USB‑C connector with support for Thunderbolt / USB 4

[Ambrosia7177]

@Alameda,

Ask away! It’s your thread!

This is going to turn into a God-thread, but since I have all of the experts here, I better ask now!

I bought a Thunderbolt hub from owc.com. They have a lot of products and articles which explain some of the things you can do.

I’m an advanced photographer. I often shoot 1,000 photos or more with a 45 megapixel camera. OWC makes a lot of fast storage products for people like me. I like that I can plug one cable into my MacBook and ALL of my stuff works — charging, the 4K monitor, Ethernet for faster networking, my card readers and my external SSD drive. I paid around $175 for my OWC Thunderbolt hub, and around $100 for their Thunderbolt card reader. That is expensive, but it lets me copy 80 gigabytes of photos from my camera to the disk drive VERY fast, so I love it. You probably don’t need something like that.

Funny you should say that, because I am becoming a more advanced videographer, so I'll see your photos and raise you! (I have 25TB of video that I haven't been able to preview or edit on this old rMBP, so once I buy my 14" M3 Max in a few weeks, let the flood gates open!)

Will come back to this topic in a bit...

There’s a company called Anker that makes simple USB hubs with USB-C. I bring one in my laptop bag. It gives you standard USB-A connections for things like card readers and memory sticks. These things only cost $25 or so.

Okay.


Alright, so this is based on another thread that only got one response, AND based on some new information from a fairly knowledgeable kid at the local Apple store - but which I feel is missing some critical pieces - here is what I want to do...

I am an independent video-journalist, and currently focus on man-on-the-street type interviews. Have interviewed thousands of people, and have a solid workflow that produces great results.

What I want to be able to do, is show interviewees a video clip - out in the field - and as they are watching things, I will still be recording, and then after the clip is over, I will ask for their reaction.

I want to buy and mount an iPad on my tripod rig just to the right of where my camera is.

To make this look as professional as possible, I want to be able to control what is playing on the iPad remotely, AND I need to be able to monitor what is playing in real-time.

The end result is that I will be interviewing someone and say, "Now I'm going to play a video clip, and I want to get your reaction...." and then I cue up the video on my iPhone, press play, play the clip, and then stop it when needed, and all the while I never have to fiddle with anything or step in frame, and other than the interviewee looking slightly off to the left their eyes will never leave the camera, and so to my end-audience the interview will like it just came off of CNN or 60 Minutes!

Here is what the kid at the Apple store recommended...

- Buy an iPad Air.
- Download the Orion app by Lux located on the App Store.
- Install the HDMI Monitor by Orion app onto the iPad.
- Download and install VLC onto your iPhone.
- Then buy a USB-C to HDMI capture card (adapter).
- Also buy a cable to go from your iPhone to the capture adapter.
- Assemble.
- And then your iPad becomes an external monitor to your iPhone.


(I downloaded VLC to my iPhone 11 Pro Max yesterday, and used iMazing - which is the coolest app ever - to transfer some test vidoes and audio clips from my MacBook pro to my iPhone 11 Pro Max. I have never used my iPhone to play audio or video, so I feel like I just caught up with the 20th century!!! So I have the content on my iPhone now - or at least proof-of-concept - now I just need a way to play it on an iPad for an interviewee while we both watch!)


Because I would be locating the video clip from VLC on my iPhone, and then pressing play on my iPhone, and then viewing the video on my iPhone, because the iPad would now be an external monitor, the interviewee could watch the video on my iPad while I cue and monitor things from my iPhone, all while recording this on my camera - which right now is technically a 2nd iPhone.

Surprisingly, I haven't been able to find any YouTube videos with this exact use-case. (Everyone is doing this from a camera to an iPad.)

I have two concerns about whether this will work as intended...

Concern #1:
I will be buying a new iPhone 15 Pro Max and using that as my new main "camera". And I will be retiring my old iPhone 11 Pro Max and making that my secondary iPhone which is where I will store my library of videos, and hopefully be able to use it as a remote control to the iPad.

