According to
The Telegraph’s cryptic ‘sources familiar with the matter,’ Apple plans to release a
new feature called ‘AirPlay Direct’ which will allow an iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, or a
computer with
iTunes to
stream music to
AirPlay
compatible speakers without a WiFi network in the area. This would
likely be enabled by an ad-hoc network between the two devices, similar
to the iPhone’s personal hotspot mode.
Does AirPlay streaming need an ad-hoc mode?
While the idea seems like a no brainer, it also strikes me as redundant. Sure, the iPhone shouldn’t need a
router as a middleman for wirelessly streaming music to speakers, but that’s
a function Bluetooth already serves. The advantage of using AirPlay is that it can cover your whole house through a
home network, but with an ad-hoc
connection you may as well be using bluetooth.
AirPlay Direct would be more interesting if it included support for ad-hoc
AirPlay Mirroring or video streams. There’s no indication of the feature in the article, but that would give the technology a reason to
exist. There’s no reason why the iPhone 4S shouldn’t be able to stream video through an ad hock network to the Apple TV.
While there is worry that the upcoming iPhone’s new
9-pin
dock connector will cause problems for existing accessories,
incompatibility between new accessories and old devices may not be as
much of a problem, as Apple pushes its proprietary wireless standards.
As WiFi and bluetooth are both more common now than when the iPod’s
30-pin dock connector was released in 2003, maybe the physical
inconsistency won’t matter as much.
Has
wireless technology replaced the dock connector? Will it replace the technology in the future? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.
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