Today’s release of firmware 3.9.0 brings Android and Windows users another easy, secure way to present wirelessly. With Miracast, presenters can skip running or downloading the desktop app and instead rely on the screen sharing that’s already built into their personal devices. Miracast is a screen sharing protocol that does not rely on your local network, as a direct connection is instead created between the Airtame 2 device and your smartphone, tablet or computer.

Miracast is particularly useful to two groups: 1) guest presenters with “locked down” computers, and 2) schools and enterprises that are Microsoft exclusive. The former group will be able to present when IT restrictions make it impossible to run the guest version of the Airtame desktop app which requires neither installation nor admin rights. The latter group will reap magnified benefits with the ease of use and network-independence that scales across the entire organization.

While Android users have had the possibility to present wirelessly with Google Cast, Miracast offers an alternative with the added bonus of pin code support.

To learn more about the benefits of Miracast, sign up for next week’s free webinar.

To learn about the technical specifications, check out the help center article.

Simultaneous improvements to the desktop app

Having shared the exciting news about Miracast, it’s equally important to note that the Airtame desktop app is here to stay. App version 4.0 is the result of extensive user testing. The design improvements, including how the notification bar is minimized, the size of the buttons, and the discovery of Airtame devices, all make screen sharing that much more intuitive.

To learn more about app 4.0, check out the blog post that goes through all of the changes and the design thinking behind them.

Previous update: Google Cast support is out with firmware 3.8.0

Date: February 18th, 2020

Expanding connectivity

Google Cast functionality is officially out of Beta! 

If you use an Android mobile device or the Chrome browser on your computer, Google Cast gives you the option to share your screen without needing to install an app. To test out the new connectivity, make sure your Airtame 2 is updated to firmware version 3.8.0 and enable Google Cast through your Airtame Cloud account. 

New powering and digital signage options

The firmware update also reflects new possibilities with Airtame Cloud Plus. 

To save energy, you can now schedule Airtame 2 to power your screens on and off at specific times of the day. This works with screens that have been programmed to power off whenever there is no input signal from any of its ports.

Playlists is another new way to manage screens. You can use Playlists to combine different digital signage apps, including slide decks, image galleries, and online videos to create a curated carousel that will inform and inspire. 

If you’re using Airtame, login to the cloud to test this all out! 

If you’re not a customer yet, reach out to our team to arrange for a demo.

Previous update: How Airtame 2 is getting even smarter

Date: October 24th, 2019

With firmware update 3.7.0, the LED on Airtame 2 now turns blue when a presenter is connected. With consumers opting for intuitive and sleek designs, there’s no reason why B2B products shouldn’t follow suit. That’s why we’ve made Airtame 2 even smarter.

Interactive streaming

As of firmware update 3.7.0, the LED (Light Emitting Diode) on the face of Airtame 2 changes color depending on what’s going on.

The only colors that the everyday user will see are white (when the device is ready) and blue (when a presenter is connected).

The other colors which are relevant for IT administrators to know are: solid green (new device ready to be set up), flashing green (updating), orange (network reset), and purple (factory reset).

The main benefit of this update is to reassure the presenter that everything is working. Blue light on = nothing to worry about. When someone stops presenting, the LED goes back to white, signaling to the next presenter that they’re welcome to get started.

Encouraging a smarter setup

You won’t be able to see the LED if the Airtame 2 is hidden behind a display.

Having the Airtame 2 secured next to the display (instead of behind it) has two benefits. First, everyday presenters will be able to see what’s going on based on what the LED is showing. Second, the WiFi signal strength will be much better, optimizing presentation quality.

It’s up to customers how they prefer to install the device, and for testing purposes, it makes sense to use an adjustable magnetic connection.
That said, we hope that the interactive LED will help to encourage a physical setup that has aesthetic as well as functional benefits.

Stay tuned

To get a breakdown of all previous app and firmware updates, as well as any that come up in the future, check out this article.

Got questions? Click on the blue bubble in the bottom right-hand corner of this page to chat with us, or send an email to support@airtame.com.

The post Product update: Miracast is out with firmware 3.9.0 appeared first on Airtame.

Music (and sound!) to your ears

Chromebook audio requires you to update the Airtame app to version 3.3.1 if you haven’t done so already. Afterward, you will be presented with two options. The one being the ability to share any Chrome Tab while the other is for sharing your full screen.

And the best part? You can now add audio to any of your streams.

Need to know

We’ve added a 2-second buffer/delay when you add audio to your stream in order to ensure a stable playback on the big screen.

Chromebook audio requires the Airtame Chromebook version 3.3.1 app and an Airtame device running firmware 3.2.4 or more recent.

What else?

Video performance is conditioned by the hardware capabilities of the given Chromebook. Low-end Chromebooks are usually able to stream video with 10-15 images per second, which isn’t enough for a smooth video experience.

Multitasking during video playback can further reduce the performance, so keep that in mind when streaming.

The post App updates: Chromebook audio is live! appeared first on Airtame.