Now for the "I need help with networking" part...

My iPhone 11 Pro Max only has a Lightning cable.

According to this kid, he has set up his iPad as an external monitor to his iPhone, but he is using USB-C to HDMI to the capture card HDMI port to USB-C to his iPad.

Is this going to work with my iPhone 11 Pro Max that only has a Lightning port?


Concern #2:
How picky is this Orion app going to be with the particular USB-C to HDMI capture card I buy?

Lux lists Recommended Accessories here.

And here is a list of supported capture cards here.

Problem is, I refuse to buy from NewEgg and especially Amazon because of past issues. And these capture cards aren't available anywhere else.

My preference is to buy from a respectable place like B&H Photo.

I was wondering if the Kondor Blue HDMI to USB-C Capture Card for Live Streaming Video & Audio Add to Compare Kondor Blue HDMI to USB-C Capture Card for Live Streaming Video & Audio would also work?


Concern #3:
I don't understand how all of this supposedly works?!

Why do I need a "capture" card when I am not capturing (i.e. recording) anything?

Can someone explain to me what the "capture" card is doing?

And can someone explain how the end-to-end process is supposed to work?


Whew!

So that is what I need help doing, and I suppose the reason I created this thread really was related to the scenario I just posted, because I wanted to make sure a new 13" iPad Air will "play nicely" with my old iPhone 11 Pro Max - as well as my new 14" M3 Max and new iPhone 15 Pro Max, although the iPad Air to iPhone 11 Pro max is what really counts!!

(Unless someone wants to buy me a 2nd new iPhone 15 Pro Max to use for monitoring!) ;-)

 

[Alameda]

@Alameda,



This is going to turn into a God-thread, but since I have all of the experts here, I better ask now!




Funny you should say that, because I am becoming a more advanced videographer, so I'll see your photos and raise you! (I have 25TB of video that I haven't been able to preview or edit on this old rMBP, so once I buy my 14" M3 Max in a few weeks, let the flood gates open!)

Will come back to this topic in a bit...




Okay.


Alright, so this is based on another thread that only got one response, AND based on some new information from a fairly knowledgeable kid at the local Apple store - but which I feel is missing some critical pieces - here is what I want to do...

I am an independent video-journalist, and currently focus on man-on-the-street type interviews. Have interviewed thousands of people, and have a solid workflow that produces great results.

What I want to be able to do, is show interviewees a video clip - out in the field - and as they are watching things, I will still be recording, and then after the clip is over, I will ask for their reaction.

I want to buy and mount an iPad on my tripod rig just to the right of where my camera is.

To make this look as professional as possible, I want to be able to control what is playing on the iPad remotely, AND I need to be able to monitor what is playing in real-time.

The end result is that I will be interviewing someone and say, "Now I'm going to play a video clip, and I want to get your reaction...." and then I cue up the video on my iPhone, press play, play the clip, and then stop it when needed, and all the while I never have to fiddle with anything or step in frame, and other than the interviewee looking slightly off to the left their eyes will never leave the camera, and so to my end-audience the interview will like it just came off of CNN or 60 Minutes!

Here is what the kid at the Apple store recommended...

- Buy an iPad Air.
- Download the Orion app by Lux located on the App Store.
- Install the HDMI Monitor by Orion app onto the iPad.
- Download and install VLC onto your iPhone.
- Then buy a USB-C to HDMI capture card (adapter).
- Also buy a cable to go from your iPhone to the capture adapter.
- Assemble.
- And then your iPad becomes an external monitor to your iPhone.


(I downloaded VLC to my iPhone 11 Pro Max yesterday, and used iMazing - which is the coolest app ever - to transfer some test vidoes and audio clips from my MacBook pro to my iPhone 11 Pro Max. I have never used my iPhone to play audio or video, so I feel like I just caught up with the 20th century!!! So I have the content on my iPhone now - or at least proof-of-concept - now I just need a way to play it on an iPad for an interviewee while we both watch!)


