Apple TV Gen 1 Stuck At Apple Logo

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Level 1

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Apple TV Gen 1 Stuck At Apple Logo

I have an Apple TV gen 1 which won't boot properly. Every time I plug it in, it just goes to the Apple logo and just stays there. I don't have the original remote, but I'm using a remote from the Apple TV gen 3, and it appears to work. For example, when I hold down "Menu" + "Down", it reboots. I mention this because I read elsewhere that if you hold down "Menu" + "Up", you can factory reset the Apple TV. But this does not appear to work. Any ideas on how I can get this back working?

Thank you in advance.

Apple TV

Posted on Jul 15, 2020 11:02 PM

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Answer 1

Best reply

Urquhart1244

Community+ 2024

Level 10

140,570 points

Jul 16, 2020 10:29 AM in response to Link1600

The logo is just a splash screen, to be displayed while it would continue loading in the background for several more seconds. If it doesn’t advance by itself, then you may have to restore the system software, if you can find that.

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Answer 2

Jul 16, 2020 12:38 AM in response to Link1600

Apple TV (1st generation), the big 7.7" silver/white box, is not of much use in 2020, even if it starts up correctly, as it won’t connect to the iTunes Store anymore, and won’t sync with iTunes 12.6.3 or later anymore. As an obsolete product, the system software to use to restore, may not be available anymore on Apple servers.

The use of a Apple Remote (aluminum) is fine, as that model remote is compatible with any model Apple TV. Linking it is the same as with the original remote. If your Apple TV remote isn’t working - Apple Support

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Answer 3

Link1600 Author

Level 1

9 points

Jul 16, 2020 4:11 PM in response to Urquhart1244

Okay, thanks. I've been following the steps on this thread: https://discussions.apple.com/thread/6425705

And I got the system software from here: https://www.tweaking4all.com/home-theatre/appletv/restore-appletv-os-offline-1stgen/

I used Etcher to write the OS to a thumb drive, and then on the second page it says to hold "Up" + "Menu" to do a system restore while the thumb drive is plugged in, but I haven't had success with it yet. Do you know of another way to get the Apple TV to restore from the thumb drive, or am I doing something wrong?

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Answer 4

Link1600 Author

Level 1

9 points

Jul 16, 2020 7:01 AM in response to Urquhart1244

Thanks Urquhart1244 for that reply. I didn't know about the syncing of the remote. As far as the usefulness of the first gen Apple TV, what I ultimately plan on doing with it is installing something like OSMC. The only thing is that before you install OSMC, you need to change the video settings in the Apple TV settings menu so OSMC displays properly. Hence the reason why I'm trying to get past the Apple logo. Any insight as to why it is getting stuck on the Apple logo is greatly appreciated.

Again, it doesn't appear to be frozen as I can push "Down" + "Menu" to restart the Apple TV, it just can't get past the logo once it restarts.

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Apple TV Gen 1 Stuck At Apple Logo

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