Getting started

#1. Install

Get Aether from the App Store on any of your devices — see the download page. One purchase record covers iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Apple Vision Pro and the Mac. If you would rather have new builds first, join the public TestFlight beta from the same page.

#2. First run

On a fresh install that has nothing to restore from iCloud, Aether opens with a short welcome.

Page one — "All your media, one player." Three things Aether does: a Unified Library across Plex, Jellyfin, Emby, Silo, SMB shares and local files; an Advanced Player that plays practically anything, with multiple audio tracks and styled subtitles; and Sync Across Devices for watch progress and your watchlist. Tap Continue, or Skip in the corner (on Apple TV, press Menu).

Page two — "Connect Your Services." Pick the source you want to start with; you can add more later in Settings. The cards are Plex, Jellyfin, Emby, Silo, SMB Share, WebDAV, Nexus and IPTV Playlist (M3U) — and on Apple TV, first of all, Set Up from iPhone. Tapping a card opens that source's sign-in straight away. Continue for Free finishes without a source.

The welcome is shown once. On the Mac it has its own two pages — a welcome, then Make Home Yours, where you choose the rails on your Home screen — and you can replay it from Settings ▸ Help & About ▸ Show Welcome Again.

#3. Allow local network access

The permission Aether needs is Local Network: "Aether uses your local network to connect to media servers and SMB shares on your network." Allow it — without it Aether cannot reach servers and shares at home.

If you declined, turn it on in the system Settings ▸ Privacy & Security ▸ Local Network ▸ Aether.

Aether asks for no camera, microphone, photos or location access — music recognition listens to the film's own audio, never to the microphone. The only other prompt is for notifications, and only if you turn on request notifications for Seerr (not on Apple TV).

#4. Connect a source

If you skipped it during the welcome, add a source from Settings ▸ Accounts & Sources ▸ Add Source (on the Mac: Settings ▸ Accounts & Sources). Until something is connected, the library says "No library yet" with an Add a source button.

• Plex — sign in with your Plex account, or enter a code at plex.tv/link.
• Jellyfin — your server's address, then Quick Connect or a username and password.
• A NAS or computer share — SMB Share or WebDAV.
• Files — import them into the Local Library (iPhone, iPad, Vision Pro, Mac).

Every source type is described in Connecting sources.

#5. Setting up an Apple TV

Typing a server address and password with the Siri Remote is slow. Instead, on the Apple TV open Set Up from iPhone (in the welcome, or Settings ▸ Accounts & Sources). It shows a QR code: scan it with the iPhone's Camera — or, in Aether on the iPhone, open Settings ▸ Accounts & Sources ▸ Send Sign-Ins to Apple TV and enter the code the TV shows. The TV then asks Add Sign-Ins from …?; choose Add Sign-Ins and your sources arrive.

Both devices must be on the same Wi-Fi network, and Aether on the iPhone needs Local Network access to find the TV. PINs, Trakt and Simkl sign-ins are never sent, and Nexus sign-ins made with a pairing code cannot be sent. (iCloud Keychain, which carries sign-ins between iPhone, iPad, Vision Pro and Mac, is not available on Apple TV.)

#6. Play something

Open a title and press Play. Aether chooses the best copy and the best player for it automatically — the next page, Playback, explains what happens and which options you have.