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betman

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jan 15, 2013
272
5
If I download a new film/series to my laptop and iPad, does it make any difference in terms of quality which source I use to airplay the material on my tv?
 

waw74

macrumors 601
May 27, 2008
4,682
949
From the iTunes store, no it doesn't

couple things though

you need a retina ipad to download 1080
itunes must be set up to up to download the correct resolution
(more info)

this is airplay directly from iTunes, not airplay mirroring. (you shouldn't see the video on the screen of your computer)

for playing from your computer i would recommend going to the computer section on the aTV and playing from there (your computer needs to be on and running iTunes)
 

betman

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jan 15, 2013
272
5
Say I have a retina iPad so 1080 download (I assume - I've only seen a choice when looking at settings on my MacBook).

The reason I am asking is that I want to play pre-downloaded movies without streaming. So if I have a laptop and an ipad, which do these should I download the film to to ensure that I get the best quality when using airplay to see the film on my tv?
 

Satori

macrumors 6502a
Jun 22, 2006
761
6
London
Say I have a retina iPad so 1080 download (I assume - I've only seen a choice when looking at settings on my MacBook).

The reason I am asking is that I want to play pre-downloaded movies without streaming. So if I have a laptop and an ipad, which do these should I download the film to to ensure that I get the best quality when using airplay to see the film on my tv?

I have never seen a difference between airplay streaming quality from my MBA or iPad 3.
 

perezr10

macrumors 68000
Jan 12, 2014
1,990
1,457
Monroe, Louisiana
From a picture quality standpoint I don't think so. But from a reliability standpoint my 13" Retina MacBook Pro seems to be more reliable than my iPad 4. I notice less dropped mirroring and stuttering on my MacBook. I'm guessing it's due to the superior processing power and memory.
 

waw74

macrumors 601
May 27, 2008
4,682
949
does it make any difference in terms of quality which source I use to airplay the material on my tv?


if the shows are downloaded ...
From the iTunes store, no it doesn't
... make a differnece


if you've downloaded from the iTunes store, then your computer or you ipad is only acting as a file server. If everything is set up correctly, then your ipad and your computer should have the same file

if you...
1. play a move on your ipad, and airplay it to the aTV
2. play a movie on iTunes on you computer, and airplay it to the aTV
3. using the computers section on your aTV to browse the iTunes library on you computer.

it's all playing the exact same file so the quality would be the same.


examples of things not being set up correctly...
*not set to download HD videos (or an older device that can't)
*using airplay mirroring (if you see the movie on your iPad/computer screen, you're doing it wrong)


the only difference you might see is network related, if your computer is wireless and at the other end of you house with a poor wi-fi signal, you could see stuttering or longer buffer times.
 

betman

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jan 15, 2013
272
5
Thanks - the reason I'm asking is that internet speeds might not be so good at the place where the ATV will be set up, so most likely movies will be downloaded overnight for later viewing.

So I guess the real question is will it be the same file being downloaded if I make the purchase on my iPad (retina) vs Macbook? Or does iTunes dish out a more compressed version when downloading to iPad due to the small screen (regardless of the retina resolution)?
 
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