Because I would be locating the video clip from VLC on my iPhone, and then pressing play on my iPhone, and then viewing the video on my iPhone, because the iPad would now be an external monitor, the interviewee could watch the video on my iPad while I cue and monitor things from my iPhone, all while recording this on my camera - which right now is technically a 2nd iPhone.

Surprisingly, I haven't been able to find any YouTube videos with this exact use-case. (Everyone is doing this from a camera to an iPad.)

I have two concerns about whether this will work as intended...

Concern #1:
I will be buying a new iPhone 15 Pro Max and using that as my new main "camera". And I will be retiring my old iPhone 11 Pro Max and making that my secondary iPhone which is where I will store my library of videos, and hopefully be able to use it as a remote control to the iPad.

Now for the "I need help with networking" part...

My iPhone 11 Pro Max only has a Lightning cable.

According to this kid, he has set up his iPad as an external monitor to his iPhone, but he is using USB-C to HDMI to the capture card HDMI port to USB-C to his iPad.

Is this going to work with my iPhone 11 Pro Max that only has a Lightning port?


Concern #2:
How picky is this Orion app going to be with the particular USB-C to HDMI capture card I buy?

Lux lists Recommended Accessories here.

And here is a list of supported capture cards here.

Problem is, I refuse to buy from NewEgg and especially Amazon because of past issues. And these capture cards aren't available anywhere else.

My preference is to buy from a respectable place like B&H Photo.

I was wondering if the Kondor Blue HDMI to USB-C Capture Card for Live Streaming Video & Audio Add to Compare Kondor Blue HDMI to USB-C Capture Card for Live Streaming Video & Audio would also work?


Concern #3:
I don't understand how all of this supposedly works?!

Why do I need a "capture" card when I am not capturing (i.e. recording) anything?

Can someone explain to me what the "capture" card is doing?

And can someone explain how the end-to-end process is supposed to work?


Whew!

So that is what I need help doing, and I suppose the reason I created this thread really was related to the scenario I just posted, because I wanted to make sure a new 13" iPad Air will "play nicely" with my old iPhone 11 Pro Max - as well as my new 14" M3 Max and new iPhone 15 Pro Max, although the iPad Air to iPhone 11 Pro max is what really counts!!

(Unless someone wants to buy me a 2nd new iPhone 15 Pro Max to use for monitoring!) ;-)

That sounds like a very complicated approach.
You can just buy a cheap Bluetooth remote control for iPad and use it to start and stop video playback on the iPad.

 

[Ambrosia7177]

That sounds like a very complicated approach.
You can just buy a cheap Bluetooth remote control for iPad and use it to start and stop video playback on the iPad.

Won't work.

The iPad is facing away from me.

Thus I want to use my iPhone as the source and the iPad as the display.

 

[PaulD-UK]

Hi.
Let me quote what I said earlier in this thread:
Quote: @Ambrosia7177 “I want these to all play together nicely.”

'That’s a software problem, and a consequent communication protocol problem.
Yes USB-C sockets are what Apple uses these days, and with the right cable, everything you want to do can be done. With appropriate software…..'

The 'kid at the Apple Store' gave you some excellent advice (for once...)

Apple has the most integrated collaborative ecosystem allowing amazing workflows between different devices, but the 'glue' that makes all this possible is the use of Apple ID-authenticated/secure communication using WiFi.

Take the WiFi out of the equation, and this is Apple's own solution to more or less exactly your problem:

https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/53f4e093e4b085e4457080e1/6ebcf0f1-7ffd-4c51-afb0-86eb1bcd4694/BTS_01_iPhone+%2801736%29.jpg

That's Apple's shooting rig for their own video, and they can't shoot video, run the teleprompter and do on-site review of the footage they've shot, using the normal Apple ecosystem... (USB-C interconnects with WIFI security authentication).

