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Looking forward to AirPlay

by Richard Gaywood Sep 4th 2010 at 5:00PM

As you may have heard, Apple had some sort of event on Wednesday. In amongst the Big News like iPods and iOSs and iTunes and iTVs Apple TVs, Steve Jobs briefly mentioned AirPlay, a replacement for the AirTunes music streaming system used in the Airport Express multi-purpose device. I've built my home audio solutions around AirTunes, so this was, for me, the most interesting thing Apple announced. Details on how the system will actually work are rather thin so far but TUAW has been sleuthing around to try and figure out what we can.

First, the best bit. Jobs showed an iPad (running the forthcoming 4.2 version of iOS) being fired up, pressing a few buttons, and streaming its output to a big screen TV via an Apple TV. This addresses my number one complaint: a friend comes to my house, I show them the Airport Express system, I show them the Remote app so they can use their iPhone to control my iTunes... and they ask me why they can't also stream their own music directly from their device. Sure, this is going to be tough on battery life, but it's not like I'm short of chargers. They want to listen to their own music and if you could see inside my iTunes you'd know why. And now they will be able to!

I was briefly concerned that this jazzy new functionality would not work with my existing Airport Express devices. Fortunately, Apple's sneak peak at iOS 4.2 confirms that an Airport Express will be able to receive a stream from any iOS 4.2 device, so more good news there too.
My biggest second gripe is the lack of sync. If I play the same music on two Airport Expresses (that word does not pluralise nicely), one in the lounge and one in the kitchen, they can be out of sync by a second or so. This produces some rather trippy pseudo-echo effects if you stand in between the two rooms. Apple's Airplay page notes "For the ultimate sonic panorama, you can stream your tunes to more than one room simultaneously" -- I'm hoping this means they've put robust syncing into the streaming protocol. Rogue Ameoba's AirFoil software can sync streams to multiple Airport Expresses at once, so it's certainly a solvable problem.

And then there is third-party device support. Apple lists a number of vendors who will be shipping AirPlay compatible equipment, though so far we haven't seen anything from most of them. iHome however is teasing an AirPlay speaker set, although we only get an image and a "submit your email address for more information" link. Referring back to Apple's product info page, these third-party devices will now be able to receive song metadata like title, artist, and even album art and present a much richer interface to control your music.

And finally, the nifty ability to stream video and photo content as well as sound to the Apple TV. Frankly, that alone might make me buy one, despite my recent whining that it is too expensive in the UK and a lukewarm reception from my colleague Mel Martin. I happily paid around £70 for my Airport Expresses and only use them for music streaming. The Apple TV takes that music streaming and adds loads of other features for a modest £30 premium. In the US they are the same price!

To my mind the best reason to choose a single vendor for all your gadgets is so everything interconnects like this. AirPlay is another great way for Apple to make all its kit play well together.

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As you may have heard, Apple had some sort of event on Wednesday. In amongst the Big News like iPods and iOSs and iTunes and iTVs Apple...
 

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lehniger

AirPlay seems to be a good step forward. But will it allow things which you can do with a Sonos system?

For example:
Will it be able to play different music in different rooms where I would have a AirPort Express?
will it be able to access the iTunes Library without a running itunes e.g. from a NAS Drive?
Will it be possible similar as to stream music to stream all other media files which are in the iTunes Library and e.g. display them?
Would that require a new AirPort Express with video interfaces such as HDMI? Or would I need an AppleTV for accessing my iTunes Library via AirPlay for watching video content on my LCD flatscreen?

I am really looking forward if Apple is doing the big step here...

September 15 2010 at 10:01 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
JPc@justphat.com

I'm just thinking about where AirPlay devices will be seen. I imagine a lot of hotels will start having AirPlay speakers and possibly Apple TVs.

September 07 2010 at 11:25 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
victoralicea

I've been dragging my feet on buying an Airport Express to extend my network of my Airport Extreme (3rd floor). My PS3, etc that use 802.11g are getting mediocre signal strengths (1st floor)... apposed to devices that use 802.11n that get a near perfect signal. Now I'm worried that if I buy one apple is going to drop a new "fancier" model that drops the Air Tunes name and add Air Play to it's arsenal. Taking into consideration that the Airport Express and the new Apple TV are going to be nearly the same size.
Apple TV
Height: 0.9 inches (23 mm)
Width: 3.9 inches (98 mm)
Depth: 3.9 inches (98 mm)
Weight: 0.6 pounds

Airport Express
Dimensions: 3.7 inches (94.01 mm) by 2.95 inches (75.00 mm) by 1.12 inches (28.5 mm)
Weight: 7.4 ounces (210 grams)

Definitely getting an Apple TV though (pre-ordered).

September 06 2010 at 5:19 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Bitterphil

With the Airport Express now, if one iTunes is connected to it, it locks other iTunes from connecting. So, you have to shut down one iTunes to connect with another. I wonder if that same problem will exist with the new scheme or if multiple sources can connect to the remote audio.

September 06 2010 at 12:27 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
r23w

ok so if i want to do airplay, do i have to have an airport express/extreme?? Can i use like a 3rd party router that came with my verizon fios?

thanks

September 05 2010 at 7:40 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
R Wess

For those of you that are complaining that the AppleTV currently is lagging behind their Airport Expresses when streaming music.... my guess is that you're listening to it through your TV, which will slow the stream down. If you had an RCA L/R going out of the ATV to a receiver, without being funneled through your TV first, you'll have your music back in sync. The TV is the problem, not the ATV.

September 05 2010 at 1:46 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Chris UK1

at least, will it stream all types of media files from my computer or just those in iTunes??

September 05 2010 at 12:17 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Scott

Mind letting us know what else you have used to build your home audio solution? I have been searching for powered in wall speakers that accept digital directly, or a low cost, decent amp to plug directly to inwall speakers... Any specific suggestions?

September 05 2010 at 10:37 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
erikeric

Thx Richard, I totally agree this is one of the most exciting things announced last week. I've spent too much time cruising forums to try and verify that direct-from-device streaming to Airport Express would be possible. I've waited a long time for this.

September 05 2010 at 10:31 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Tom Chambers

Is there any word on what apps on iphone/ipad will be able to stream? Is this just going to be the apple stuff, or will we able to get 3rd party stuff like spotify/pandora/last.fm on there?

September 05 2010 at 9:18 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
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