MULTIMEDIA

How To Get More From AirPlay (Part 1)

7/1/2013 9:07:02 AM

Apple’s exciting wireless tech is great for more than just audio

AirPlay started life as AirTunes and was originally limited to streaming audio from iTunes on a Mac or PC to Apple’s AirPort Express – a Wi-Fi base station that has audio connectors for hooking up to a stereo system. Later, it was added as an option in the iOS Remote app, allowing you to control the music you played over AirTunes from an iPhone, iPod touch or iPad.

In late 2010, AirTunes became AirPlay and added the ability to stream photos, video and metadata. More excitingly, however, Apple also announced that it had licensed AirPlay to third parties, so that they could produce AirPlay speaker systems.

AirPlay started life as AirTunes and was originally limited to streaming audio from iTunes on a Mac or PC to Apple’s AirPort Express

AirPlay started life as AirTunes and was originally limited to streaming audio from iTunes on a Mac or PC to Apple’s AirPort Express

There are several ways that you can use AirPlay. You can stream music from iTunes on a Mac to an Apple TV, AirPort Express or third-party system. Or you can play music from the Music app on your iPhone, iPad or iPod from the Music app on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch to the same devices. Some third-party apps also support streaming audio and/or video using AirPlay. Apple’s proprietary technology can even be used as a way of streaming music from your Mac wirelessly to different rooms around your house.

Then there’s mirroring, which allows you to send the audio and video output of an iOS device or Mac running Mountain Lion to an Apple TV. AirPlay mirroring can be used for a whole range of activities, from playing Keynote presentations on a large-screen TV, to sharing creations in iMovie, and even as a way of playing, say, a YouTube, and even as a way of playing, say, a YouTube guitar tutorial or cookery videos on a television rather than a smaller screen. One of our favorite uses, however, is for gaming. Developers have been quick to explore the possibilities of AirPlay mirroring in games, most commonly allowing you to use your iPhone or iPad as a controller while displaying the game itself on TV. AirPlay is both easy to use and flexible. From iTunes on a Mac, or the Remote app in iOS, you can send tracks from your Mac’s music library to multiple AirPlay speakers around the house. There’s much more to AirPlay than meets the eye, and over the next few pages we’ll tell you all you need to know to get more from it. We’ll also tell you which AirPlay speaker work best in different locations and why they’re worth your money.

Set up a speaker

Different devices use different methods, but let’s look at the basics

  1. Check the manual for your AirPlay device to find out which set-up methods it supports before you begin. From that you can decide whether to use a Mac or iOS device. Whichever method you use, the first step is usually to turn the device on.
  2. You then need to add it to your network. If your speaker can read your Wi-Fi password from your iOS device, dock it, press the buttons indicated in the manual if necessary, and once your iOS device has alerted you, just tap Accept.
  3. Some AirPlay speakers will need you to connect to their own Wi-Fi network to configure them. Click the AirPort menu on your Mac or look in iOS’ Settings app – connect to the network temporarily, then enter an IP address into Safari. Once configured, connect to your normal network again.
  4. Another common method is to use an iOS app. Some speakers prompt you to download it when you plug your device in, but you might have to manually search the App Store.

Setting up an AirPlay device can be done in a number of ways, depending on which device you’re using. Some have a dedicated iOS app to handle the heavy lifting, others use Wi-Fi sharing, some have on-board LCDs and menu systems, and one or two require you to connect directly to your Mac using a USB cable, or router using an Ethernet cable, in order to configure them.

Set up a speaker

Set up a speaker

The easiest device to set up is an Apple TV. Connect it to your TV with an HDMI cable, then follow the on-screen instructions to add it to your Wi-Fi network. The trickiest bit used to be entering your Wi-Fi password using the remote control, but Apple TV now supports Bluetooth keyboards, so even that bit it easy.

Once it’s connected, your Mac and iOs devices find it automatically and it’s available in the AirPlay menu in apps that support it, as well as the multitasking bar in iOS.

