AirPlay Support for Apple Fitness+ Begins Working in Second Beta of iOS 14.5

[MacRumors]

The second beta of iOS 14.5 seeded to developers and public beta testers this week enables users to stream Apple Fitness+ workouts to AirPlay 2-enabled TVs, allowing the videos to be watched on the big screen without an Apple TV.

Apple already announced that Apple Fitness+ was gaining AirPlay support in iOS 14.5, but the feature was not working in the first beta.

One caveat of using Apple Fitness+ with AirPlay is that Apple Watch metrics are not displayed on the screen, as they are when using the service with an Apple TV, iPhone, or iPad. Activity rings, calories burned, workout time remaining, and burn bars will not show up on the TV when streaming workouts with AirPlay 2, but users can still glance at their connected Apple Watch and iPhone or iPad to view that information.

AirPlay 2-enabled TVs are available from a variety of brands, including Samsung, Sony, LG, and Vizio. Roku TVs sold by brands like TCL, Sharp, and Hisense also support AirPlay 2, or users can connect a Roku streaming stick to their existing smart TV via the HDMI port as a cost-effective way of streaming Apple Fitness+ workouts via AirPlay 2.

iOS 14.5 should be released to all users by late March or early April, but anyone can sign up to be a public beta tester for free to access this feature early.

Apple Fitness+ launched in December, providing subscribers with access to a library of workout videos updated on a weekly basis. The service is currently available in the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, and the United Kingdom, with pricing set at $9.99 per month or $79.99 per year after a one-month trial.

Article Link: AirPlay Support for Apple Fitness+ Begins Working in Second Beta of iOS 14.5

 

[steevn]

This will be enough for me to now subscribe, hopefully a new Apple TV will be released then I’ll decide how important the tracking features are to have on the screen.

Im just glad this didn’t take years to happen, they really messed up not having it work at Fitness+ initial release, so it made me wonder how long until the feature even became available.

 

[albertsong7]

Do we know if users will be able to use the Lightning-to-HDMI cable to see the videos for those that don't have an AirPlay-enable TV or an Apple TV?

 

[mattopotamus]

This will be enough for me to now subscribe, hopefully a new Apple TV will be released then I’ll decide how important the tracking features are to have on the screen.

Im just glad this didn’t take years to happen, they really messed up not having it work at Fitness+ initial release, so it made me wonder how long until the feature even became available.

As someone that doesn't workout, I would think the tracking features on screen would be good motivation.

 

[mattopotamus]

Do we know if users will be able to use the Lightning-to-HDMI cable to see the videos for those that don't have an AirPlay-enable TV or an Apple TV?

Does that work for other video content? (Netflix, YouTube, etc), or more importantly Apple+?

 

[DeepIn2U]

sure it's odd Apple didn't have this implemented at launch, yet I do understand.

AirPlay should've been there to route the sound to AirPod, HomePod/Mini, etc. Who's the project manager of this service and how on earth did this miss this?!

 

[1 iron]

Metrics for multiple Apple Watches at once please.

 

[QFace]

Happy to see this update, but wonder what the technical limitations are that prevent metrics being displayed. Is the Peloton app able to display heart rate over Airplay? I'm hoping to see metrics over Airplay in the future.

Also, has anybody been disappointed with the number of new workouts released? I looked at the Peloton schedule and they release ~8 new cycle workouts per day. Apple Fitness releases a few cycle workouts per week.

 

[jicon]

Happy to see this update, but wonder what the technical limitations are that prevent metrics being displayed. Is the Peloton app able to display heart rate over Airplay? I'm hoping to see metrics over Airplay in the future.

Also, has anybody been disappointed with the number of new workouts released? I looked at the Peloton schedule and they release ~8 new cycle workouts per day. Apple Fitness releases a few cycle workouts per week.

The lack of new workouts ultimately had me not renew after the first free month. Seems a little undercooked for the moment, but really wanted to like this. Seeing metrics on screen is nice.

 

[TheGrandInquisitor]

Would appreciate an answer to this if anyone knows: but does this new beta also enable one to mirror Apple Fitness+ to a TV through a lightning digital AV adaptor? Sadly I bought my Samsung TV the year before they started supporting airplay and I’m holding back on purchasing an Apple TV as the updated model should be released soon...

 

[phoenixcat]

I just tried out and it works on my 3rd generation Apple TV which I think is AirPlay 1

 

[mkoesel]

iOS 14.5 should be released to all users by late March or early April, but anyone can sign up to be a public beta tester for free to access this feature early.

Hmm, so we think it's that far off? I was hoping mid-March. The 14.4 beta cycle was about 40 days. However, 14.5 seems to contain more changes, so perhaps it will require a longer test window.

 

[Tarantularock]

I really like the fitness service but have found a fault - that I have a shared family plan where fitness can be shared however, Fitness+ requires the children would need to have their own apple watches to get this to load on their iPads? My 12 year old likes the spin class but can't use her own device? any way around this?

 

[mnsportsgeek]

When are we getting mac support?

