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AirPlay is an Apples proprietary audio and video streaming technology that Apple devices can use to wirelessly stream audio, video, device screens, and photos between Airplay enabled electronic devices. This is similar to the way you might connect to a streaming radio or video Web site, like Pandora or YouTube, except that everything is located on your local network rather than out on the Internet. Using AirPlay, you can play media from a single AirPlay-compatible source, like an iPhone, iPad or any Mac or Windows PC running iTunes and stream it to multiple AirPlay-compatible devices on the same network, including TVs and Airplay enabled stereo systems.

Airplay

 With AirPlay, you can stream music, photos, and videos to your Apple TV, or stream music to your AirPort Express or AirPlay-enabled speakers.AirPort express comes with an inbuilt audio Jack where you can connect your speaker to stream audio to it.And with AirPlay Mirroring, you can display your Macbook screen or iOS screen on your Apple TV.

Airport Express As an Airplay Reeceiver

AirPlay was originally implemented only in Apples software and devices, it was called AirTunes and used for audio only.Apple has since licensed the AirPlay protocol stack as a third-party software component technology to manufacturer partners for them to use in their products in order to be compatible with Apples devices.It was first released as AirTunes on June 7, 2004 and then Apple changed its name to AirPlay on September 1, 2010.

There are two types of AirPlay devices, Senders and Receivers.

Senders - Those that send audiovisual content

AirPlay sender devices include any Mac or windows computers running iTunes, and iOS devices such as iPhones, iPods, and iPads running iOS 4.2 or greater. OS X Mountain Lion ( Version 10.8) supports display mirroring via AirPlay on systems containing 2nd generation Intel Core processors or later.There are third party streamers too such as AirParrot, AirMyPC, AirFlick, AirFoil, AirFloat and TuneBlade.

Airplay option on iPhone

In OS X El Capitan, you can stream certain videos to your Apple TV from Safari or QuickTime Player (version 10). Just click the AirPlay icon?if available?in the playback controls, then choose your Apple TV.

Airplay option in Safari

As of iOS 4.3, third-party apps may send compatible audio and video streams over AirPlay.The iTunes Remote app on iOS can be used to control media playback and select AirPlay streaming receivers for iTunes running on a Mac or PC.

Receivers - Those capable of receiving the content and rendering it on displays and speakers

AirPlay receiver devices include AirPort Express (which includes a combined analog and optical S/PDIF audio output connector), Apple TV, and third party speakers. With the open source implementations of the AirPlay protocol any computer can now be turned into an AirPlay receiver.

Airplay on Apple TV

Airport Express As an Airplay Reeceiver

The capabilities of each device also depend on whether you?re streaming ?to? or ?from? that device. One key point: you can?t use AirPlay between mobile devices (your iPad to iPhone, for example). iPhones, iPads and computers are senders only. Receivers are AirPort Express and Apple TV.

But with the help of some third party apps like Airfoil and AirFloat you could beam your audio from your iPhone to an iPod touch or iPad.These app let you use another iOS device as an AirPlay speaker

And thus Apple has recently removed Airfoil Speakers Touch by Rogue Amoeba and AirFloat by The Famous Software Company from the iTunes App Store for using AirPlay APIs in a way Apple did not intend them to be used.These apps basically.

However, because not all third-party receivers implement Apples DRM encryption, some media, such as iTunes Stores own rights-protected music (Apples own "FairPlay" encryption), YouTube and Netflix, cannot stream to those devices or software. On Apple TV starting with firmware 6.0, the "FairPlay" encryption scheme is enforced and sending devices not supporting it cannot be used.

AirPlay wireless technology is integrated into speaker docks, AV receivers, and stereo systems from companies such as Bose,iHome,Yamaha, Philips, Marantz, Bowers & Wilkins, Pioneer, Sony, and Denon.Song titles, artists, album names, elapsed and remaining time, and album artwork can appear on AirPlay-enabled speakers with graphical displays. Often these receivers are built to only support the audio component of AirPlay, much like AirTunes.

Bluetooth devices (headsets, speakers) that support the A2DP profile also appear as AirPlay receivers when paired with an iOS device, although Bluetooth is a device-to-device protocol that does not rely on a wireless network access point.

There are third party receivers such as AirServer, Reflector 2 and TuneAero (audio).

Drawbacks of AirPlay

AirPlay works over your Wi-Fi network and, as we know, its not always reliable. Some AirPlay speakers may experience occasional dropout and even a few complete disconnections. However, unlike with Bluetooth streaming, your music doesnt get compressed, so it should sound better, depending on the quality of the speaker youre streaming to.

