Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Amazon streaming
- Thread starter rpearlberg
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
aziatiklover
macrumors 68030
Ok, so that will work? I haven't even taken it out of the box yet, but I want to make sure I can do this...
via Airplay?
Google is your friend.... http://www.theverge.com/2013/9/17/4740080/amazon-instant-video-airplay-support
If your Mac supports Airplay mirroring, then yes you can mirror your mac's screen to your Apple TV, and anything on that screen will appear on your TV. So you could just start streaming Amazon Instant Streaming on your mac, and mirror the screen to your ATV.
But to support airplay mirroring your mac needs to be:
iMac (Mid 2011 or newer)
Mac mini (Mid 2011 or newer)
MacBook Air (Mid 2011 or newer)
MacBook Pro (Early 2011 or newer)
http://support.apple.com/kb/ht5404
If your mac doesn't support Airplay Mirroring, you may still be able to do it via an application like AirParrot, which has more lenient requirements.
http://www.airsquirrels.com/airparrot/
Regarding iOS devices: Yes you can definitely airplay Amazon Instant Streaming shows/movies from the Amazon Instant Video app to your Apple TV. I've done it multiple times within the last month.
Either way, the only downside is that it tasks your mac or your iOS device. But at the moment these are the only ways you can get Amazon Instant Streaming via Apple TV.
if you want something with amazon streaming on it's own, look at the roku boxes.
you will gain access to a lot of channels (apps) like amazon, espn, vudu, and if you have time warner cable all of your cable channels. (check out what's available)
you will loose access to items bought or rented from the iTunes store. and the ability to airplay from your other apple devices.
the roku's interface is not as clean looking as the one on the aTV, but it's better than it was, and is still very nice looking.
----------
airplay mirroring is very dependent on having a good network connection. even on wired it has a tendency to stutter when sending full screen video. on wireless it's even worse.
it also does better when you're not constantly updating the entire screen like you are for video.
you will gain access to a lot of channels (apps) like amazon, espn, vudu, and if you have time warner cable all of your cable channels. (check out what's available)
you will loose access to items bought or rented from the iTunes store. and the ability to airplay from your other apple devices.
the roku's interface is not as clean looking as the one on the aTV, but it's better than it was, and is still very nice looking.
----------
airplay mirroring is very dependent on having a good network connection. even on wired it has a tendency to stutter when sending full screen video. on wireless it's even worse.
it also does better when you're not constantly updating the entire screen like you are for video.
I rarely (if ever) have these problems from my Macbook Air using Airplay Mirroring of full screen video. Mavericks, AppleTV via ethernet, 5gz wifi to Macbook Air via Airport Extreme.
I should mention that my computer does not support Airplay mirroring, since it is a 2009 MBP. But I do use AirParrot to airplay my screen to my ATV2 (wired). And I don't have any problems.
I tried airplaying from my iPad and iPhone Amazon Prime videos. It would stop all the time and I'd have to restart it. Very annoying, so I ditched that. It was over a Wireless N network with me standing right by the router and ATV.
I have since switched to my PS3 and it works fine.
I just wish they had better kid's shows like Netflix, since we traded in Netflix for Prime w/ the shipping bonus. That's a whole other issue though.
I have since switched to my PS3 and it works fine.
I just wish they had better kid's shows like Netflix, since we traded in Netflix for Prime w/ the shipping bonus. That's a whole other issue though.
i went back to cable just because i didn't like the kids shows on netflix too much. mine are 6 and 3 and i got sick of them watching power rangers, avengers and hulk all the time. amazon has dora, but only season 1
so i went back to cable and they have disney jr
Very true...when we had Netflix we had to put a stop to Power Rangers and some of the other mindless crap on there like Beyblade.