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.

By that, we mean that there are different ways to secure, from physical security to network security. The benefit of investing in enterprise-level products, such as Airtame 2, is that these products come with options for security built-in.

Let’s go over some of the Airtame security features.

Pin Code Connect

Pin Code Connect, is an easy way to ensure that no one outside of the room can stream to Airtame.

When you enable Pin Code Connect, Airtame will require users to enter a random 4-digit pin code in order to start a stream. The pin code will appear on your TV or projector screen, which you then type into the Airtame app.

This easy to use feature makes sure that no one in or outside the room streams to the wrong screen and shows potentially private content to the wrong audience. It also prevents any unwanted mischief from outside of the room.

Kensington lock

With regards to physical security, a good old fashioned lock is a simple, yet effective solution. That’s why we designed Airtame 2 with a Kensington lock slot. Kensington is the cross-industry standard for physically securing your AV equipment.

Using the Kensington lock slot means you can confidently use Airtame in TVs or projectors in shared or public spaces without fear of leaving the device vulnerable to theft.

Not sure which Kensington lock to buy for your Airtame 2? Our trusted resellers recommend the Microsaver 2.0 lock sold by Kensington.

Web proxy support

As a part of their network security, many organizations use web proxy setups. A web proxy, in simple terms, is a filter between your computer and the internet. That means if you try to visit a website running malicious code, a web proxy could detect this as a bad site and prevent it from accessing the network.

Airtame supports web proxy setups, which organizations often use as a part of their network security. Airtame requires internet access to run updates and display websites or dashboards, which makes web proxy support essential for enterprise-level organizations. Check out our article to see how easy it is to configure a web proxy on Airtame.

Looking for more ways to beef up your security? We’ve got some tips for you on how to improve your network security.

Airtame Cloud user roles

There are times we have to protect against security risks from inside our organizations. For example, our device management platform, Airtame Cloud, offers different user roles so private information, such as network settings, remains secure.

The user roles available are Owner, Admin, Manager, and User, suitable for every type of employee, staff, or student member you might have in your organization. Each role has a different degree of permissions to set new signage, edit streaming settings, or invite new users to Airtame Cloud.  

An enterprise-ready solution

For enterprises and other large organizations, such as educational institutions, security is not an area to be compromised. Airtame devices are built to work with your network security setup and take into account different aspects of Airtame security from locks to user roles.

Interested in learning more about what Airtame offers with regards to security? Our deployment guide is the place to go.

The post Everything you need to know about Airtame security appeared first on Airtame.

Many are familiar with firewalls when talking about network security, perhaps because of the vivid visual it calls to mind. The same unfortunately can’t be said for an integral part of a secure network: the web proxy.

Unlike a firewall, which is used purely for blocking threats, a web proxy acts more as a middleman between a device and the internet. This device could be a computer or even an Airtame. Luckily for Airtame, we now support a web proxy setup, so we can stay on the proxy’s good side.

In this article, we dig a little deeper to uncover why you need to know what a web proxy can do for your network.  

What is a proxy?

As the need for internet access at the workplace grows, web proxies come from a need to secure an organization’s internal network from external threats. Broadly speaking, a web proxy, also referred to as a proxy or proxy server, is a way to filter the connection between your computer and the internet.

Let’s break it down.

Say you want to check your Facebook profile to see how many likes that picture of your dog received. You open up a web browser and type in “www.facebook.com”.

Without a web proxy, your computer would simply connect directly to the internet to access the website and display it for you.

With a proxy, your computer will connect to a separate server, the proxy, that sits between the computer and the internet. The web proxy acts like airport security and is in charge of screening what websites are allowed access or not.

What is and is not allowed is determined by your organization’s IT policy. If social media sites are restricted, then, unfortunately, that means you’ll have to wait until you get home to check your Facebook.

Why do you need web proxy?

There are two overall reasons why larger organizations use web proxies in their network security setup: to protect their private data and to improve the performance of their internal network.

Insure your assets against threats

The top reason why a web proxy is needed on a network is that it protects a company’s data assets by limiting websites that potentially contain malicious code.

And not just data assets, but physical assets too when you consider the possible costs of replacing an organization’s hardware when a virus renders it unusable.

Enterprise companies might have confidential proprietary information, their employees’ private data, as well as their customers’ personal information sitting on their local network. With all this valuable data to protect, it doesn’t seem so excessive to monitor internet usage.

Improve network performance

Depending on the type of proxy you use and how it is set up, it is possible that using a proxy can improve performance by caching web pages.

For example, let’s say you recently visited airtame.com. The proxy can save a temporary copy of the webpage which it stores locally so that when your colleague visits airtame.com later that day, the proxy can serve up that copy instead of having to retrieve the original from the internet.

This is most useful for frequently visited websites, for instance, if you often refer to your company’s website. It’s saving you the loading time of the page every time you visit.

Every organization’s network is different and can have different needs. Luckily, there are several ways to incorporate a web proxy, or even a set of web proxies, into any network setup, which makes it a flexible solution.

Proxy in action

Not every company makes use of web proxies. The majority of web proxy users are enterprise-level companies or educational institutions that need a manageable way of monitoring the large volume of internet users on their network.

Enterprise companies and educational institutions use proxies to keep their network safe, but they go about it in slightly different ways.

Enterprise

For larger corporations, corporate espionage is not just the stuff of James Bond films. It is a real threat that makes it necessary for companies to monitor the traffic coming in and out of their network. These companies use proxies to filter everything – websites, emails, and any applications that access internet.

Of course, sometimes a web proxy also protects us from ourselves. Checking social media may seem harmless, but let’s admit that it is a productivity threat. In this case, companies use proxies to set time limits for social media use during business hours.

At schools and universities

For schools and universities, it is important to use a web proxy that blocks access to adult content. In this case, purchasing a quality service that keeps an up-to-date database of known adult content sites is key.

In certain instances, it is necessary to block access to radically political websites or sites that promote hate speech, both to ensure a safe environment for students, as well as make sure students cite quality source material in their research.

Another reason schools and universities invest in a good database is to monitor sites known to carry malicious code. Even if a malicious website attempts to hide behind a normal website and redirect you to a site running malware, the web proxy flags this as abnormal behavior and blocks access.

Using Airtame with a web proxy setup

Our latest product update introduces web proxy support. This means that, if your organization uses a web proxy setup, you can now configure Airtame to access the proxy and thereby reach the internet.

[quote: “Web proxy support is a big step forward for Airtame and our enterprise customers, where security and wireless screen sharing go hand-in-hand.” – Simon Hangaard, Head of Product Management at Airtame]

Airtame requires internet access in order to receive important product updates and to make use of certain tools. For example, you can register your Airtame devices to Airtame Cloud, our web-based device management tool that, among other things, lets you remotely monitor devices.

Another useful Airtame feature that requires internet is our Homescreen, which lets you display web-based dashboards or even slideshows.

Wondering how exactly to configure a web proxy with Airtame? Check out our help article here or reach out to our Customer Success team by clicking the blue chat button

The post Discover what is proxy and why do you need it appeared first on Airtame.