iOS 17.3 Allows iPhones to Connect to Some Hotel Room TVs via AirPlay

[MacRumors]

Apple today shared the full release notes for iOS 17.3, which will be released to the public next week. The notes reveal that iOS 17.3 allows the iPhone to connect to select hotel room TVs via AirPlay, but details remain slim for now.

"AirPlay hotel support lets you stream content directly to the TV in your room in select hotels," the notes say for the iOS 17.3 Release Candidate.

The feature allows iPhone users to scan a QR code on a supported hotel room TV to establish an AirPlay connection, allowing them to wirelessly stream videos, photos, and music from their iPhone to the TV. Google already offers a similar feature on some hotel TVs, allowing guests to stream content from their smartphone via Chromecast.

In June 2023, Apple said Holiday Inn parent company IHG Hotels & Resorts planned to adopt the feature, but exact availability is unknown. LG previously announced that it would be one of the first hotel room TV manufacturers to support the feature.

Apple originally said the feature would launch last year, but it was delayed until 2024.

Article Link: iOS 17.3 Allows iPhones to Connect to Some Hotel Room TVs via AirPlay

 

[Justin Cymbal]

This is a really great feature that Apple has developed for iOS

I used to occasionally bring my Apple TV with me when I traveled so that I could watch sports games via MLB.tv or NBA TV but now that I can sync up to the hotel TV via this new feature, I won’t have to bring my Apple TV with me on trips

 

[jz0309]

This will be cool some time in the future when hotels actually update their TVs…

 

[G5isAlive]

cool, maybe I can stop carrying around an HDMI cable and going behind the tv to disconnect the cable box.

 

[cjgrif]

This will be cool some time in the future when hotels actually update their TVs…

I figure I may be able to try this out sometime by 2033...

 

[Chiromac81]

I see security/privacy risks written all over this!

 

[gank41]

This is a really great feature that Apple has developed for iOS

I used to occasionally bring my Apple TV with me when I traveled so that I could watch sports games via MLB.tv or NBA TV but now that I can sync up to the hotel TV via this new feature, I won’t have to bring my Apple TV with me on trips

Would you believe I actually use an older Apple TV as a "mobile" device I keep in a bag in case I do stay somewhere else? lol It's come in handy

 

[Arislan]

cool, maybe I can stop carrying around an HDMI cable and going behind the tv to disconnect the cable box.

Is that seriously something you do? Most hotels have casting already. AirPlay is just one more way to watch content on the hotel TV.

 

[jhwalker]

This is a really great feature that Apple has developed for iOS

I used to occasionally bring my Apple TV with me when I traveled so that I could watch sports games via MLB.tv or NBA TV but now that I can sync up to the hotel TV via this new feature, I won’t have to bring my Apple TV with me on trips

Personally, I'd have preferred they added a feature to the Apple TV to allow it properly to connect to hotel wireless, like any other device - that would be almost universally effective, as opposed to this band-aid which will likely only work in a few hotels nationwide, at least in the short term.

 

[jhwalker]

Is that seriously something you do? Most hotels have casting already. AirPlay is just one more way to watch content on the hotel TV.

Absolutely - have been doing it for years. Means I'm independent of whatever system the hotel has and have all my apps / shows, etc., with me, just as if I were at home.

 

[Arislan]

I see security/privacy risks written all over this!

Why? Casting in hotels is already common and that's locked down pretty well. You have to believe that Apple and whoever they partner with would be held to some pretty high standards.

 

[Rob__Mac]

I haven't travelled a tonne the last couple of years, but staying in a hotel recently I was pleased to see I could cast to the TV.

It didn't work.

Hopefully this will improve things!

 

[Justin Cymbal]

Personally, I'd have preferred they added a feature to the Apple TV to allow it properly to connect to hotel wireless, like any other device - that would be almost universally effective, as opposed to this band-aid which will likely only work in a few hotels nationwide, at least in the short term.

Apple fixed the issues with connecting Apple TVs to the hotel WiFi in tvOS 15:

Apple Releases tvOS 15.4 With Support for Captive WiFi Networks

Apple today released tvOS 15.4, the fourth major update to the tvOS operating system that first launched in September 2021. tvOS 15.4 comes less than...

www.macrumors.com

An alternative approach would be to bring along a travel router or even a MiFi if only using AirPlay and not streaming (if low cellular data limit)

 

[srbNYC]

I've been traveling with an Amazon TV stick because it's so portable and was SO inexpensive.

 

[tongxinshe]

This is a really great feature that Apple has developed for iOS

I used to occasionally bring my Apple TV with me when I traveled so that I could watch sports games via MLB.tv or NBA TV but now that I can sync up to the hotel TV via this new feature, I won’t have to bring my Apple TV with me on trips

You definitely need to first call the hotels you booked.

 

[Dreadnought]

If only Netflix supported Airplay…

 

[victorvictoria]

I've wanted this since AirPlay was released! Hotel TV is too limited, and too local for my interests. I discovered a way to hack the blue & white remote (that virtually every hotel uses) to change the input so I could use my Apple TV box, but what a pain in the A**!

 

[ipedro]

CitizenM hotels used to have a similar feature with a workaround. You’d use the citizenM app on your iPhone which would make the connection to AirPlay. It worked well. It was removed recently, perhaps in anticipation of this native solution. I missed AirPlay on my recent stays so hopefully it comes back.

 

[Gator5000e]

The picture on my iPad Pro 12.9 is a lot better than the crap TVs in most hotels. Plus I can get spatial audio with my Air Pod Pros. As long as I get a decent wifi signal I sticking with the iPad Pro.

 

[nrose101]

The picture on my iPad Pro 12.9 is a lot better than the crap TVs in most hotels. Plus I can get spatial audio with my Air Pod Pros. As long as I get a decent wifi signal I sticking with the iPad Pro.

And a very small screen.

 

[TomaxXamot]

I've wanted this since AirPlay was released! Hotel TV is too limited, and too local for my interests. I discovered a way to hack the blue & white remote (that virtually every hotel uses) to change the input so I could use my Apple TV box, but what a pain in the A**!

It’s so annoying that most hotel remotes don’t have an input button. I usually bring a universal remote or just use my Roku or MacBook Pro with a wireless mouse because of this.

 

[subjonas]

I would very likely choose a hotel with this feature over one that doesn’t. I’ve often wished I could Airplay to the hotel TV.

 

[subjonas]

Is that seriously something you do? Most hotels have casting already. AirPlay is just one more way to watch content on the hotel TV.

How do you cast from an iPhone to hotel TV without Airplay?

 

[Aves]

I love this!!!! So finally I'll be able to stream my own pictures while at a hotel, wondering how fat I look!

Well, always better that watching the Eagles 🏈 😭

 

[subjonas]

I've been traveling with an Amazon TV stick because it's so portable and was SO inexpensive.

I so wish Apple made an HDMI TV stick, at least just for Airplay—ok with no apps. I would take it on every trip and probably also to get-togethers at homes of people who don’t have an Apple TV.