Apple Inc. just developed a new feature that will let you reflect what you are doing on your iPhone or iPad to your personal computer or Mac. This can be done through Airplay mirroring. Airplay mirroring allows you to show everything that you are doing on your iPhone/iPad in a bigger screen. Cool, right? But first, let me introduce to you the system that will enable you to perform this.
What is Airplay?
Airplay is a protocol developed by Apple Inc. that enables wireless streaming of audio, images, videos and other data between devices. It allows you to integrate whatever you are doing in your iDevice or any device that runs an Apple’s iOS system to an Airplay-receiving device. This protocol was introduced in iOS 5.
How To Do Mirroring With An Airplay-Receiving Device
One example of an Airplay-receiving device is AppleTV. You can easily do mirroring of your iDevice (iPhone/iPad) to your AppleTV by doing these simple steps:
- Go to Control Centre by swiping up from the bottom of your home screen
- Select Airplay, then tap on Apple TV
- Just enable Mirroring
Voila! Everything you do on your iPhone/iPad’s display is reflected on the Apple TV wirelessly. Easy, right? But how can you do Airplay mirroring of your iDevice to your Mac/PC?
How to Mirror your iPhone or iPad to your Mac or PC
Your Mac/PC is probably not an Airplay-receiving device. But these devices should behave like one (like the Apple TV) in order for you to do the mirroring of your iDevice. How to do it?
Luckily, there are a lot of third-party software that you can use. Here is the list:
- X-Mirage
- Reflector
- AirServer
Using this third-party software are the only way to enable you to do the mirroring of your iDevice to your Mac/PC. You choose which software to use and you’re on the way to do the mirroring.
Procedures to do the Mirroring
- First, you need to install the software of your choice: X-Mirage/ Reflector/ AirServer
- Run AirServer/X-Mirage/Reflector after installation. The software will turn your Mac/PC into an Airplay-receiving device.
- Check if you’re iDevice and Mac/PC are connected to the same Wi-fi connection. Both devices should be connected to the same internet connection!
- Go to Control Center by swiping up from the bottom of your home screen
- Select Airplay
- Tap on your Mac/PC
- Enable Mirroring
Voila! Your iDevice’s screen should be reflected on your Mac/PC. And you’re done! But what will you do if you encounter a problem?
Encountering Airplay Mirroring Problems
Uh-oh, you may run into some issues occasionally. But hold on, here are some troubleshoot tips that could help you solve your problem:
If you can’t find Airplay after going to the Control Centre, here are some things that you should try:
- Again, check if your iPhone/iPad and your Mac/PC are connected to the same internet connection.
- Check if Airplay is already running on your Mac/PC; make sure that your installed software (AirServer/X-Mirage/Reflector) is running correctly on your Mac/PC
- Check the Bluetooth settings of your iPhone/iPad and turn it off
Additionally, all your devices should be compatible. For Apple devices, iPhone 4s and latest versions, and iPad 2 and latest versions (which include all the iPad minis) support the Airplay protocol. Your iDevice should be running with the latest iOS. For Macs, all the latest models and also the ones released from the middle of 2011 should be able to support Airplay.
There you go, just follow the steps and good luck on using your devices!
