In my review of AirFoil Speakers Touch 3.0, I wrote about AirPlay:

Ever since developers started reverse-engineering the AirPlay protocol that Apple introduced with iOS 4.2 in November 2010, we have seen all kinds of possible implementations of Apple’s streaming technology being ported to a variety of devices, for multiple purposes and scenarios. From tools to turn Macs into AirPlay receivers for audio, video, iOS Mirroring sessions, then a combination of all them, to more or less Apple-approved “AirPlay audio receivers” sold in the App Store, then pulled, then released in Cydia, the past two years have surely been interesting for AirPlay.

The past few months have indeed seen a surge of AirPlay-compatible desktop utilities and apps that take advantage of Apple’s technology for audio and video streaming. From games enhanced with AirPlay to enable new controls and interactions, to several desktop utilities that are now connecting Macs and Apple TVs with AirPlay, there’s plenty of options out there to beam images and audio to devices running iOS or OS X.

AirServer was one of the first applications to bring proper AirPlay support to the Mac, initially only with audio and video, then iOS 5 and Lion, and, around the time Reflection also came out, AirPlay Mirroring. Recently, the AirServer team made some major changes to the way AirServer handles AirPlay Mirroring (our overview) on OS X with multiple iOS devices, so I thought it’d be appropriate to give the app a second try. At the same time, I figured I hadn’t used Reflection much since it came out two months ago; I installed both the latest AirServer and Reflection on my iMac and MacBook Air, and tested multiple iOS devices with AirPlay Mirroring enabled at the same time. (more…)

I was reminded by this TUAW article last night that a simple solution to enable AirPlay Mirroring from iOS to OS X didn’t exist — this is something I’ve been fantasizing about since the original iOS 5 came out and the iPhone 4S further cemented my belief that AirPlay Mirroring is an amazing solution to project apps and games on a bigger screen. Fortunately, in the same article TUAW’s Erica Sadun pointed to Reflection, a new app by developer David Stanfill (the same guy behind AirParrot), which enables just that: it turns your Mac into an AirPlay receiver for Mirroring, not just audio and video playback as other tools (like AirServer) do.

I bought Reflection right away because, like I said, this is something I’ve been looking forward to, and whilst I don’t think this method can replace higher quality HDMI connections just yet, it sure provides a handy way of getting an iOS device’s screen onto your Mac. Sort of the opposite of apps like Skala Preview, only working natively with iOS 5 and a desktop app that handles the incoming video stream.

Speaking of which, quality of WiFi and video can obviously become a major deal-breaker for many — especially developers or bloggers who are looking at Reflection as a way to record iOS screencasts and demoes with the comfort of a Mac and the tools it makes available for video recording and editing. Now, I’m no video expert, but I’m fairly certain some sort of lossy compression is applied when mirroring an iOS device to the Mac through Reflection — but I’ve only spotted this loss in quality (example) a few times. Once installed, Reflection allows you to set some default settings for all incoming connections: you can set a receiver’s name, force full-screen mode (Lion’s native one) on all new Mirroring sessions, and optimize the app for different device types. These include standard iPhone resolution (320×480), Retina iPhone (640×960), iPad (1024×768), Hi-Res (1920×1080) and Any Device (1280×720). Similarly, devices can be mirrored inside a “frame”, and you’re also given the option to force orientations with keyboard shortcuts — unfortunately, the frames provided in Reflection don’t look nearly as great as ScreenTaker’s, so here’s to hoping for better graphics in a future update.

As I mentioned above, performances haven’t really been an issue with Reflection and my iPhone 4S/iPad 2 on the two local networks I tested the app with (powered by an AirPort Extreme and AirPort Express), but I have some points to make in regards to usage and why you should try or avoid Reflection.

