Using AirPlay

Summary

Learn how to use AirPlay to stream videos, music, and photos wirelessly from your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, or iTunes on your computer, to your HDTV and speakers with Apple TV (2nd and 3rd generation), or to your AirPlay speakers or receivers, including AirPort Express.

Products Affected

Apple TV, Apple TV (3rd generation), iPad, iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, iPhone 5, iPod touch (2nd generation), iPod touch (3rd generation), iPod touch (4th generation)

Learn more about using AirPlay Mirroring.

Enabling AirPlay from your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch

You can AirPlay videos, music, or photos from a variety of different locations on your iOS device, including from within the Photos, Videos, Safari, and Music apps, or directly from recently used apps.

To AirPlay video or photo content to your Apple TV:

Connect your iOS device and Apple TV to the same Wi-Fi network.
Open either the Videos, Safari or Photos app on your device.
Locate and tap the AirPlay icon (if attempting to AirPlay video content from Safari or Videos, begin playback first).
Select your Apple TV from the list of available devices that appears and begin playback.

To AirPlay audio content to your Apple TV or AirPlay speakers or receivers, including AirPort Express:

Connect your iOS device and Apple TV, AirPlay speakers, receiver or AirPort Express to the same Wi-Fi network.
Open the Music or Safari app on your device.
Locate and tap the AirPlay icon.
Select your Apple TV, AirPort Express, or AirPlay-enabled speakers or receivers from the list of available devices that appears, and begin playback.

Note: The images of a TV screen or speaker next to each AirPlay device in the AirPlay menu indicate the type of media content you can stream to that device.

Enabling AirPlay from iTunes on your computer

To stream music or videos from your computer to an Apple TV or AirPort Express:

Connect your computer and Apple TV to the same Wi-Fi network.
Open iTunes (10.2 or later).
Locate and click the icon in the bottom-right corner of the iTunes application.
Select your Apple TV, AirPort Express, or AirPlay-enabled speakers or receivers from the list of available devices that appears, and begin playback.

Note: The images of a TV screen or speaker next to each AirPlay device in the AirPlay menu indicate the type of media content you can stream to that device.

AirPlay requirements and capabilities

To get full AirPlay features, make sure your AirPlay-enabled devices are running the latest software updates. The table below identifies minimum AirPlay requirements and capabilities:

Stream content from	Requirement	Notes
iPad	iOS 4.3 or later.¹	From the Videos, iPod, Photos, Music, and YouTube apps on iOS devices, stream videos, music, and photos to an Apple TV (2nd and 3rd generation), or stream music to an AirPort Express or compatible third-party device. With iOS 4.3 and later, you can also stream video and audio from a website or a third-party app installed on your iOS device if the developer for the app or website has added AirPlay functionality.
iPhone (3GS or later)
iPod touch (2nd generation or later)
Computer	iTunes 10.2 or later.	Stream videos and music from your iTunes library to an Apple TV (2nd and 3rd generation), or music to an AirPort Express or compatible third-party device.
Apple TV	Apple TV software version 5.1 or later.	Stream music from your Apple TV to another Apple TV (2nd and 3rd generation), to an AirPort Express or compatible third-party device.
Stream content to	Requirement	Notes
Apple TV (3rd generation)	Apple TV software version 5.0 or later.	Play streamed videos, music, and photos from an AirPlay-enabled iOS device. Play streamed videos or music from iTunes on your computer.²
Apple TV (2nd generation)	Apple TV software version 4.2 or later.	Play streamed videos, music, and photos from an AirPlay-enabled iOS device. Play streamed videos or music from iTunes on your computer.²
AirPort Express	AirPort firmware 7.4.2 or later.³	Play streamed audio from an AirPlay-enabled iOS device or iTunes on your computer.
Notes: If using an iPhone 4S, iOS 5.1 and later is recommended when streaming audio to an AirPlay audio device. Apple TV requires an active Internet connection in order to stream protected content via AirPlay. Applies only to models that can update to AirPort firmware 7.4.2 or later. Learn more about how to update your AirPort Express firmware.

Additional Information

Find information about troubleshooting AirPlay or AirPlay mirroring.
Find more information on recently used apps and multitasking on iOS.

Important: Information about products not manufactured by Apple is provided for information purposes only and does not constitute Apple’s recommendation or endorsement. Please contact the vendor for additional information.

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