ThankAIMirror Android to an Apple TV
Updated July 2026 · by the ThankAI team
iPhones mirror to an Apple TV with two taps. Android phones get nothing — Apple never opened AirPlay mirroring to them. AirVids Streamer closes that gap: it captures your Android screen and its audio and streams them to an Apple TV, a Mac, or a TV with AirPlay built in, over your own Wi-Fi. This guide covers the setup, the settings worth knowing about, and the honest limits — including one about latency that we would rather you read before installing.
What you need
- An Android phone on Android 14 or later.
- An AirPlay display: an Apple TV, a Mac with AirPlay Receiver enabled, or a TV with AirPlay built in — many recent LG and Samsung models have it.
- Phone and display on the same Wi-Fi network.
AirVids Streamer is live on Google Play. Grab it from the download page and install it like any other app.
Setup, step by step
- Install AirVids Streamer from Google Play.
- Open the app. AirPlay displays on your network appear automatically.
- Tap your Apple TV (or Mac, or TV). If the receiver asks for a password or PIN — Macs often do — enter it once and AirVids remembers the connection.
- Start mirroring. Your whole screen appears on the TV, and it follows when you rotate between portrait and landscape.
Settings worth knowing about
- Resolution. Full 1080p by default, with a 720p option that saves battery and helps on busy Wi-Fi. Both run at 30 frames per second.
- A/V sync slider. If your TV's sound runs through a soundbar or HomePod, the audio can trail the picture slightly. Each device gets its own sync slider so you can line up the lip-sync once and forget it.
- Volume. Per-device volume control, and your phone's physical volume buttons work while mirroring.
- Battery savers. A 720p saver mode and a lower-power frame-rate mode. Screen capture requires the display to stay on, which is the biggest battery cost — these options claw a good part of it back.
When this won't work
Mirroring from Android into Apple's world has real constraints, and we think you should know them before you point a movie night at this.
- Latency. The stream runs roughly 200 ms behind your phone. Watching videos, showing photos and giving presentations all feel fine. Fast games do not — your taps land noticeably late. We are working on bringing this down, but that is where it stands today.
- DRM apps show black. Netflix and similar apps block screen capture at the platform level. Mirroring them gives a black rectangle with audio, or nothing. No mirroring app can honestly promise otherwise.
- iPads cannot receive. Apple TVs, Macs and AirPlay TVs accept mirroring; iPads do not.
- Receiver quirks. Some third-party AirPlay TVs behave slightly differently from an actual Apple TV. Most work well; if yours misbehaves, the app has a built-in support log you can email us, and that genuinely helps us fix things.
Common questions
Does sound come with the picture?
Yes — your device audio streams alongside the video and stays in sync, with a per-device slider to fine-tune lip-sync when the sound runs through separate speakers.
Can I mirror to a Mac?
Yes. Turn on AirPlay Receiver in the Mac's System Settings and it shows up as a display, password protection included. Handy when the nearest big screen is a MacBook.
Is AirVids still in beta?
No. AirVids Streamer has left testing and is live on Google Play for everyone. We are still tuning audio sync on crowded Wi-Fi and battery use, and updates ship through Play like any other app.
Is it free?
Yes — AirVids is free with ads. Mirroring sessions are time-limited and an optional rewarded ad unlocks more time.