• If you’re looking for pixel-perfect reproductions of your iOS display on your Mac, consider something else. Reflection may experience the occasional drop in quality (or simply crash — it happened to me only twice though), and you don’t want to record your screencasts and promo videos over and over.
• If you just need a quick way to demo iOS apps on your Mac, buy Reflection.
• If you create your presentations on an iPad and have always looked for a way to easily mirror them on the Mac with no cables, get Reflection.
• I have been using Reflection to play Temple Run and Whale Trail (iPhone versions, because I like the controls better) on the Mac’s screen, and performances have been pretty great. Games are playable, there are some minor slowdowns here and there but nothing that truly impacts the experience. Reflection crashed once while mirroring Temple Run.
• Generally speaking, iPhone games at Retina size to a Mac in full-screen mode can be a good alternative to buying Mac versions of the same games again. I’d recommend playing puzzle/adventure or more relaxed games this way, avoiding more frenetic games (action, sports) due to the possibility of slowdowns and crashes. But: I can confirm GTA III for iOS mirrored to the Mac seems like the future.
• I have also tested the Plex app (for iPad) mirrored to the Mac with content from a Mac mini in the US with basically zero lag. Keep in mind Reflection supports the full AirPlay Mirroring experience, which includes audio.
• Reflection is a great way to keep often-used or dashboard-like apps for iOS on the Mac’s screen — but you’ll want to click on them, so remember this is AirPlay Mirroring, not VNC.

As you can tell, I’m impressed by Reflection. It is already a very stable and responsive “hack” to get AirPlay Mirroring on the Mac, and I’m sure the few bugs I’ve encountered will be addressed soon with an update (as well as performances in general). Reflection won’t give you 100% reliable color reproduction and pixel state-of-the-art, but if you’ve been looking for a way to “just get” Mirroring on OS X, I can’t think of a single reason why you shouldn’t (at least) try Reflection.

One of the lesser publicised new features coming in iOS 5 is AirPlay Mirroring, a new functionality that enables an app to connect to an Apple TV and mirror its contents on to the connected TV. It effectively allows users to show their iPad or iPhone screen on a TV without the HDMI cable as is currently required. Back in June, Apple’n'Apps posted a video of how it worked and Engadget showed off Angry Birds Rio HD and Real Racing 2 HD being played on a TV through AirPlay Mirroring.

In June Firemint announced that it will be bringing an optimised AirPlay experience to the app, and today they are expanding upon that announcement, revealing ‘Party Play’. Using AirPlay and wireless local multiplayer, ‘Party Play’ in Real Racing 2 will enable up to 4 players to play together in a split screen match streamed to a TV through AirPlay.

The only downside is that it will require a host player to be using an iPad 2 or the newly announced iPhone 4S (this is due to the requirement of the A5 processor when using AirPlay Mirroring). The other players can be using any other iOS device that supports Real Racing 2 or Real Racing 2 HD – you can even have a mix of iPhones, iPads and iPod touches. Firemint is also promising that the update including ‘Party Play’ will also come with “gorgeous graphical enhancements that make use of the iPad 2 & iPhone 4S A5 processor”.

Jump the break to view a promo video of Real Racing 2′s ‘Party Play’ mode.

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One of the big features coming with iOS 5 on the iPad 2 is AirPlay mirroring, a new functionality that, using the AirPlay technology for streaming content introduced in iOS 4.2, will allow users to beam their iPad’s screens directly to an Apple TV without the need for a cable. In spite of the iPad being capable of mirroring its screen through HDMI to a TV, Apple has decided to step its game up and allow Apple TV owners with a decent local network to stream apps, games, and whatever it is people do on an iPad without anything but a WiFi connection and a control button in the multitasking tray.

TUAW points today to a video posted by Apple’n'Apps that details how AirPlay mirroring will work with the iPad 2. The setup is very easy: once you’ve made sure both the iPad and Apple TV are running iOS 5, all you have to do is enable AirPlay Mirroring from the switcher’s controls and check out the iPad’s screen on the TV right away. In the video, you can see the Springboard, as well as regular apps and games being beamed from the tablet to the Apple TV. Scrolling doesn’t look as smooth as it is on the device when you’re directly interacting with it, but we assume it depends on the kind of wireless connection you have.

In a similar post, Engadget shows AirPlay Mirroring with Angry Birds Rio HD for iPad and Real Racing 2 HD.

For this game (and we imagine many more to come), you use the iPad as the controller — both while navigating through menus and in race mode — while the game appears only on your TV (though the tablet does display some vitals, and a map of the track). There’s noticeable lag between the iPad and Apple TV when using AirPlay, which may be an issue for games where timing is important, such as Rock Band, but didn’t seem to set us back while playing Firemint’s racing game.

Firemint has announced that Real Racing 2 HD will support AirPlay Mirroring once iOS 5 comes out this Fall, and it appears that the feature is already enabled in the first beta of iOS 5 available now to developers. Check out the videos after the break. (more…)