Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

TVOut on All Apps!

notintheleast

notintheleast

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Oct 1, 2008
424
0
NC
Big boss just released a mobile substrate extension that allows you to display any app on a TV screen. It works great so far, however it is a work in progress.

From Big Boss:
Features

TVOut capability can be set on a per-application basis.
A background image can be displayed by placing a JPEG file at the following location:
/var/mobile/Library/TVOut/wallpaper.jpg
Known issues

Support for displaying SpringBoard and the statusbar via TV-out is currently disabled.
Certain OpenGL-based applications (such as Google Earth) do not display properly.
OpenGL-based applications do not work when a background image is set
Applications that already support TV-out (iPod, YouTube) also have issues with background images; they also fail to play video if the application itself (and not just the video window) is set to use the TV display.
Todo

Fix known issues.
Add support for landscape mode.
Add per-application settings.
Click to expand...

Support for the springboard is currently disabled and there is no landscape mode. They also said certain Open GL apps like Google Earth might not work. I've been playing Silent Hill all night, because it is displayed in portrait mode.

The hack has a great little app to toggle on and off the apps you want displayed. Check it out under the big boss source. I have only had one problem with it when safari stopped displaying. A simple restart fixed that.
 
how do you use TV out is there a special cord that plugs into the dock connecter spot?
 
I'm confused, can someone give me the "connecting your iphone to tv for dummies version".

What works & what doesn't? The cable description says it works with iphone, which I thought doesn't support tv out, and if it does why do we need this app?
 
aerospace said:
I'm confused, can someone give me the "connecting your iphone to tv for dummies version".

What works & what doesn't? The cable description says it works with iphone, which I thought doesn't support tv out, and if it does why do we need this app?
Click to expand...
The iPhone supports TV output from YouTube and iPod. It DOES NOT natively support TV out from other apps (games for instance). That's what this hack enables.
 
Sounds good but 50 bucks is a bit steep for a cable(monster cable anyone?).

Maybe I'll check out ebay.
 
TJisYeah said:
would it support cycorder
Click to expand...

Yes, it does. The only app that I can't get to work with it so far is maps which they tell you won't work anyway. This hack will be most useful when support for landscape mode is added.

And to those of you seeking cheaper alternatives to the apple AV out cable, just make sure the one you get has the chip that the apple ones have...
 
notintheleast said:
Yes, it does. The only app that I can't get to work with it so far is maps which they tell you won't work anyway. This hack will be most useful when support for landscape mode is added.

And to those of you seeking cheaper alternatives to the apple AV out cable, just make sure the one you get has the chip that the apple ones have...
Click to expand...

how would I know if it has it?
 
joseluis.17 said:
how would I know if it has it?
Click to expand...

There was a third party company that made one, but I can't think of what the brand was.... I wanna say Regardless, it was only $2 less than apple's. Other than that I haven't heard of one. I have read, however, about a few that work with the 1G iPod Touch and iPhone without the chip.

I wish I had some more info about the chip or the limitations of the ones without chips.... Perhaps someone more knowledgeable can fill us in. Until then, I would only trust apple's if I were you. It has been worth every penny of the $50 I paid for mine.
 
Another way to get TV out!

http://www.plutinosoft.com/blog/

Check it out. This one is a little different. It has some features that the other one doesn't have....

You can not only output the iPhone or iPod to a TV, but to your computer's browser via bonjour. At that point you can also control your iDevice on the browser with your mouse. This method also allows you to display the springboard, but I've had trouble getting landscape mode or most games to work. Not to mention this method is far more laggy at this point, but I see a whole lot of potential here. Just a few bugs to work out.

I say install them both for now. TVOut for games and ScreenSplitr for really wowing some people by putting it on the computer or showing the SB.

Add this source to cydia: http://www.plutinosoft.com/cydia/
 
you dont need the component cable from apple, just the yellow/red/white cable. And i think monoprice has one of those for around $12 which i think im gunna order.
 
All the one's I've seen are from no name china companies. If anyone has purchased a non-apple cable that works please post, video would be awesome too.
 
equlizer said:
you dont need the component cable from apple, just the yellow/red/white cable. And i think monoprice has one of those for around $12 which i think im gunna order.
Click to expand...

No, you don't. You can use composite or component cables. But for the video to display properly your cable must have apple's authentication chip in the dock connector:

http://www.ilounge.com/index.php/backstage/comments/whats-inside-apples-2007-av-cable

If you do some googling around you'll find other people who have wasted their money on cheaper cables just to find this out...

http://www.ipodtouchfans.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1140357

So, as I've been saying, make sure it has apple's authentication chip before you buy. And if you can't figure out if it does or not, it probably doesn't.

If someone knows any information contrary to what I've said, please correct me.

Edit: And, you don't need a cable at all to display on your computer with veency...
 
do any of these methods work with Orb? if so is the quality of the video displayed on the TV any worse than that on the iPhone?
 
citivolus said:
do any of these methods work with Orb? if so is the quality of the video displayed on the TV any worse than that on the iPhone?
Click to expand...

TVout worked well enough with Ustream, so I don't see why it wouldn't with orb. I'm not sure though...
 
i bought the apple av cable.. but TVout and screenspliter are both super laggy for videos. anyone else have this issue
 
TJisYeah said:
i bought the apple av cable.. but TVout and screenspliter are both super laggy for videos. anyone else have this issue
Click to expand...

What app are you streaming videos from? dTunes is a great video player and it already has video out capability without these hacks...

Ustream looked just about as good on my LCD as it did on the iPhone screen using TVout (not very good).
 
i tried youtube .. the sound would play but no video... i used mxtube ... it worked but it was SUPER laggy. i dont have a LCD though its kinda an older TV...but i dunno i will try it on an LCD and see if there is a difference
 
Youtube already has video out capability without these hacks. You could open your MxTube files in dtunes and use it's default video out, which is way more stable than this stuff. Cycorder works for me using TVOut, but it looks like crap.

I hope you didn't go out and grab the cables just for these hacks... They are not really advanced enough at this point. The best use of the AV cable is still in the default apps it has always worked with. I'm hoping that these become more stable in the future though.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back