As well as USB-C data transfer to SSD storage, they are using video cabling, and video communication protocols.
That is why the young lad suggested a video-capture solution, using the HDMI protocol.
He listed everything you need...
Except, since you are replaying your 'teleprompt' video replay off a Lightening-port iPhone,
you need Apple's Lightening to HDMI adapter:

Lightning Digital AV Adapter

The Lightning Digital AV Adapter lets you mirror your iPad, iPhone or iPod so you can watch on your TV or display.

www.apple.com

And you need a not-too-heavy/flexible HDMI cable to connect the above adapter to the HDMI to USB-C capture card that the Apple sales guy listed.

And you need all the necessary 'grips' clutter - stands, clamps, brackets, cabling etc etc to make it into a reliable shooting system for use 'in the field'.

Good luck. It sounds like a very enterprising project. 👍

 

[Ambrosia7177]

@PaulD-UK

Hi.
Let me quote what I said earlier in this thread:
Quote: @Ambrosia7177 “I want these to all play together nicely.”

'That’s a software problem, and a consequent communication protocol problem.
Yes USB-C sockets are what Apple uses these days, and with the right cable, everything you want to do can be done. With appropriate software…..'

Understood.

The 'kid at the Apple Store' gave you some excellent advice (for once...)

I agree. For once. Well, for once assuming what he recommended actually works?!

Apple has the most integrated collaborative ecosystem allowing amazing workflows between different devices, but the 'glue' that makes all this possible is the use of Apple ID-authenticated/secure communication using WiFi.

Take the WiFi out of the equation, and this is Apple's own solution to more or less exactly your problem:

Okay.

https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/53f4e093e4b085e4457080e1/6ebcf0f1-7ffd-4c51-afb0-86eb1bcd4694/BTS_01_iPhone+%2801736%29.jpg

That is an incredible looking rig!!

That's Apple's shooting rig for their own video, and they can't shoot video, run the teleprompter and do on-site review of the footage they've shot, using the normal Apple ecosystem... (USB-C interconnects with WIFI security authentication).

As well as USB-C data transfer to SSD storage, they are using video cabling, and video communication protocols.
That is why the young lad suggested a video-capture solution, using the HDMI protocol.

Can you help me understand what the capture card does?

Do the Lightning Digital AV Adapter apparently takes a video out signal and sends it to the "capture card" which then does what?

Why do I need a capture card?

He listed everything you need...

Except, since you are replaying your 'teleprompt' video replay off a Lightening-port iPhone,
you need Apple's Lightening to HDMI adapter:

Lightning Digital AV Adapter

The Lightning Digital AV Adapter lets you mirror your iPad, iPhone or iPod so you can watch on your TV or display.

www.apple.com

So using an older iPhone 11 Pro Max with a Lightning jack shouldn't be a deal-breaker in what I want to do?

And you need a not-too-heavy/flexible HDMI cable to connect the above adapter to the HDMI to USB-C capture card that the Apple sales guy listed.

Here is the key question...

Do I have to use the capture cards mentioned by Lux here...

https://orion.tube/accessories

https://rooms-try-9ww.craft.me/iQBkywlKyunNxa

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B...855bd45d210ef0d7088d9&camp=1789&creative=9325

The problem is that I refuse to shop at Amazon or NewEgg dues to prior issues.

I would prefer buying from B&H Photo and try a capture card like this...

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/prod...ue_kb_hdmi_usbc_cc_hdmi_to_usb_c_capture.html


Will the...

Kondor Blue HDMI to USB-C Capture Card for Live Streaming Video & Audio

do the same thing as the...

Guermok Audio/Video Capture Card, USB3.0 HDMI to USB C, 4K 1080P 60FPS Capture
with Type-C Adapter Devices for Gaming Live Streaming Video Recorder,
for Windows Mac OS System OBS Zoom card?


B&H Photo has some other choices here...

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?q=usb-c to HDMI capture&sts=ma


Are these all commodity products, or is the devil in the details as you advised me earlier??



