Apple TV hacked to run iOS apps at full screen

“Over the past few days, iOS developers Steven Troughton-Smith and TheMudKip have managed to hack the 2nd generation Apple TV to run iOS apps at full resolution,” Arnold Kim reports for MacRumors.

“The feat was accomplished using a custom Springboard (Home Screen) written by TheMudKip on a jailbroken Apple TV,” Kim reports. “Troughton-Smith has since been making progress running iPhone and iPad apps at full resolution.”

Read more and watch a video in the full article here.

16 Comments

  1. The real question is, “Why do we have to jail break the AppleTV at this point?” What is it that Apple doesn’t want customers to be able to do with the AppleTV because Apple wants to ____________ on that device? Apple has deliberately kept the AppleTV a “hobby” because they want it there for now.

    Apple should have at least let the iOS devices play games together on the big screen by now. Apple should not give a market to someone else just because it isn’t scheduled to do that yet. How about FaceTime with it. Attach a video camera or solid state storage device to it.

  2. Well obviously apps WILL RUN but “touch” control on a remote screen will require a completely different paradigm (ie you have no cursor on a touch screen so you will be “blind” as to where you are about to touch (assuming some kind of remote trackpad)
    Apple is obviously thinking about this but actually implementing it properly, is not a trivial task.

    1. Yes, I guess the question is which form of improved input will work best for future video monitors/projectors — remote gesture with pattern recognition, remote touchpad, or voice control. I imagine that there are competing groups within Apple trying to perfect each of these technologies, and may the best one win.

  3. Each of the major networks have an iPad app to watch the most popular shows for free. I just want to do the same without jailbreaking the Apple TV. An app store would do that.

  4. For some reason, when people think of iOS apps on the Apple TV, they seem to be thinking of stuff like Angry Birds. This makes no sense to me. I suppose games are a possibility, if Apple releases a controller, or releases APIs for 3rd parties to make controllers, or creates a standard app for iPhones to become controllers. But I don’t see games as a “big thing” on Apple TV.

    What makes more sense is content, apps that stream programming to the Apple TV. Imagine content providers being able to deliver programming to the Apple TV without having to work with Apple to build it into the OS.

    ——RM

  5. I don’t really get why I need apps on my TV now. I got my computer, iPad, iPhone… Why would I want to play ping pong on my TV? Want games on the TV, buy a console… Productivity apps? My computer and iPad probably does it better.

    For some reason the industry and people seem
    To strive in this Apps on the Tv direction. I don’t know that people want that, I think it will be a mess of standards and interfaces and ppl will get bored fast. A TV should be smart and efficient but it SHALL NOT TRY TO BE A COMPUTER. We already have ebought of those.

  6. i think what people are missing here is that you don’t HAVE to use this as a TV device at all. think of the possibilities of a $99 Apple iOS computer. Once they sort out the input devices and storage, the possibilities could go much further than the television.

  7. This is kind of cool, but who in the hell has that much time that they can sit and screw with an apple TV long enough to make this happen. My God man get out and get some sun, have a beer or something

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