AirParrot 2, a little piece of software that lets you wirelessly stream your screen or media files to a variety of media receivers, has been today updated to version 2.5.1. This update resolves an issue when connecting to a Chromecast running the latest Chromecast software update.

Released in November 2014, AirParrot 2 was the first application to enable screen mirroring from a Mac or Windows computer to a Chromecast receiver.

You can update AirParrot 2 by selecting “Check for Updates” from the AirParrot 2 preferences menu. Additionally, you can download the new version from the AirParrot 2 download page.

Read more about AirParrot 2:

• AirParrot 2 updated with support for 13 new languages
• Squirrels releases AirParrot Remote: an iOS remote for AirParrot 2
• AirParrot 2: the ultimate companion app for Apple TV 4
• AirParrot 2.2.1 for Mac brings improved cast mirroring and hardware acceleration

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Squirrels, the company behind the popular AirParrot and Reflector apps, has just released AirParrot Remote – a new app that allows you to control AirParrot 2 from your iPhone or iPad. It adds new features to AirParrot 2 and allows you to easily control what’s being mirrored or streamed from your computer to Apple TV, Chromecast and Reflector-enabled devices from the palm of your hand.

AirParrot Remote lets you stream media files from your computer, build playlists, begin presenting your computer screen, and even preview your computer’s desktop before mirroring to make sure you’re sharing the right content.

Added keyboard and mouse controls let you change between applications on your computer without touching it.

The main features include:

• Build Playlists: easily build playlists containing files found on your computer. You can queue files for continuous playback.
• Remote Control: in addition to controlling AirParrot 2, AirParrot Remote also allows you to control the keyboard and mouse of your computer.
• Live Previews: View your computer desktop on your phone or tablet before you begin mirroring.
• Easy Pairing: Connect AirParrot Remote to any computer on your network running AirParrot 2.
• Familiar Interface: The AirParrot Remote interface closely mirrors its desktop counterpart.

The app is available from the App Store for $6.99.

AirParrot Remote requires the AirParrot 2 application running on your computer. You can download AirParrot 2 from here.

Also read:

• Review: AirParrot – taking AirPlay Mirroring to the next level
• AirParrot 2: the ultimate companion app for Apple TV 4
• AirParrot 2 for Mac and Windows released

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AirParrot 2, one of the best AirPlay mirroring solutions out there, is 30% off today. It’s the only time it’s been on sale this year.

Squirrels’ AirParrot is a little pice of software for Mac, Windows and Chrome OS that takes AirPlay mirroring to the next level. AirParrot lets you wirelessly mirror your Mac, PC or Chromebook’s screen to your Apple TV (2nd, 3rd and 4th gen.), all without any additional hacks or jailbreaks.

As a part of Squirrels biggest sale of the year, Reflector 2, a wireless receiver for mirroring and streaming phones or tablets is on sale too.

Get it directly from Squirrels Store.

More deals: 

• Best deals on Bluetooth speakers for Apple TV 4
• Best deals on Bluetooth headphones for Apple TV 4
• Best deals on AirPlay speakers for Apple TV (2nd, 3rd and 4th gen.)
• Best deals on skins/stickers for Apple TV (1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th gen.)
• Best deals on Bluetooth keyboards for Apple TV 2 & 3
• TotalMount Pro for Apple TV (2nd, 3rd and 4th gen.) now 33% off

Be sure to follow Apple TV Hacks on Twitter, Facebook or Google+ for all the latest Apple TV-related news.

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Squirrels, the maker of AirParrot, has just added live YouTube streaming to its wireless mirroring and streaming receiver – Reflector 2. Anything that is displayed on iPhone, iPad, Android device, Chromebook or Surface tablet can be instantly streamed to YouTube when connected to Reflector 2.

The update also brings webcam streaming to YouTube, voice-over volume support and a redesigned recording bar. You can check the complete list of new features and improvements here.

This update is free for current Reflector 2 users.