Also, which HDMI cable would I need? (What "specs" should I be checking for?)

And you need all the necessary 'grips' clutter - stands, clamps, brackets, cabling etc etc to make it into a reliable shooting system for use 'in the field'.

My rig is already pretty "beastie" - although not as impressive as the photo you linked to above.

I don't see the cabling as being a real issue. Am more concerned about mounting my iPad to my tripod, and possibly mounting my iPhone too so it is all handsfree.

So do you think I can make this all work out?

Good luck. It sounds like a very enterprising project. 👍

 

[PaulD-UK]

Because Hollywood is so paranoid about piracy the whole world of digital video and the computer world has been forced to lock down digital video with HDPC video content protection.

So the Apple ecosystem locks all video-streaming-over-USB cables to an Apple ID, for Airplay and Sharing etc.
But Apple allows you to send video to any television over an HDMI cable (which also 'understands' HDCP).

To get round the WiFi Apple ID lock problem - which requires authentication for a direct USB-C cable connection - you can use an HDMI cable between the iPhone and the iPad.

So at the iPhone you use a Lightning to HDMI adapter, and you run the HDMI cable into an HDMI to USB-C adapter for the iPad.
But iPadOS doesn't 'understand' the HDMI protocol, so you need a 'capture card', and an App to provide software* to drive the capture card.

* Reliable software that runs unattended for as long as you want it to is essential. Lux's Orion is exactly that.
You need a capture card that Lux, or Orion users, recommend.

All the manufacturers on B&H's list that I know about cost 10x the no-name brands.
So hopefully someone else who has used a reliable HDMI capture device can advise you.

If your video is 1080p, then older HDMI cables will work, but for a higher resolution that matches an iPad screen you need a good quality HDMI cable - HDMI 2.0, but you don't need the newest HDMI 2.1 spec, more costly ones.
For a mobile rig it also needs to be flexible.

 

[Ambrosia7177]

@PaulD-UK,

Because Hollywood is so paranoid about piracy the whole world of digital video and the computer world has been forced to lock down digital video with HDPC video content protection.

What, they are afraid someone is going to do a man-in-the-middle attack and steal the latest Hollywood blockbuster as it is being recorded in studio? :O

So the Apple ecosystem locks all video-streaming-over-USB cables to an Apple ID, for Airplay and Sharing etc.
But Apple allows you to send video to any television over an HDMI cable (which also 'understands' HDCP).

What does that achieve? So if they lock down USB-C, you just use HDMI if you were going to steal something.

To get round the WiFi Apple ID lock problem - which requires authentication for a direct USB-C cable connection - you can use an HDMI cable between the iPhone and the iPad.

Is there software that would allow a direct USB-C to USB-C connection?

So at the iPhone you use a Lightning to HDMI adapter,

The Lightning to HDMI adapter converts video in _____ format into HDMI format?

and you run the HDMI cable into an HDMI to USB-C adapter for the iPad.
But iPadOS doesn't 'understand' the HDMI protocol, so you need a 'capture card', and an App to provide software* to drive the capture card.

Capture card seems like a really dumb name. Why not call it a "video converter card"?

Or can you also use the "capture card" to actually record a video screen?

* Reliable software that runs unattended for as long as you want it to is essential. Lux's Orion is exactly that.
You need a capture card that Lux, or Orion users, recommend.

Their website doesn't explicitly say you have to use those capture cards, it justs ays they tested these. But it sort of implies only those might work.

How big of a deal do you think the manufacturer makes?

(I think the "Kondor Blue HDMI to USB-C Capture Card for Live Streaming Video & Audio" looks like a better quality product.)

All the manufacturers on B&H's list that I know about cost 10x the no-name brands.

The Kondor Blue is a brand name - if I'm not mistaken - and it only costs US$34.99 Cheap.

So hopefully someone else who has used a reliable HDMI capture device can advise you.

Yes, if anyone can speak to this, that would help!

