Is your Apple TV stuck on a black screen with a strange iPhone image and Bluetooth icon? This means your Apple TV is experiencing serious problems and requires a reboot. Here's how to fix your Apple TV HD or Apple TV 4K to get it working again.
If you try and turn on your TV and you're greeted with an image like the one pictured above, this means you need to restart your Apple TV. The confusing crash screen contains no text telling you what to do; just a black and white drawing of the iPhone in front of the Apple TV puck.
This problem may occur on Apple TV HD and Apple TV 4K. The problem may have occurred during a system update and this image indicates that the device needs to be restored and/or factory reset.
This image is trying to show you that you can restore your Apple TV using your iPhone. You need your iPhone running iOS 17 or later, so check your settings if you need to update your iPhone OS first.
Then unlock your phone and hold it near the Apple TV. A white pop-up bar will appear on your iPhone screen confirming that you want to begin the Apple TV restore process. Click Continue. This will begin the process of your iPhone transmitting the required firmware wirelessly to the Apple TV.
Once the process is complete, your Apple TV should restart normally and you'll be able to use it again.
If you see the image above and you don't have an iPhone running iOS 17, you won't be able to perform automatic recovery. In these cases, you will need to contact Apple Support who can help resolve your issue. This may include physically delivering the Apple TV to them so they can restore the device.
