on your iPhone and you'll see it on the TV connected to your Apple TV.
Part 2: Stream MKV to Apple TV using iOS Devices and iOS Video Players
This step is slightly different from the last step. In this step, we still need to use AirPlay. But the difference is that you don't have to convert MKV to Apple TV compatible format, you can use specific video players to play MKV file on your iPhone and stream MKV to Apple TV, the MKV file can be played directly using the Video Players listed below:
AVPlayer
AVPlayer provides controls for playback speed, video scrubbing and USB or Wi-Fi transfer for getting content into the app. And there's one bonus feature: setting passcode to protect your content.
VLC for iOS
VLC for iOS is the iOS version of the VLC Media Player we've using on desktop. The good news is that although it's for mobile, it still carries a lot of features and costs nothing.
nPlayer
Costing $4.99, nPlayer is a universal app with a relatively old fashion interface that looks like a design from 10 years ago. But the fact is it's a very powerful video player with support for various files and all the Dolby audio codecs.
CineXPlayer
Costing $1.99, CineXPlayer supports 3D videos and all the usual video formats and video output capabilities is practical. Live TV Channel support is a bonus.
The video players mentioned above allows the posibility of streaming MKV to Apple TV with ease. Just use iTunes to transfer the converted video to the video player apps and then you can play it on your iPhone and the next step is to use AirPlay to stream MKV to Apple TV.
Part 3: Stream MKV to Apple TV via iTunes on Mac
Other than the two methods to stream MKV to Apple TV mentioned above, there's another way to stream MKV to Apple TV and you can do it without your iPhone. That is to use iTunes on your Macbook.
In this step, you still need to convert MKV to another format because iTunes doesn't support playing MKV files. To know how to convert MKV to a format compatible with iTunes, please check out Part 1. Check out the following content to see how to use iTunes to stream MKV to Apple TV.
Make sure that the conditions below are met:
- 1. Your Mac computer and Apple TV are connected to the same network.
- 2. Your iTunes version is 10 or above.
- 3. Log in iTunes with your Apple ID and turn on Genius.
![Mac Mac](https://tellyseries.co/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/Baywatch-season-1-poster-e1491665292711.jpg)
A number of HD videos downloaded from the internet are wrapped up in MKV container and you can play them on Mac using a media player like VLC, or Quicktime with Perian plugin. However, sometimes you will find a painful exprience playing MKV files on your Apple TV. Does Apple TV support MKV videos? Is there possible solutions to fix the problem. If you're facing the similiar problems, read on for details. This tutorial will explain how you can enable Apple TV to read MKV files, so that you can stream and play MKV files on Apple TV without issues.
In general, MKV means Matroska which is a container format (like .mp4, .m4v, .avi or .mov) that can hold video, audio and subtitle streams. According to the Apple's official site, the files with the file extension .mkv are not supported by Apple TV. If you have some MKV files (for instance on your NAS, USB stick or external Hard drive), you need to find a 'workaround' to watch them on your TV. Depending on your source file (and/or your hardware), there are several ways how to get your MKV video working with Apple TV:
Remuxing the MKV video
In most cases, the container format (.mkv) is the problem, not the video and audio stream inside. Then remuxing helps. It's means that you don't touch the video and audio streams. You just put an exact copy of them into a new container which is supported by Apple TV.
This works for all videos, that have compatible streams inside that are encoded for instance with H.264 and AAC.
For remuxing use a software like Subler. Open the .mkv file, select the streams and pass them through to a .m4v file. This doesn't too long because it's just 'copying files'. You should prefer remuxing to transcoding because you leave the streams untouched and avoid losing quality.
Mkv Video Player Mac
Transcoding / Re-encoding of your MKV video
If the video or audio stream in your MKV file isn't supported by Apple TV, you have to re-encode it. This means converting the streams to a different codec, bitrate or resolution and save it in a compatible container file format (like .m4v). This is time-consuming and could cause a loss in quality.
An open source software for re-encoding is Handbrake. Open the file, select an Apple TV preset and let Handbrake create an new video file.
Tip: If you are seeking for the best video output quality, fastest video conversion speed, and the most formats supported, EaseFab Video Converter Ultimate ( Mac version ) will your best choice. The program supports converting all media files including MKV, VOB, AVI, FLV, MP4, etc. as well as DVD/Blu-ray discs to Apple TV compatible formats. What's more, the program has optimized presets for Apple TV, iPad, iPhone and many more. No manual video settings are required. All Apple devices are supported, including iPad Pro, the New iPad, iPad with Retina display, iPhone 6S, iPod touch 5, etc.
Playing Mkv Files On Mac
AirPlay Mirroring
A nice and easy way, if you have a modern Mac, is AirPlay Mirroring. Basically, this means that you play the video with your Mac (for instance with VLC) and just mirror your display to the Apple TV.
The big advantage is that you can instantly start watching your video.
Mac Play Mkv
Editor's Note: Sometimes, you will still encounter problems when mirroring your MKV videos from iOS Device or Mac to your TV by using an Apple TV when using AirPlay. In this case, you can try to convert your MKV videos to Apple TV compatible video format.
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