If your video is 1080p, then older HDMI cables will work, but for a higher resolution that matches an iPad screen you need a good quality HDMI cable - HDMI 2.0, but you don't need the newest HDMI 2.1 spec, more costly ones.

All of the capture cards I saw will accept 4K video, but only output 1080, so I guess that is one downside to displaying video using a card. (Of course, most of the news clips I will be playing aren't available in 4K, so it won't matter - even if I will be under utilizing my iPad Air screen.)

For a mobile rig it also needs to be flexible.

Are their certain manufacturers or brands of HDMI cable that you recommend?


Thanks for the detailed insight!!

 

[chrfr]

I am looking to buy a new iPad Air.

I see it has this: "USB‑C connector with support for Thunderbolt / USB 4"

I'm not sure where you're reading that but the iPad Air does not support Thunderbolt or USB 4, it's just a USB-C port which supports USB 3. The iPad Pro models support Thunderbolt.

 

[splifingate]

into my older 2015 rMBP

That's gana be a toughy, Ambrosia (e.g., you'll be repeatedly scratching your head, trying to make the ends meet).

My only lappy is a 2015MBP; it has two TB2 connectors, and they are mD(isplay)P(ort) . . . not USB-C

WIFI and Ethernet are what I use for inter-communication

 

[Alameda]

@PaulD-UK,



What, they are afraid someone is going to do a man-in-the-middle attack and steal the latest Hollywood blockbuster as it is being recorded in studio? :O




What does that achieve? So if they lock down USB-C, you just use HDMI if you were going to steal something.




Is there software that would allow a direct USB-C to USB-C connection?




The Lightning to HDMI adapter converts video in _____ format into HDMI format?





Capture card seems like a really dumb name. Why not call it a "video converter card"?

Or can you also use the "capture card" to actually record a video screen?





Their website doesn't explicitly say you have to use those capture cards, it justs ays they tested these. But it sort of implies only those might work.

How big of a deal do you think the manufacturer makes?

(I think the "Kondor Blue HDMI to USB-C Capture Card for Live Streaming Video & Audio" looks like a better quality product.)




The Kondor Blue is a brand name - if I'm not mistaken - and it only costs US$34.99 Cheap.




Yes, if anyone can speak to this, that would help!




All of the capture cards I saw will accept 4K video, but only output 1080, so I guess that is one downside to displaying video using a card. (Of course, most of the news clips I will be playing aren't available in 4K, so it won't matter - even if I will be under utilizing my iPad Air screen.)





Are their certain manufacturers or brands of HDMI cable that you recommend?


Thanks for the detailed insight!!

I have a different suggestion:
Buy the Apple “Lightning Digital AV Adapter”, an HDMI cable, and a display screen with an HDMI input?
Instead of using an iPad, just use a battery powered HDMI display. There are many available for about $300. You can test the solution out by just getting the Apple adapter and attaching your iPhone to your TV set to be sure it works ok, and if it does, then get the display screen.

 

[theluggage]

Yes, and USB-C has solved all kinds of connection issues and USB-A cables are falling out of use.

Maybe - in the last couple of years - but it's now 8 years since Apple prematurely decided to make MacBook Pros with only USB-C. In that time, Apple have partially back-pedalled by restoring HDMI and MagSafe on the MacBook Pro, still make Minis and Studios with USB-A ports - and have apparently been forced kicking and screaming (although I suspect some briar-patching is involved) to finally adopt it where it always made the most sense - on iDevices which only have space for a single connector.

The main advance is that we are now rapidly moving towards a single charger for laptops, phones, tablets and other small electronic devices.

Meanwhile - I bought brand-new devices with USB type B ports as recently as last year, both USB-A ports on my Mac Studio are in use and half the USB-C ports have C-to-A adapters plugged in. Few mainstream devices use, or need, anything faster than USB 3.1 gen 2 (which Apple could have implemented on USB-A ports) - the majority of my devices are only USB 2.

