Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
What I really want is 4k Airplay from my Mac (mirror/extended display)
2021: WONDERING THE SAME - Can we do 4K via Airplay 2 (to a big TV w Airplay 2) - from iPad Pros (Old Gens + New Gens?) and / or the MBPs & M1s?

Mirroring my 5K display like seen below produces a 3840x2160 image on my TV.
Was this legit 4K?
No, aTV 4K sends a 4K 60Hz 4:4:4 image to the TV as seen on the screenshot:

Hey!

Can someone advise, can I mirror/extend my iMac screen to Apple TV 4K via AirPlay in 4K quality?
 
Was this legit 4K?
What is legit and non-legit 4K?
One needs to keep in mind, that screen mirroring over AirPlay and AirPlaying a 4K video stream (already encoded, like from iTunes, YouTube or similar), are 2 completely different things.
So I really do not mirror my screen to aTV.
But I very often beam a 4K stream to it, mostly from my own iTunes library, but every now and then from my iPhone as well.
And then, 4K footage shot by iPhone 12 can peak at over 100Mbs, so it is problematic for aTV native player to render it.
 
2021: WONDERING THE SAME - Can we do 4K via Airplay 2 (to a big TV w Airplay 2) - from iPad Pros (Old Gens + New Gens?) and / or the MBPs & M1s?
If you'll see the CONTEXT of my previous post - Screen Mirror / Extend as Display from an Apple Device.
What is legit and non-legit 4K?
One needs to keep in mind, that screen mirroring over AirPlay and AirPlaying a 4K video stream (already encoded, like from iTunes, YouTube or similar), are 2 completely different things.
So I really do not mirror my screen to aTV.
Yes. Agreed they are different things.
And that's understandable and that is the question, for ME and the previous member. MIRROR/ EXTEND.
But I very often beam a 4K stream to it, mostly from my own iTunes library, but every now and then from my iPhone as well.
And then, 4K footage shot by iPhone 12 can peak at over 100Mbs, so it is problematic for aTV native player to render it.
Maybe share if you can "4K Mirror/ Extend" from a "iPad Pro" or "Mac" - I am guessing you have one?

Would love to check if Airplay 2 can be a Wireless replacement for a DP/ HDMI cable.
 
What I really want is 4k Airplay from my Mac (mirror/extended display)
@axboi87 - Did you ever actually find / figure this out?

2021: WONDERING THE SAME - Can we do 4K via Airplay 2 (to a big TV w Airplay 2) - from iPad Pros (Old Gens + New Gens?) and / or Macs/ MBs / Apple Silicon M1s?
 
Just to be sure that this is no problem on my end: Is it possible to airplay youtube videos in 4K to the new apple tv (2021) ? Whenever I try this, my youtube app only shows a maximum quality option of 1080p ?
 
Maybe share if you can "4K Mirror/ Extend" from a "iPad Pro" or "Mac" - I am guessing you have one?
Would love to check if Airplay 2 can be a Wireless replacement for a DP/ HDMI cable.
Made another run at testing the screen mirroring over AirPlay.
There are exactly three resolutions possible:
  • 2880x1620 (which is also "Best for the AirPlay display")
  • 1920x1080 HiDPI (should utilize all UHD pixels at 2:1 HiDPI ratio, right?)
  • 1280x720 HiDPI (did not bother to test).
The image is always scaled to UHD on the aTV side (which is normal, as it does not support dynamic resolution switching), as can be seen on the screenshot below (well, you'd need to download it to see that it has image size of 3840 × 2160 pixels at 72 DPI).
Available resolutions can be seen in macOS System Preferences and just to double-check, I confirmed them also with the SwitchResX as seen on the attached screenshots (these were taken on iMac screen).
Screen Shot 2021-08-05 at 21.49.22.pngScreenshot 2021-08-05 at 21.55.35.pngScreenshot 2021-08-05 at 21.55.41.pngScreenshot 2021-08-05 at 21.56.02.png
 
  • Love
Reactions: crashnburn
All this is via Apple TV? Thanks for sharing. Truly appreciate it.

* I am wondering which TV you have and does it support/ have Airplay 2?
* Could you do a direct: Mac > (Airplay2) > TV connect - Screen Mirror/ Extend? (minus Apple TV?)

Kind had to reframe and ask as I am realizing the question can mean lot of things/ pathways if not "honed in" to specific use case.


Made another run at testing the screen mirroring over AirPlay.
There are exactly three resolutions possible:
  • 2880x1620 (which is also "Best for the AirPlay display")
  • 1920x1080 HiDPI (should utilize all UHD pixels at 2:1 HiDPI ratio, right?)
  • 1280x720 HiDPI (did not bother to test).
The image is always scaled to UHD on the aTV side (which is normal, as it does not support dynamic resolution switching), as can be seen on the screenshot below (well, you'd need to download it to see that it has image size of 3840 × 2160 pixels at 72 DPI).
Available resolutions can be seen in macOS System Preferences and just to double-check, I confirmed them also with the SwitchResX as seen on the attached screenshots (these were taken on iMac screen).
View attachment 1815195View attachment 1815194View attachment 1815196View attachment 1815197
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.