Despite these great features, AirPlay also has its limitations, Some of the Major point to be noted are:

1. Multiple receivers streaming from the same application all play the same content.
2. Only one app can use AirPlay at a time.
3. Video sharing is only available to Apple TV Device.An Apple TV must have an internet connection in order to play copy-protected video content.

To stream to multiple devices, you have to use your computer-based iTunes music collection as the audio source. For whatever reason, running iTunes on a Mac or Windows PC provides more flexibility for AirPlay. Using iTunes on your computer, you can stream music to multiple AirPlay receivers or speakers throughout your network (say, an Apple TV in the living room,AirPlay-enabled stereo in your bedroom and a Zeppelin Air in the upstairs bedroom), and control their volume levels independently as well.

AirPlay to multiple speaker from iTunes

You currently cant stream different music to different rooms. True multiroom audio systems like Sonos ZonePlayer allow you to stream different music sources or playlists to different rooms simultaneously. Not so with AirPlay. Currently, you can only access and stream one source at a time.

As a basic example of how you might use AirPlay, suppose you have an iPhone and you launch iTunes on it to listen to your favorite tracks. Since youll be walking around the house a lot during the day, you decide to turn on an AirPlay-enabled stereo in your bedroom and your WiFi-connected Apple TV in your living room. To make sure theres no break in the music as you move from room to room, you go back to your iPhone and select the stereo and Apple TV as recipients of your iPhones music stream. Since theyre all accessible by network connections, and they can all use AirPlay, all you have to do is turn on the receivers, click to start streaming from the source and enjoy your music.

AirPlay Setup example

Requirements for using AirPlay

If you go to Apple menu > System Preferences, click Displays, and dont see the option to "Show mirroring options in the menu bar when available," your Mac doesnt meet these requirements.

Minimum requirements if your Mac and Apple TV are on the same network:

• Apple TV (2nd generation or later) with the latest Apple TV software
• For mirroring your display or extending your desktop, any of the following Mac computers with OS X Mountain Lion v10.8 or later:
• iMac (Mid 2011 or later)
• Mac mini (Mid 2011 or later)
• MacBook (Early 2015 or later)
• MacBook Air (Mid 2011 or later)
• MacBook Pro (Early 2011 or later)
• Mac Pro (Late 2013 or later)

Minimum requirements for peer-to-peer AirPlay, which lets visitors quickly and easily connect their Mac or iOS device to your Apple TV without gaining passwords and connecting to the Wi-Fi network:

• Apple TV (3rd generation rev A, model A1469 or later) with the latest Apple TV software
• A Mac (2012 or later) with OS X Yosemite v10.10 or later

To use AirPlay, you need one of these devices:

• iPhone 4 or later. iPhone 4s or later for AirPlay Mirroring.
• iPad, iPad mini. iPad 2 or later for AirPlay Mirroring.
• iPod touch (4th generation or later). iPod touch (5th generation or later) for AirPlay Mirroring.

You can stream content to these devices:

• For photos and videos: Apple TV (2nd generation or later).
• For music: Apple TV, AirPort Express, or AirPlay-enabled speakers.

If you want to stream iTunes Store content, you also need an Internet connection.

AirPlay Audio Transmission Technology

Earlier AirPlay was using your LAN router to enable communication between your Wireless Music System and AirPlay capable device. Audio/Video was sent wirelessly from the sender device to the receiver device via the network router, so the communication was not direct (peer-to-peer). Therefore, in order for audio/ Video to be sent between the device and the Wireless Music System they must have connected to the same wireless network router.But with the recent iOS update Apple has made peer-to-peer AirPlay possible.

Use peer-to-peer AirPlay

With peer-to-peer AirPlay, your iOS device and Apple TV dont have to be on the same Wi-Fi network. To use peer-to-peer AirPlay, you need one of these devices with iOS 8 or later:

• iPhone 5 or later
• iPad mini or iPad (4th generation or later)
• iPod touch (5th generation or later)
• You can stream content to your Apple TV (3rd generation rev A, model A1469 or later).

Make sure that both devices have Wi-Fi and Bluetooth turned on. If you want to stream iTunes Store content, you also need an Internet connection.

How to Stream All Mac Audio/Video Via AirPlay

Since OS X Mountain Lion ( Version 10.8 ), users have been able to stream their Mac display via AirPlay, but the icon in the menu bar that controls that feature requires video to be streamed in addition to audio.You can mirror your Macs display or extend it to Apple TV.

Mirror your display or extend your desktop

You can also use AirPlay to mirror or extend everything on your Mac display. The display must be connected and awake.

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