Apple TV is a digital media player and a microconsole developed and sold by Apple Inc. It is a small network appliance and entertainment device that can receive digital data from a number of sources and stream it to a capable TV for playing on the TV screen.
Apple TV is an HDMI-compliant source device. To use it for viewing, it has to be connected to an enhanced-definition or high-definition widescreen television via a HDMI cable to the TV's HDMI port, while the TV is in HDMI mode. The device has no integrated controls and can only be controlled externally, either by an Apple Remote control device (with which it is shipped) using its infrared capability or by the iTunes Remote app (downloadable from App Store) on iOS devices, such as the iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad, and Apple Watch, using its Wi-Fi capability.
Its Wi-Fi capability is also used to receive digital content from the iTunes app using AirPlay or directly from iTunes Store, which is then streamed to the TV. It also plays digital content from the iTunes Store, Netflix, Hulu Plus, Now TV (UK only), YouTube and Vevo, along with the TV Everywhere portals of several cable and broadcast networks, and the video subscription portals of three of the four major North American sports leagues: MLB.tv, NBA League Pass and NHL GameCenter. It plays content from any OS X or Windows computer running iTunes.
(source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_TV)
