Getting started
What you need
- The Panequill app on an iPhone or iPad running iOS or iPadOS 18 or later, or a Mac running macOS 15 or later. This is where you design, schedule and publish.
- Panequill Player, a free app, on each Apple TV running tvOS 18 or later.
- An internet connection for each Apple TV. Screens only need outbound HTTPS.
Your first sign
- Open Panequill and sign in with Apple.
- Go to Slides and start from a template or a blank slide.
- Connect an Apple TV (see below).
- Tap Publish, the paper plane on the Screens page.
The Free plan covers one screen, so you can try everything on a real TV before you buy.
Connecting an Apple TV
- Install Panequill Player from the App Store on the Apple TV and open it. It shows a six-digit code.
- In Panequill on your iPhone, iPad or Mac, go to Screens and choose Add Screen.
- Enter the code and a name for the screen, such as “Front lobby”.
- On the Apple TV, check the organization and screen name, then choose Connect screen with the remote.
- Choose a playlist or schedule for the screen and publish. Content appears within seconds.
Only an organization’s Owners and Editors can connect screens. The Apple TV only asks you to confirm requests you started, so if you see one you don’t recognize, choose Cancel.
No app on the TV yet? Panequill Player also has Try a sample, a built-in demo, and Quick Sign, which makes a simple message, background and clock with just the remote. A Quick Sign shows only on that Apple TV.
Troubleshooting
On the Apple TV, press Select on the remote while content is playing to open the controls. Screen details shows the screen’s name, organization and connection, and Connection help walks through common fixes.
“This code can no longer be used”
Codes expire after 10 minutes. Choose Try again on the Apple TV for a new code, then enter it in Panequill straight away.
The Apple TV says “Choose a playlist”
The screen is connected but has nothing to play yet. In Panequill, open the screen, choose a playlist or add it to a schedule, then tap Publish.
A screen shows as Offline
- Check the Apple TV is on, awake and connected to the internet. Wired Ethernet is the most reliable.
- In the Apple TV’s Settings, set General → Sleep After to Never so it doesn’t go to sleep.
- On managed networks, make sure the Apple TV can reach the internet over HTTPS (port 443).
An offline screen keeps playing its saved copy, and catches up within a minute of reconnecting. Owners and Editors get a notification when a screen goes offline.
My changes aren’t on the screen
- Edits only reach screens when you tap Publish.
- Check the screen’s schedule. A higher-priority time slot may be playing something else, and the Default Layout plays when nothing is scheduled.
- Large videos take a moment to download. The Apple TV keeps showing its current content until the new items are ready, and shows how many are ready.
“Ask the owner … to add screens to the plan”
The organization has more screens than its plan covers. Screens beyond the plan keep showing their last content with a watermark but can’t be updated. The Owner can add a larger screen pack in Panequill under More → Plan, or remove a screen it no longer needs.
“Panequill didn’t accept this Apple TV’s connection”
The screen was disconnected, for example after it was removed from the organization. Choose Connect again on the Apple TV for a new code, then add it in Panequill from Screens → Add Screen. A disconnected Apple TV deletes the content it had saved.
No sound from the TV
If Screen details shows Muted from Panequill, the screen was muted in the app. Unmute it in Panequill. Muting stays on even after the Apple TV restarts. In layouts with several zones, sound plays from the zone chosen under Sound From.
Content and widgets
What can I add?
Photos, videos and PDFs from Files or Photos, Google Slides decks, music files, and more than 170 editable templates. Videos are converted for Apple TV, with captions from WebVTT or SRT files.
Background music
Add music to a playlist from your own audio files (such as MP3, M4A or WAV) or the built-in instrumental tracks. Music plays from the zone chosen under Sound From, and a schedule time slot can turn it off for quiet hours. If you use your own music, make sure you have the rights to play it in public.
Importing Google Slides
Paste the deck’s link. In Google Slides, choose Share → Anyone with the link first, or Panequill can’t open it. Each slide becomes a page.
Widgets show old or no information
- Weather uses the city or address you type and refreshes every 30 minutes.
- Headline Ticker needs an RSS or Atom feed link and refreshes every 15 minutes.
- Calendar needs a public ICS or webcal link.
- Sheet Table needs a Google Sheet published to the web as CSV.
Check that each link opens in a web browser without signing in. Widgets keep showing their last information if a link stops working.
Text is hard to read
The slide editor’s contrast check flags text that doesn’t meet a 4.5:1 contrast ratio. Pick a darker or lighter color until it passes.
Alerts
Emergency alerts (Business)
On the Screens page, tap the red warning button and choose Lockdown, Shelter in Place, Fire, Severe Weather or a custom message. Send it to every screen, a group or a single screen, for 15 minutes up to 24 hours. Tap End to clear it early. Screens with a live connection show it right away. Others show it the next time they check in, usually within a minute.
Weather alerts (Pro and Business)
Open a screen in Panequill and enter its 5-digit US ZIP code under Weather alerts. Panequill then watches the National Weather Service for that area. Tornado and other urgent warnings take over the screen. Hurricane and winter storm warnings show as a banner over your content.
Panequill alerts add to, and never replace, your official emergency notification systems. An Apple TV that’s off, asleep or offline can’t show an alert.
Plans and billing
- Free covers one screen with a small Panequill watermark. Pro removes the watermark and adds weather alerts. Business adds emergency alerts, proof-of-play reports and team roles.
- Pro and Business come in packs of 1 to 100 screens, billed monthly or yearly through the App Store, with a 14-day free trial for eligible customers. Prices are shown in the app before you buy. Cancel at least 24 hours before a trial ends and you won’t be charged.
- A plan covers the whole organization. Only its Owner can buy or change it, in Panequill under More → Plan.
- Bought a plan but it isn’t showing? Have the Owner open More → Plan and tap Restore Purchases, signed in to the Apple Account that made the purchase.
- Cancel any time in your Apple Account settings, or from More → Plan → Manage Subscription. Refunds are handled by Apple. See Refunds & Cancellations for step-by-step instructions.
- Have an offer code? The Owner taps Redeem Code under More → Plan. Schools, churches and nonprofits can email us about offer codes.
Nothing is sold in Panequill Player on the Apple TV.
Your account
Inviting your team (Business)
Owners invite people from More → Team… as an Owner, Editor or Viewer. The invited person chooses More → Join a Team… and enters the code. Codes work once and expire after 7 days.
Deleting your account
In Panequill, choose More → Delete Account…. This deletes your account and every organization that only you belong to, and disconnects their screens. Cancel any App Store subscription first, because deleting your account doesn’t cancel it. See the Privacy Policy for details.
For IT teams
- Kiosk mode: lock a supervised Apple TV running tvOS 18 or later to Panequill Player with Single App Mode (App Lock) through your MDM or Apple Configurator. Email us for setup notes covering Jamf Pro, Mosyle and Kandji.
- No Apple Account on the TV is needed when Panequill Player is installed through MDM.
- Network: screens need outbound HTTPS on port 443 only. Nothing listens for incoming connections.
- Recommended Apple TV settings: Sleep After: Never, Match Content off, wired Ethernet, and HDMI-CEC on.
- Privacy: no ads, no tracking and no third-party SDKs. See our Privacy Policy.