Highlights:

• Single Window Sharing provides added privacy
• Quickly switch between single window and full-screen mode
• Updated layout
• New for Mac and Windows users* – and Chromebook users already have this feature, too!

Keep stuff concealed while presenting

When sharing a presentation during a meeting or class session, you might wish to keep some things concealed on your own screen. So far Airtame has only allowed you to mirror your whole desktop, but now that’s changing.

The new update revolutionizes the way you use Airtame. Select what windows you want to share, and which ones you don’t. It means you can hide things you don’t want your peers or students to see, such as notes, test results or personal information.

Do two things at once

Besides the added privacy, Single Window Sharing gives you the opportunity to continue working on your own device, without disrupting what everyone is looking at on the TV or projector.

You can share a presentation window and still be able to look at your notes or keep track of time on your own machine. As a teacher, this will prove helpful when you want to help one student while the rest of the class is following their group assignments on the big screen.

Single Window Sharing can come in handy in a business environment too. Use it to conceal notes when presenting or hide confidential information that you need to see for reference, but don’t want your guests to see.

Small note: you can separate which screens and apps you want to present to your TVs and projectors, but when audio is enabled from the Airtame app it will be full system and not only from the given window.

New update, smarter layout

After updating you’ll immediately see a visual change to the Airtame application. The Airtame app has grown a bit wider and also more intuitive – plus a brand new logo, colors, and fonts. When hovering over devices, you will now see two options: Share Screen or Share Window.

Share Screen will be Airtame as you know it already – when you need to mirror the whole screen. The Share Window option lets you choose the single window you’d like to share. We’ve made it as easy as regular screen sharing, so you don’t have to use an excessive amount of time clicking on buttons.

When choosing Share Window, the app will let you click on the window you wish to share on the big screen. You can also use the taskbar or keyboard shortcuts to navigate to the window you want to share.

Yes, there’s more!

From now on, you won’t be able to close our streaming notification while streaming. Instead, you can minimize it and easily draw it out via the taskbar or use the keyboard shortcut for switching between windows. That way, your streaming functionalities are always available without you having to search for it.

For those of our Windows users who have also requested presenter mode for PowerPoint, we’ve got you covered. While it does take a few more clicks than the essential Single Window Sharing, it’s possible to do with these extra commands:

Press Alt+F5, then go to Single Window Sharing in the app and choose the full-screen PowerPoint window to be shared. Your presentation is now being shared, and you can open the window with the presentation and notes without anyone seeing it.

The Airtame app 3.3.0 is currently available for Windows and Mac. But don’t worry, Chromebook users, you already have Single Window Sharing capabilities. With that said, we’ll soon be releasing the 3.3.0 app for Chromebook. Stay tuned to hear more about the new functionality in this release.

*Single Window Sharing is available by default on Windows 8 and 10. Windows 7 users can activate it from the app preferences but might experience inconsistent behavior. For video streaming on Mac, we recommend streaming in fullscreen share mode, as window streaming isn’t performing as smoothly.

For more info on Single Window Sharing and setup, please visit the Airtame help site

The post Introducing our new feature: Single Window Sharing appeared first on Airtame.

It wasn’t easy but we fixed it

Recently Google eliminated support for the H264 video encoding mechanism that we are usually using to compress the stream before sending it to an Airtame. It meant that users with ChromeOS65+, unfortunately, couldn’t stream. With our latest update, we’re introducing support for the VP8 encoding and decoding mechanism in the Chromebook app and on the Airtame device respectively. We put a lot of time and effort into solving the problem, and we’re happy to announce that we succeeded.

All users are important

Our solution is platform-agnostic, and not being able to stream using Chromebook was problematic for many of our users. Solving it relieves a lot of stress in environments that utilize several platforms, such as classrooms. Part of ongoing strategy with fixing bugs and solving issues like this is to get feedback from our users as we update the product.

We’re constantly evolving and improving Airtame, and we can’t do it without inputs, comments, and suggestions from all of you who use it or would like to use it. We have a proactive approach to talking with customers, with equal weight on customer success and customer support. It means that we not only focus on solving current issues but also deep-dive into longer conversations. That way, we foster better long-term relationships and stay updated on what’s on your mind.

Make sure to update your Airtame devices firmware and roll-out the latest Chromebook App, to ensure that users can keep streaming after your Chromebooks have been updated.

Are you a Chromebook user or do you plan to be? If you have any special requests or suggestions on how we can improve the experience, please let us hear them.

Need a refresh on how to stream from a Chromebook? This article will help you.

The post Great news! Chromebook streaming is fixed appeared first on Airtame.

Some of the improvements you’ll find in this new app include:

• New Setup Flow, including support for Ethernet and ad-hoc network
• Chromebook streaming to multiple screens
• Fixed MSI and portable issues (related to autostart, autoupdate)
• Re-allowed dot in the name of Airtame devices

Ready to update? Of course you are! Go click the green banner in your app ?

Have a question, request or a product feature idea? We’d love to hear from you. You can reach our support team directly via email (support@airtame.com) or setup a call time and we’ll get back to you.

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