I have an old Apple TV I got from someone but never did anything with it. I think its a Gen II. I've factory reset it on my PC through Itunes. I don't have the remote. I've tried using the Remote App on my Iphone, but it goes straight to "No Connection" (who knows why - I have on bluetooth, but it won't recognize anything). I have an apple keyboard and an apple mouse - don't know if these would help.

TLDR - I need to get my apple tv on my network and have a way to use a remote.

Have you connected it to an internet cable? If it's not on the same network as your phone the remote app won't see it.

Yes, I have. My remote app still doesn't work.

Dunno then, that would be my first guess. You've got it connected to a display and its booting up?

Yes. it's booting up fine, but I can't change anything because my app isn't working.

I've had this issue before, I fixed it by connecting to my router via an ethernet cable. It was then automatically on the same network as my phone so I was able to control it with the app on my phone, surprised that didn't work for you.

You can go through some steps with a bluetooth keyboard to connect and control it. You can then navigate to the internet to make sure you're connected or to add a new remote. We also programmed our cable remote to work with the AppleTV. My wife mentioned this method when I was doing the hard wired method I mentioned above, but I never actually did it. Let me see if I can find instructions.

I had already connected it via an ethernet cord. I guess the issue is that I don't have a remote that will work. The remote app on my Apple iPhone is not working.

I ran into something similar when I was setting up my new AppleTV a few months ago and trying to use my iPhone as the remote.

This is going to sound stupid, but are you using the "iTunes Remote" app or the "Apple TV Remote" app?

I was using the "iTunes Remote" and not the new "Apple TV Remote" app and it took me a good 30 minutes to figure out what I was doing wrong.

Yes, I was using the Apple TV remote app.

And your phone is on the same wifi network that your Apple TV is physically connected to?

Yes.

I'm pretty sure if you'll need to do a hard reset of the Apple TV. I'm not sure if there is a way to manually do it on the device or if you need to connect it to a computer via a USB cable. If have to do via a computer, there are YouTube videos out there.

Once you do a hard reset, the first time you start the Apple TV it'll go through the setup menu, starting with selecting a language. There will be a note at the bottom of the screen to connect with a keyboard to turn the keyboard on now. Once you turn your bluetooth keyboard on, a four digit number will pop up on your TV that you type into your keyboard and it'll pair.

You can then connect to your wifi, that should allow you to use your phone. You can also go into settings, pair a remote, and follow the instructions to use your TV remove, Cable remote, etc. to pair it with the apple tv.

New remotes are like $20. I'd just go buy one.

A Roku Streaming stick or FireTV is not much more than that, and developers are stopping their support of pre-4th gen Apple TVs. HBO just announced they won't support it any longer after this month (I.e. their app won't work at all) and YouTube is already having issues.

I wouldn't personally bother if you have to invest more money into it.