News
Apple bringing AirPlay Mirroring, Messages to OS X
By Charles Starrett
Contributing Editor
Published: Thursday, February 16, 2012
News Categories: Apple, iPad, iCloud, iPhone, iPod, Apple TV, Mac Software
Apple this morning announced OS X Mountain Lion, the next release of its desktop operating system for its Mac computers. Among the new features debuted by Apple this morning—many of which were based on existing iOS apps, including Notes, Reminders, and Game Center—is AirPlay Mirroring. As the name suggests, the feature will allow users to mirror their Mac’s screen on a HDTV using an Apple TV, making it easy for users to share web pages, videos, lessons, and presentations with others. In addition, the company announced a beta version of Messages for OS X. This iChat replacement mimics the Messages app on iOS, allowing users to send iMessages across both iOS and Mac devices. The app also integrates support for AIM, Yahoo!, Google Talk, and Jabber accounts, as well as FaceTime, removing the need for a separate, standalone app. The beta version of Messages is available now as a free download for users of OS X Lion 10.7.3 or later; OS X Mountain Lion is currently available in preview form to registered Mac developers and is slated to ship in late summer.
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The question I’d like the answer to is whether this is like Intel’s WiDi where the display is ALWAYS mirrored to the TV or more like Apple’s display mirroring on the iPad, where the application can actually disable it if desired, even if it is enabled by default.
This will be a key question. For example, can I watch Hulu shows on my laptop and AirPlay the display to my TV? Thus avoiding paying Hulu Plus their monthly fee? Or HBO Go which Comcast would rather I didn’t have access to on my TV (they don’t allow the Roku app)?
Posted by Geckoid on February 16, 2012 at 5:23 PM (PST)