Thunderbolt devices still carry a massive premium for what is often a marginal performance increase, and I haven't noticed an influx of cheaper USB4 devices yet.

It's only fairly recently that USB-C/USB 3.1 equivalents of the good old 4-8 port USB 3 hub (i.e. with USB-C/USB 3.1 downstream ports) appeared, and they're still not common. USB4/TB4 hubs with multiple downstream USB4/TB4 ports are now available - but if you're only going to use them for USB they offer no better performance than a USB 3 hub - still sharing the bandwidth of one USB 3 stream between multiple devices: unless you're going to connect a 4k display or at least 1 TB/USB4 peripheral via the hub, save your money. There's about one TB3 to USB-A adapter on the market that actually offers better USB performance by adding extra USB controllers via a TB3-to-PCIe bridge (Part of TB4/USB4 is tunnelling USB from the host controller rather than adding new controllers that can share the full 40Gbps bandwidth, which is a dubious "upgrade").

USB-C was needed on mobile where 1 connector + dongles was unavoidable & the microB connectors were awful - but on larger laptops which had space for dedicated ports it was a solution looking for a problem: its mostly just carrying the same old USB 3 and DisplayPort 1.2 data as before, but now with the artificial bottleneck that two largely independent resources from the motherboard have to share a single, more-expensive-to-implement hole in the case.

We've now reached the point where USB-C has enough momentum to be useful & desirable on new equipment, and maybe future Macs could drop USB-A (as long as the desktops keep Ethernet and HDMI) but Apple jumped the gun by about 4 years and introduced it before it offered any performance advantage, just a new conduit for the same old protocols. I'm not even sure whether they really helped launch it, or just caused the USB-C device market to be flooded by "help! give me my old ports back!" products.

...and, outside a few people's bubbles, USB A/B still isn't going away anytime soon.

 

[Ambrosia7177]

@Alameda,

I have a different suggestion:
Buy the Apple “Lightning Digital AV Adapter”, an HDMI cable, and a display screen with an HDMI input?
Instead of using an iPad, just use a battery powered HDMI display. There are many available for about $300. You can test the solution out by just getting the Apple adapter and attaching your iPhone to your TV set to be sure it works ok, and if it does, then get the display screen.

That is an interesting solution.

To make sure I understand you...

You are saying that if I plug a "Lightning Digital AV Adapter" into my iPhone 11 Pro Max's Lightning port, and then plug an HDMI cable into that adapter and the other end into an external display, that I can "stream" what is playing on my iPhone onto an external field display?

So I could launch VLC on my iPhone, play a video, and it would appear on the external display, just like you can see what is on your desktop by plugging in an external computer monitor?

I guess my point is that with your suggestion, I don't need any 3rd-party app to make things work, right?

 

[Alameda]

Maybe - in the last couple of years - but it's now 8 years since Apple prematurely decided to make MacBook Pros with only USB-C. In that time, Apple have partially back-pedalled by restoring HDMI and MagSafe on the MacBook Pro, still make Minis and Studios with USB-A ports - and have apparently been forced kicking and screaming (although I suspect some briar-patching is involved) to finally adopt it where it always made the most sense - on iDevices which only have space for a single connector.

The main advance is that we are now rapidly moving towards a single charger for laptops, phones, tablets and other small electronic devices.

Meanwhile - I bought brand-new devices with USB type B ports as recently as last year, both USB-A ports on my Mac Studio are in use and half the USB-C ports have C-to-A adapters plugged in. Few mainstream devices use, or need, anything faster than USB 3.1 gen 2 (which Apple could have implemented on USB-A ports) - the majority of my devices are only USB 2.

Thunderbolt devices still carry a massive premium for what is often a marginal performance increase, and I haven't noticed an influx of cheaper USB4 devices yet.