 

[dieweener]

Would appreciate an answer to this if anyone knows: but does this new beta also enable one to mirror Apple Fitness+ to a TV through a lightning digital AV adaptor? Sadly I bought my Samsung TV the year before they started supporting airplay and I’m holding back on purchasing an Apple TV as the updated model should be released soon...

Not sure about a digital AV adaptor, but I’ve been using a HDMI to USB-C cable with my iPad Pro and the metrics mirror over too.

Which tbh, makes it all the more strange that you can’t airplay the metrics. The metrics are half the motivation, especially when in competition with friends.

 

[LouE37]

Would appreciate an answer to this if anyone knows: but does this new beta also enable one to mirror Apple Fitness+ to a TV through a lightning digital AV adaptor? Sadly I bought my Samsung TV the year before they started supporting airplay and I’m holding back on purchasing an Apple TV as the updated model should be released soon...

Not sure if this will change with 14.5, but right now it only works on iPads with usb-c using the usb-c to HDMI adapter.

 

[LouE37]

Its takes no time for a quick glance at your watch so simply having the instructors on screen is fine for me. I also agree on the lack of new workouts but tbh this just came out in December. Look at what Apple Music became, i'm sure they have a good plan to keep piling onto this offering eventually. For now though i love it!

 

[dcoll]

I really like the fitness service but have found a fault - that I have a shared family plan where fitness can be shared however, Fitness+ requires the children would need to have their own apple watches to get this to load on their iPads? My 12 year old likes the spin class but can't use her own device? any way around this?

There is a workaround. Got it working on 3 kids iPads here... none of whohave an Apple Watch. They all do have (hand me down) iPhones also ... that helps - otherwise your workaround requires even more effort!

1st step - backup your iPhone and Apple Watch. You’ll need at least the watch backup to restore to after this. Depending on if the child has an iPhone... you’ll need that backup also.

Make sure the backup worked and completed.

Then....
Reset your watch to factory settings (on watch > settings > general > reset).

Then...
Pair the watch to your daughters iPhone - if she doesn’t have an iPhone... reset your iPhone and sign into here iCloud on your phone and then pair the watch with it.

Once the phone and watch are signed in and registered on her Apple ID, go to the App Store on the iPhone and download / install the Fitness app. Then do the same on her iPad - install the app (this is the bit that currently doesn’t work for her I imagine - with the watch paired to her Apple ID, the App Store will allow this download).

Once the app is on her iPad, reset the Apple Watch again (same steps as earlier - and iPhone if you had to do that also). Restore the watch (and phone) to your backup taken on 1st step (you did take the backup didn’t you?!?)

You will now have the watch (and phone) back where you started - so all working with your Apple ID. And your daughter should still have access to the Fitness app on her iPad.

Whenever she selects a workout - just chose to do it without Watch and all should work.

I imagine Airplay will also work for her - my kids are really looking forward to 14.5 as this will open up a better workout experience for them.

Hope this helps.

 

[funktight]

My wife love's the rower training. It pretty much has gotten her back into working out (and that's a good thing for anyone). I know she's looking forward to using the workouts on the big screen (instead of her phone in the rower's phone holder spot). As another commenter mentioned, Apple does seem to be somewhat slower in releasing content compared to other platforms (e.g. Peloton), but we are hopeful that will improve in the future. As for now, we will maintain our device subscriptions to both platforms. All-in-all it's still allot less than the gym memberships we had previously.

 

[phoenixcat]

Just tested it out and it works with the hdmi lightning dongle, no metrics again though.

 

[ChrisBos]

Cool, glad I already burned my trial ?‍♂️

 

[phoenixcat]

Would appreciate an answer to this if anyone knows: but does this new beta also enable one to mirror Apple Fitness+ to a TV through a lightning digital AV adaptor? Sadly I bought my Samsung TV the year before they started supporting airplay and I’m holding back on purchasing an Apple TV as the updated model should be released soon...

Yes it does

 

[laken]

Happy to see this update, but wonder what the technical limitations are that prevent metrics being displayed. Is the Peloton app able to display heart rate over Airplay? I'm hoping to see metrics over Airplay in the future.

Also, has anybody been disappointed with the number of new workouts released? I looked at the Peloton schedule and they release ~8 new cycle workouts per day. Apple Fitness releases a few cycle workouts per week.

I use Peloton app over airplay to a Roku 4k stick. Videos play fine but there are no data overlays on the Roku (Heart rate, cadence)

 

[Tarantularock]

There is a workaround. Got it working on 3 kids iPads here... none of whohave an Apple Watch. They all do have (hand me down) iPhones also ... that helps - otherwise your workaround requires even more effort!....

Hope this helps.

Ha ha - Thank you - yes. It’s a good thing I’ve got the weekend coming up, or better yet ... maybe I start scavenging for a used series 3 watch on Facebook ?.

 

[Lemon Olive]

Can you use this without an Apple Watch yet? My daughter wants to do the Yoga but I can't even get past the start screen without choosing an Apple Watch. Pretty lame.