I was hoping someone finally said it I was starting to think people forgot what a mirror was
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AirPlay-extended desktop?
- Thread starter chickenwingfly
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I was hoping someone finally said it I was starting to think people forgot what a mirror was
I don't think people are taking issue with the name. Apple advertised Airplay mirroring, fair enough, but they could have advertised it as something else and far more complete. From the Airplay menubar it would be nice to activate Airplay mirroring, Airplay desktop/app extending, Airplay desktop/app audio to external speakers. It seems if the system can mirror the display, it can do everything else that Airfoil and AirParrot can do. What would be nice is to have all the features of those apps included and built-into OS X in an elegant and fully integrated manner across then entire system. That's Airplay done right. But once again when it involves Airplay or Quicktime, or anything of the sort, Apple gives it drip by drip, with long delays between each drip.
fair arguement but if you realse something with 100% of its abilities what does that leave updates for?
i personally dont think this is meant for watching movies you could always watch you movies on your ATV this is more about sharing your screen for those times you would of in the past all hudle around your mac screen
i personally will only use this feature for streaming websites like livesports.ru and other TV streaming sites
if apple really cared about us having the freedom to play videos other than mp4/m4v seamlessly on our ATV they will realease a Plex app on the ATV or just allow more video types to be added to our itunes library
AirParrot allows using it as a second monitor. Works nicely but then again you have to pay for it or use the trial for 20 minutes. I still prefer my airplay mirroring. You shouldnt have to use a third party app to do something that should be done in airplay.
But that's the thing. Airplay is not intended to do that functionality. It is doing exactly what it is designed to do and it shouldn't do anything else unless Apple decides to make it something else.
Apple's intended usage of AirPlay is solely for mirroring and nothing else - Just like the iPad and iPhone
On the side note I would like to point the MS response is usually ~13-15 on WiFi...could be better on WiFi....as well as AirParrot/AirPlay is not a full on Monitor replacement (not anytime soon at least) due to the MS Lag....which is usually around 1-5MS on a Wired Monitor.
Oh I see, well that's a bummer then.
Well all and all, I guess I'm just mad at myself for not being able to jailbreak my ATV3 and being able to install XMBC (which for some reason I think can stream a library from another device -e.g Mac- to the ATV, with the comfort of using the ATV itself to navigate the library and whatnot).
Yes, it is true it has been marketed as just Mirroring, and I think for people with MacBooks this is a good thing, being able to specially stream wirelessly to a huge-ass HDTV, but as for me, well the feature is a bit useless unless I was planning to put the Mac Mini (main computer) hidden somewhere and without cables being able to use it on my HDTV (which I use anyway as my monitor).
I think thats what I'm going to consider in the future, Mac-Mini Hidden Behind a TV...with available BT Keyboard+Magic Mouse or Trackpad to use it on TV....would/will be much better than using a ATV or Built in apps on most TV's....
But here's a Setup Idea:
MacMini+AirServer App hooked up to a HDTV is the Ultimate Apple TV Setup...This way you can mirror your MBPro/MBAir/iPhone/iPad/iPod Touch to your TV + use OSX's Screen Sharing functionality to log into a account on MBA/MBP(or the opposite if you were to store all sharable content on the MacMini) to watch/stream/view files/music/video etc.....Basically MacMini being a media center....This will also allow you to continue working on your MBAir/Pro while another user uses its other account to access Videos/Music etc which I'm sure can be made to share between two accounts on the same MBP/MBAir....perhaps using Alias feature? (This setup is all imaginary, I have yet to try anything as I currently dont have the funds to make such an awsome setup that jus works without hiccups which I'm very confident would not be an issue...)