It's only fairly recently that USB-C/USB 3.1 equivalents of the good old 4-8 port USB 3 hub (i.e. with USB-C/USB 3.1 downstream ports) appeared, and they're still not common. USB4/TB4 hubs with multiple downstream USB4/TB4 ports are now available - but if you're only going to use them for USB they offer no better performance than a USB 3 hub - still sharing the bandwidth of one USB 3 stream between multiple devices: unless you're going to connect a 4k display or at least 1 TB/USB4 peripheral via the hub, save your money. There's about one TB3 to USB-A adapter on the market that actually offers better USB performance by adding extra USB controllers via a TB3-to-PCIe bridge (Part of TB4/USB4 is tunnelling USB from the host controller rather than adding new controllers that can share the full 40Gbps bandwidth, which is a dubious "upgrade").

USB-C was needed on mobile where 1 connector + dongles was unavoidable & the microB connectors were awful - but on larger laptops which had space for dedicated ports it was a solution looking for a problem: its mostly just carrying the same old USB 3 and DisplayPort 1.2 data as before, but now with the artificial bottleneck that two largely independent resources from the motherboard have to share a single, more-expensive-to-implement hole in the case.

We've now reached the point where USB-C has enough momentum to be useful & desirable on new equipment, and maybe future Macs could drop USB-A (as long as the desktops keep Ethernet and HDMI) but Apple jumped the gun by about 4 years and introduced it before it offered any performance advantage, just a new conduit for the same old protocols. I'm not even sure whether they really helped launch it, or just caused the USB-C device market to be flooded by "help! give me my old ports back!" products.

...and, outside a few people's bubbles, USB A/B still isn't going away anytime soon.

Nevertheless, USB-C has solved many connection problems, and USB Type-A cables are falling out of use.

 

[Alameda]

@Alameda,



That is an interesting solution.

To make sure I understand you...

You are saying that if I plug a "Lightning Digital AV Adapter" into my iPhone 11 Pro Max's Lightning port, and then plug an HDMI cable into that adapter and the other end into an external display, that I can "stream" what is playing on my iPhone onto an external field display?

So I could launch VLC on my iPhone, play a video, and it would appear on the external display, just like you can see what is on your desktop by plugging in an external computer monitor?

I guess my point is that with your suggestion, I don't need any 3rd-party app to make things work, right?

Yes, I believe it will work as you describe.
Buy the adapter and try it on a standard television set to see how it works. I don’t exactly know if it will mirror the screen with or without the interface controls, etc. You would have to experiment to see exactly what appears on the TV screen and see if it’s to your liking. But if it is, you’ll have a simpler, less expensive solution. They make external 4” and 5” video monitors for cameras which are battery powered, just for filmmaking, or you can go with a much cheaper and larger external display.


Here are a few monitors to consider. I don’t know which run on batteries and which need power, but it looks like a good list of large, external monitors. They’re quite large, around 15”. Many have HDMI input. Of course, you can find smaller screens if that’s what you want.

Best Portable Monitors

www.pcmag.com

 

[Ambrosia7177]

So at the iPhone you use a Lightning to HDMI adapter, and you run the HDMI cable into an HDMI to USB-C adapter for the iPad.
But iPadOS doesn't 'understand' the HDMI protocol, so you need a 'capture card', and an App to provide software* to drive the capture card.

* Reliable software that runs unattended for as long as you want it to is essential. Lux's Orion is exactly that.
You need a capture card that Lux, or Orion users, recommend.

@PaulD-UK, @Alameda, @theluggage,

It works!!

I got my Apple Lightning Digital AV Adapter to HDMI cable to Kondor Blue HDMI to USB-C Capture Card to work.

With the Orion app, I am able to use my new 13" iPad Air as an external monitor to my iPhone 11 Pro Max and view videos playing on VLC on the iPad.

I bought the premium version for like $4.95 which supposedly uses AI to give you a 4K look, but I can't see that happen - so I think I got ripped off there.

When I order my iPhone 15 Pro Max this week, I will buy an adapter so hopefully this setup works with a new iPhone as well.

Am super pumped about getting this to work, as it will really add value to my interviews!!