Reflector is a wireless mirroring and streaming receiver that works great with AirPlay and AirParrot. It lets you mirror your content to the big screen without wires or complicated setups. You can also play games, watch movies, demo applications or present from the palm of your hand.

Be sure to follow Apple TV Hacks on Twitter, Facebook or Google+ for all the latest Apple TV-related news.

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AirParrot for Mac, one of the best AirPlay mirroring solutions out there, has been updated to version 2.2.1 with improved hardware acceleration, cast mirroring and more.

AirParrot for Mac 2.2.1 release notes:

• Hardware acceleration now more intelligently defers to software encoding if performance would be better in software
• Improved Cast mirroring and streaming support, especially on lossy networks
• Added a preference to manually toggle between hardware and software encoding
• Added better support for “Dark Mode” in OS X 10.10 and later
• Miscellaneous bug fixes and stability improvements.

You can download this update by selecting “Check for Updates” from the AirParrot preferences menu. The new version of AirParrot 2 can also be downloaded from here.

Back in June Squirrels released version 2.2 of AirParrot for Mac adding support for audio streaming to 1st gen. AirPort Express and hardware encoding, meaning that AirParrot 2 uses available hardware encoding to capture screens and transcode media files at much lower CPU usage when streaming to Apple TV and Chromecast (OS X 10.9 and greater).

Read our review of AirParrot.  

Be sure to follow Apple TV Hacks on Twitter, Facebook or Google+ for all the latest Apple TV-related news.

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With Reflector 2, you will be able to broadcast your Android phone or tablet screens to your Mac and PC. And since Chromebooks support Google Cast, you can do the same with them, too.

Reflector 2 is the result of years of experience with screen mirroring and sharing. It’s a completely rethought and redesigned application containing a number of game-changing features.

With this launch, we’re excited to announce Reflector 2 as the world’s first Google Cast mirroring receiver for Mac and Windows that doesn’t limit device connections or require a subscription .

Just like with iOS devices, now you can record the Android displays too and even record multiple displays simultaneously.

Reflector 2 brings many other recording improvements, like the ability to add voice-over while recording the screen, which should be a boon for vloggers.

Reflector 2 also brings better device management on board. You can select devices and set preferences directly from the menu bar or even via an iPhone app. Also, when you have multiple devices connected, Reflector 2 now lays them out perfectly for best productivity.

You can read more about the update here and more on Reflector here.

Reflector 2 is a paid update and existing users should receive a mail with a discounted price. New users can purchase Reflector 2 or download a free 7-day trial.

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Most of you, Apple TV Hacks readers, are probably familiar with AirParrot, a little pice of software for Mac, Windows and Chrome OS that takes AirPlay mirroring to the next level. AirParrot lets you wirelessly mirror your Mac, PC or Chromebook’s screen to your Apple TV, all without any additional hacks or jailbreaks.

You can read our full review of AirParrot here.

AirParrot is brought to you by Squirrels, the developer of other popular apps – Reflector and Slingshot.

Partnering with Squirrels, we’re giving away three Super Prize packs! Each will contain:

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Squirrels, the company that took AirPlay mirroring to the next level with AirParrot, has just released AirParrot for Chrome OS that adds wireless display mirroring to any Chromebook.

According to the developers, AirParrot is the only mirroring solution available for Chrome OS devices that allows mirroring the entire screen (not just a tab or a specific application) to AirPlay receivers like Apple TV and Reflector.

The Chrome OS launch of AirParrot includes features not seen in Mac and Windows versions. Entering a Quick Connect Code or IP address allows users to connect to destinations when networks might not support discovery. Recently connected devices also appear at the top of the receiver list if they are available.

Like AirParrot for Mac and Windows, the Chrome OS version can still find devices automatically if networks support discovery.

AirParrot for Chrome OS is believed to be a great tool for business and educational purposes:

Wireless screen mirroring is an advantage for anyone using Chromebooks in large groups. There’s no need to move around, find the correct cable and input or locate dongles. Simply select the destination and begin mirroring.

