When I come to Audible Help Centre and search 'Audible on Apple TV', I discover that there are lots of people asking the similar question, like is my Apple TV compatible with Audible? Can I get Audible books on Apple TV? Is there an Audible Apple TV app to play audiobooks, etc.
No matter who you are, you will get the same official answer from Audible, saying 'Apple TV is not compatible with Audible audiobooks currently. Sorry for the inconvenience you will meet and bring you to the source page on what devices work well with Audible books.' That's to say, Audible doesn't offer an effective workaround to play Audible on Apple TV at this time.
In addition to wait for the coming of Audible app on Apple TV, I also tried to look for other ways to make Audible audiobooks available on Apple TV. Fortunately, I have found out two effective workarounds to stream audiobooks to Apple TV 4K without Audible app.
Part 1. How to Play Audible on Apple TV via iTunes Home Sharing
iTunes Home Sharing is a special feature allowing users to share and stream digital media files from iTunes library on your computer to other devices, such as Apple TV 4K, iPad, iPod Touch, and more. But it's worth noting that Audible audiobooks are encrypted by DRM protection, which prevents you from syncing Audible books from iTunes library to Apple TV. Put it another, it's impossible directly play Audible books in iTunes library via Apple TV unless you have unlocked the Audible's licensing restrictions.
Remove DRM Limitations with Audible Converter
To get rid of the limitation of Audible playback, you will need a powerful Audible DRM removal software. Here, we can meet AudFree DRM Audible Converter, which is a mighty and smart DRM removal tool for Audible. It is well-designed to remove DRM from Audible audiobooks with zero quality lossless and convert AA/AAX books to MP3, FLAC, WAV, AAC, M4A and M4B. Besides, it has the ability to split Audible files by chapters or hours, etc.
It's easy to use AudFree DRM Audible Converter on your Mac or Windows computer. You can install the free trial version to test its performance in advance by following the below steps to convert Audible books to unprotected files. And then you can purchase the full version to unlock the conversion time limitation once for all.
- Step 1Add Audible books to AudFree Audible Converter
- After launched this smart Audible solution from AudFree, there are two ways to add Audible files to this program, respectively dragging and dropping .aa and .aax books to the main interface or click the first 'Add Files' button to select them for uploading.
- Step 2Define Audible output parameters for Apple TV
- If you'd like to split Audible books by chapters, you're suggested to set output format as M4A by clicking the 'audio' icon. In the settings window, you can also customize other audio parameters, including bit rate, sample rate, audio codec, etc.
- Step 3Convert Audible Files for Apple TV
- When all settings are ready, just simply click the 'Convert' tab from the bottom-right corner of the main interface. It will begin to convert protected Audible books to common audio files without touching the original audio quality.
Play Converted Audible Books from iTunes on Apple TV
Congratulations! All Audible files are free from DRM limitation. Now, you can start to upload converted Audible files to iTunes library and set up the iTunes Home Sharing on your computer for streaming audiobooks to Apple TV. Here is the complete guide.
Step 1. Open iTunes on your computer and click the 'File' option from the top menu bar and click 'Add File to Library' button. It will allow you to scan audio folder. Please find the Audible book folder and then hit on 'Add to library' to add audiobooks to iTunes.
Step 2. Go back to the 'File' menu and choose 'Turn on Home Sharing' option, you will be required to log in your Apple ID account and password.
Step 3. Hit on 'Edit' option on a PC or 'iTunes' menu on your Mac to choose 'Preferences' > 'Sharing' option to select the Audible files to share.
Step 4. To play shared Audible books on Apple TV via iTunes Home Sharing, please sign in it and navigate to 'Computer' option to select and play added Audible audiobooks from iTunes library.
Part 2. How to Listen to Audible Books on Apple TV via AirPlay
The way we introduced above is effective and easy to let us play Audible audiobooks on Apple TV. But it's a paid way. Therefore, is there any free solution to achieve the same goal? If you are using an Apple device like Mac computer, an iOS device, etc. the good news is that Apple device features AirPlay, which allows users to stream digital files from one to another wirelessly. Here, we will take iPhone as example to show you how to enjoy Audible books on Apple TV via AirPlay.
Step 1. Please make sure your Apple TV and iPhone are under the same Wi-Fi network.
Step 2. Open Audible app on iPhone and start to play your favorite audiobooks.
Step 3. Launch the Control Center, it will show lots of control options, please hit on 'AirPlay' menu.
Step 4. It will show up available devices to connect, you can find Apple TV and define it as target one.
Step 5. Now, Audible books will be streamed and playing on your Apple TV from iPhone via AirPlay function.
Is it easy to use AirPlay to play Audible audiobooks on Apple TV via AirPlay, isn't it? If you have other possible solutions, please be free to share with me on the comment area.
Ivan Scott
Staff Editor