 
Set up a speaker

Control AirPlay audio output independently via Tune’s volume panel

Network creators

Setting up a device that supports Wi-Fi Sharing is just a matter of connecting a device running iOS 5 or 6 and maybe pressing a button on the speaker. It will then harvest the details of the network to which your device is connected and add itself, once you’ve given it permission.

Some devices – the Libration Zipp, for example require that you join their own network from an iOS device or Mac and then navigate in a web browser to their configuration page where you define your own Wi-Fi network.

The other thing to consider, once you’ve added an AirPlay speaker to your network, is where you’re going to position it. Speakers vary widely in their ability to project a wide soundstage, which will determine the degree to which they play in full stereo. Some devices, such as the Audyssey Audio Dock Air, are best-placed in a corner so that they can use the walls to reflect sound back into the room. Others, such as Bose’s SoundLink Air, are best-placed centrally, allowing the speaker driver on either side of the unit to fire outwards.

It’s important that you don’t lose your Wi-Fi connection while listening to music. Make sure that the location you choose for the AirPlay device has a strong Wi-Fi signal. If it doesn’t consider using a Wi-Fi bridge to extend the network, or set up a new network with a different base station. You can connect the new base station to your modern router using a PowerLine adapter if you want to have internet access on the new Wi-Fi network.

Dropped signals

Some people recommend having your AirPlay device in the same room as your router and making sure nothing else is connected to the network. For most of us, however, that’s not feasible. If you find that you’re having problems with a signal dropping, or with AirPlay performance – particularly mirroring video – being poor, you could try switching your router to a wide channel, if it supports it. The 40MHz frequency, known as a wide channel, usually provides faster speeds than 20MHz, so may help eliminate problems. If your router is already switched to 40MHz, the problem might be congestion. If there are lots of other wireless networks running on 40MHz in your area that will slow down traffic on your network. Try switching to the slower, but probably less-crowded, 20MHz channel.

Changing the wireless channel usually involves a trip to your router’s web configuration page, so check the manual that came with your router or see the help text on the manufacturer’s homepage.

Other  
 
Top 10
Review : Sigma 24mm f/1.4 DG HSM Art
Review : Canon EF11-24mm f/4L USM
Review : Creative Sound Blaster Roar 2
Review : Philips Fidelio M2L
Review : Alienware 17 - Dell's Alienware laptops
Review Smartwatch : Wellograph
Review : Xiaomi Redmi 2
Extending LINQ to Objects : Writing a Single Element Operator (part 2) - Building the RandomElement Operator
Extending LINQ to Objects : Writing a Single Element Operator (part 1) - Building Our Own Last Operator
3 Tips for Maintaining Your Cell Phone Battery (part 2) - Discharge Smart, Use Smart
REVIEW
- First look: Apple Watch

- 3 Tips for Maintaining Your Cell Phone Battery (part 1)

- 3 Tips for Maintaining Your Cell Phone Battery (part 2)
VIDEO TUTORIAL
- How to create your first Swimlane Diagram or Cross-Functional Flowchart Diagram by using Microsoft Visio 2010 (Part 1)

- How to create your first Swimlane Diagram or Cross-Functional Flowchart Diagram by using Microsoft Visio 2010 (Part 2)

- How to create your first Swimlane Diagram or Cross-Functional Flowchart Diagram by using Microsoft Visio 2010 (Part 3)
Popular Tags
Microsoft Access Microsoft Excel Microsoft OneNote Microsoft PowerPoint Microsoft Project Microsoft Visio Microsoft Word Active Directory Biztalk Exchange Server Microsoft LynC Server Microsoft Dynamic Sharepoint Sql Server Windows Server 2008 Windows Server 2012 Windows 7 Windows 8 Adobe Indesign Adobe Flash Professional Dreamweaver Adobe Illustrator Adobe After Effects Adobe Photoshop Adobe Fireworks Adobe Flash Catalyst Corel Painter X CorelDRAW X5 CorelDraw 10 QuarkXPress 8 windows Phone 7 windows Phone 8