AirParrot is a great tool in the classroom. Students can share content with the entire class, and most classrooms already have the equipment needed to do so. Adding AirParrot to the mix increases engagement and understanding.

When a Chrome user begins mirroring, the username will appear with the stream. It eliminates confusion and it’s also a deterrent for users who might want to stream inappropriate content in front of large groups.”

AirParrot is available in the Chrome Web Store for individual purchase at $9.99. Anyone wishing to purchase the software can search for “AirParrot” in the store and download instantly. A free seven-day trial is available. The trial is tied to a Google user account and will move with the user as he/she logs in to different devices.

AirParrot for Chrome OS can also be purchased in bulk through the Squirrels sales team.

Read our review of AirParrot for Mac and Windows.

Be sure to follow Apple TV Hacks on Twitter, Facebook or Google+ for all the latest Apple TV-related news.

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Netflix comes on top of my “Apple TV-uses” list but AirPlay mirroring is a close runner up. The flexibility it provides is unlimited as you can show off almost anything on your HDTV with just a tap – it can be movies, games, webpages, presentations and what not. Though this works great if you are an Apple-only guy, for a person with a Windows PC or an unsupported Mac, this feature is fairly out of reach and that is where this post comes in.

Thanks to AirParrot from Squirrels, you will be able to AirPlay mirror your Windows laptop or an old Mac incompatible with Mountain Lion or those who just don’t want to get that free upgrade to Mavericks (and why was that again?). Squirrels are the same guys who earlier turned every screen into an Apple TV with their Reflector app.

AirParrot has been around for quite some time now and many of you might remember the in-depth review we threw in earlier. In case you missed that, here is what umOuch had to say about AirParrot:

In the end, AirParrot is a great option for work or entertainment, the home or office, the shed or your bathroom. It opens up a world of possibilities to your laptops and desktop computers. For me, I am all things XBMC and and therefore I am all things media, so my interest was in streaming movies, shows, and music and AirParrot handled it all. I then ran PowerPoint, Keynote, Chrome, and even iMovie: AirParrot knocked it out of the park. You haven’t lived until you have edited a movie on a 55 inch screen.

Read the complete review.

But that was a couple of years ago and things have changed since. Though Squirrels have pushed out many updates in the interim, it still stands to be seen, how well AirParrot has managed to age. Their changelogs look great on paper but let’s see how AirParrot of 2014 performs in my following tests.

Set up and getting connected

Once a 3MB file is downloaded, you only need to open it once to enter the license code for activation. Now on, you’ll have the green parrot icon on the tool bar: right click -> select Apple TV. That’s all, your Windows or Mac computer is now Airplay mirroring to the Apple TV.

I am not going to disgrace you with an elaborate how-to guide, which involves only 4-5 clicks. But here is a video on that and you can download AirParrot from here.

Generally, we see intermittent loss of connection plaguing many Wi-Fi based services and content streams. But for an app dealing with such heavy broadcasting, I was surprised not to see even a single episode of lost connection from AirParrot during the test period. So far so good!

General navigation with AirParrot

I started with something really easy. I just browsed through various folders, menus and Settings on my computer without opening any files except some basic text files. Not surprisingly, the stream was crystal clear and without any lags whatsoever.

Browsing with AirParrot

Then came the turn of the thing I do most – surfing the internet. Double click Google Chrome and I browsed through certain simple blogs, then some news sites with picture & flash content and finally reached YouTube. Once again, AirParrot delivered perfect streams and it seemed as if I was using my mouse and keyboard directly with my HDTV.

Viewing photos

A Picassa slideshow of my college tour was next on the menu because that seemed like something I could really view on my TV at times. The results were again impressive, with smooth visuals and no dropped frames.