Things Required for above setup:
- MBAir/MBPro
- Mac Mini
- HDTV
- AirServer App
- BT Keyboard+Magic Mouse/Trackpad
- Know how to user "ScreenShare" feature of OSX+Setup Alias for Content between multiple users on the same MBPro/MBAir so Multiple users can access same library when one main user + one logged in via Screen Share....(Alternatively if you can share folders amongst other Mac's in the house sort of like how you can do network drives in Windows...sorry never tried sharing folders on a mac via network as I got my first OSX computer less than a year ago and only have one in the house so far...This would/will leave out the need for ScreenSharing)
- Connect MacMini via Ethernet for better Connection
Not only will you save you $100 but a Mac Mini goes a long way when compared to a ATV in every way.
I don't know if an alias could work, maybe if sudo'd first or something.
Other thing would be to have the Library on / or on an external drive (that is, not using /users).
That setup looks pretty well and I think it would work pretty neat.
Maybe I will try something like that in two years when I upgrade to a MBP or something (and then leave the mini as a media server, so far like I said, it's my workhorse).
Ya I'm waiting for Apple to release the Ivy-Bridge Mac Mini+ the USB3.0 ports on it are much needed....I plan to make it my Official media server as well...
really hoping Apple slaps it with a good 1GB GDDR5 Dedicated graphic card...as well Allow Quad-Core CPU rather than crippling it to Dual-Core....
Apple won't stick a dedicated GPU with 1GB into a Mac Mini. Maybe 512MB, but it would probably be a few pegs lower than the 650M they include with the higher end MBP. 620M maybe.
ok so can we use airplay to view VLC full screen movie on HDTV? or i need to use itunes? Airplay can mirror everything right? whatever that you see on your MAC can see on HDTV. So i can turn on Airplay and play VLC full screen movie, i'll be able to watch in on HDTV correct?
Thanks
Thanks
Correct, yes
It will mirror anything on your desktop.
However make sure your wifi network is up to speed. My airplay mirroring stutters terribly. The same video feed airplayed from my iPhone or iPad works perfectly so i think there is a ML AirPlay bug or the desktop GUI overheads are much more than I thought.
If your network is quick it should be fine.
ok so why are they complaining that they can't use the VLC and they need to convert the movie files to iTunes?
btw i have 300Mbps Wireless N Router so it is fast enough for VLC airplay to AppleTV?
Thanks
Ya I know it was a little too much that I asked for lol, but ya definitely a 512MB hopefully....it'll be a 650M...they have the 512MB version in the MBPro 15" (Non-Retina)
That's not completely true - on iOS, you can AirPlay a video to apple tv in the background and continue to use the device for something else. This works for YouTube, safari vids, and certain app vids. Even if apple didn't activate full desktop extension for OSX, it would be cool if they allowed individual apps to send vid to the apple tv and still be able to use our main screen for something else
We also use if very often for this and Slingbox. We don't have cable so everything we watch comes from the computer or Netflix and AirPlay has really improved our viewing habits. I've also never encountered any stuttering in the mirror either, any hiccups come between my computer and the internet and not on from our network.
Also to add to what others have said I expect Apple willfully neglected to included an extended desktop feature. There is simply too much lag to fit into the "it just works" standard of practice. I would like to see an AirPlay "Presentation" mode that allowed it to show Keynotes, Powerpoint, or even videos over AirPlay while leaving the primary display active.
The most annoying thing about mirroring is the mess it makes of any open windows on your primary display. I tend to have quite a lot open at once and even if these are minimised or hidden their size can get altered. It's annoying enough to avoid mirroring altogether. So I was very disappointed that this feature has remained so limited.
Only good use for Mirroring.
If you already have the ATV2 there is almost nothing to stream from a Mac with AirPlay Mirroring except flash videos. I have only used Mirroring once (to ensure it worked!) and did not exit gracefully - left my 17" screen at 720p resolution
A $150 or $200 net-top style PC makes a much better set top box than an ATV with AirPlay Mirroring. I just replaced my ATV/CrystalHD setup with a Foxconn NT-A3500 and I am happier than ever.
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