4 mobile technologies Apple and Google need to get right

4 mobile technologies Apple and Google need to get right

4 mobile technologies Apple and Google need to get right

Published Date & Time: 
Tuesday, January 8, 2013 - 13:00
News Organisation: 
InfoWorld

2. Standardize video-out and mirroring in Android
Apple's AirPlay protocol and common video-out capabilities on iOS and OS X via adapter cables has made Apple devices amazingly easy to use for presentations and video watching. All of its recent devices work with an Apple TV to share screens and play videos, so the Apple ecosystem is the only one for reliable wireless video. I've argued that Apple should make the AirPlay technology available on rival platforms, along with iTunes and AirPrint, but that's probably a bridge too far for proprietary-oriented Apple.

But there's no reason for the rest of the industry to remain a chaotic mess when it comes to video-out. Right now, there are three physical ports in the Android platform for video-out, creating an incompatible chaos; many devices support none of them. Also, the DLNA technology for wireless video is poorly implemented, resulting in huge incompatibilities among devices, TV sets, Blu-ray players, and the like. It doesn't really work -- no wonder video streaming is an Apple-only phenomenon in practice.

The Android community -- as well as the lesser mobile platforms such as RIM's BlackBerry and Microsoft's Windows 8 and RT -- should standardize on the new Miracast technology for wireless video streaming (it's interoperable!) and pick one video-out port for all devices, either MicroHDMI or, better, the new SlimPort used in the Nexus 4 that includes MicroUSB compatibility so that you need just one port. That will create the assured compatibility for home-entertainment device makers to deliver an Apple-like experience for the majority of households that haven't become Apple strongholds.

Read the rest of the article at InfoWorld: http://www.infoworld.com/d/mobile-technology/4-mobile-technologies-apple-and-google-need-get-right-209946