Powerpoint and Keynote

Though I won’t be using this for myself, it might be helpful for many who have the projector connected to an Apple TV at their office or classroom. In my test, the presentations came out in bright colors and clarity and so did the light animation effects as seen in the above image. If you’re looking for an app for presentation purposes, you can be assured that AirParrot will serve it.

Watching movies with AirParrot

For me, this is the only reason I purchased AirParrot and to be honest, I was a little skeptical about how it would handle my 1080p movies. Getting my hard disk full of films to show up on the big screen hasn’t been very easy till now.

The results were out of the world! I was almost sure that I will have to tweak the quality of the video from Preferences to have a decent show but AirParrot seems to smoothly deliver even 1080p videos without any hiccups. And this is where AirParrot won me over.

The best thing is that I can just bring my wireless mouse into the living room and browse through the huge library of movies on my hard disk, right on my TV and play it with a click. I have never felt so comfortable.

iMovie and Photoshop

Initially, I thought of ending the review by the movies section, but the results I got made me to push this further. I started with some photo editing (Gimp) and I knew that would go smoothly. No surprises there.

Next is the time for iMovie. The video editing progressed as smoothly as possible but when I started to render the movie, AirParrot showed the first signs of fatigue. Yes, as a reviewer, I finally had something to complain. Though playing back the rendered 1080p movie brought back the charm, I still had something to cling on.

Gaming with AirParrot

I am not much of a hardcore gamer but I knew I was going to win this round. So I borrowed Hitman Absolution from a friend and fired it up. The results were quite what we expected. The game was lagging and dropping frames all over the place. I tried reducing the frame rates and quality, but the game was still unplayable.

Just for the sake of completion, I loaded some flash games from the Google Chrome Web Store and AirParrot was back on its feet and bouncing.

Final scorecard for AirParrot

Why to get AirParrot on a new Mac?

The AirPlay Mirroring feature has been encoded directly into OS X since Mountain Lion. So if you have a new device, you’ll of course be able to make use of that. But if you have an old Mac that doesn’t support OS X 10 or for some reason don’t want to upgrade to a newer version, you can very well get AirParrot to enable AirPlay from Mac to Apple TV.

But even if you have a new Mac running Mountain Lion or Mavericks, AirParrot still seems to be a great buy because of these features:

(Click to enlarge)

Our favorite is undoubtedly Specific-app mirroring. This means that you can show the screen of only one particular app on Apple TV instead of showing the entire screen. So you will be able to mirror your Business Report keynote to the projector for your boss, while you play Blood and Glory on your Mac, at the same time.

UPDATE: Specific-app mirroring, our favorite feature on AirParrot for Mac, is now available on Windows too thanks to this huge update. Now you can mirror a movie from your PC for your family to watch, minimize it on your computer and have a Skype chat with your client, simultaneously.

The Verdict

AirParrot is like having a 50-inch monitor for your computer. If you have a Windows PC or an old Mac and an Apple TV, you’re missing out on a lot of fun and potential by opting against AirParrot. As seen from our tests, you’ll be able to mirror anything except hardcore games from your computer to the HDTV and enjoy them from the living room.

Get AirParrot for $9.99 or if you don’t want to take my word for it, you can very well get a free trial here.

Happy mirroring!

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Squirrels, the developer behind the popular AirPlay Mirroring app AirParrot, has just launched Slingshot, a service-based application allowing cross-platform screen and file sharing. Claimed to be “the first application that allows screen sharing from a mobile device while meeting with others online”, Slingshot lets you share your iOS, Mac or Windows screen with anyone in a Slingshot session – regardless of the device they are using (Android is supported too).

The service also includes online collaboration and meeting tools. Meeting Minutes allows anyone in a session to take collaborative notes in real time, and instant file sharing shares files with everyone in a session. Users files appear instantly in the meeting for others to review and download.

The app also allows to mirror a specific application while continuing to use other applications. Video, audio and text chat are available across all devices, too.

Slingshot also includes face-to-face chat with up to five streaming webcams in a session.

Find out more about Slingshot in the original article posted on What’s on iPhone.

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