Airtame Wireless Streaming Device REVIEW

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At some point in time, you’ve probably had a moment where you’ve had to show a presentation to multiple people in a conference room. I know that on more than one occasion I’ve had the panic moment when I’m not sure how I’m going to get my presentation from my computer to the computer or projector in the meeting room that is being used. It’s a stressor that you shouldn’t have to live through when you should be focused on the presentation itself. What if you could go into a situation worry-free by having a simple plug-n-play device that would stream media wirelessly from your computer or mobile device? Airtame provides that option for you and it actually works!

Details

Airtame is a small HDMI dongle that connects to the HDMI port of any screen or projector. It operates through wireless networks so nothing needs to be plugged into your computer or smartphone in order for the Airtame to pick up the input signal. With the device, you can mirror your entire desktop to a larger display or use the presenter app on a mobile device to share wirelessly from your Android or iOS device. Airtame makes it possible for you to not only create a single presentation within a meeting room, but you can also use it to send media to digital displays. Airtame can stream to multiple screens (as long as each display has the device connected) at one time using a computer. This gives you the ability to create customized digital displays throughout a single facility without having to integrate more expensive systems that require subscriptions.

Airtame does operate through its own software — available on both desktop and mobile devices — but it’s very intuitive and easy to use. It’s mainly a connection utility. The dongle is compatible with Windows, macOS X, Linux Ubuntu, Chrome OS, iOS, and Android operating systems. The Airtame device is just a bit larger than a standard USB flash drive and is very portable. That’s what makes it so great for business applications; it can go everywhere you do with minimal installation requirements. Airtame even has a Cloud database for device management and monitoring remotely.

Even though Airtame is built to work with wireless networks, Ethernet support is still available with the use of an adapter. The same is true of DVI/VGA connections. There is an adapter available that makes it possible for you to use the Airtame with screens that don’t have HDMI support. Airtame is built for businesses and education settings. It supports many wireless features like WPA2 Enterprise, Access Point mode, and connect with IP.

User Experience

Airtame comes packaged in a simple but elegantly branded box. It’s bright blue with an outline of an Airtame device on the cover. The cover is a sleeve that slips over the inner box. When you open the inner box, you will see the steps needed to connect the Airtame to your monitor and input device. The Airtame device is sitting inside a molded piece of plastic and then beneath that, you will find a USB charging cable, an HDMI extension piece, and a power adapter for the wall. There is also a packet with how to use, safety, regulatory, and warranty information.

When I first got the device out of its box, I wondered if it would actually work as advertised. I have used other wireless streaming devices that claim to do the same thing as Airtame but were failures. The process to get started was easy. You plug the dongle into an HDMI port on your output screen — in my case a 4K television — and then download the software needed to broadcast. I was using my MacBook Pro so it took the form of a menu bar utility. When you first set up the Airtame, you have to connect it to your WiFi network. Then, the connected Airtame will show up in your menu so that you can select it. It’s a simple play/stop button to broadcast. You can include audio or mute it depending on the circumstances of your broadcast.

The setup is similar to mobile devices. You download the app to your phone or tablet and as long as you are connected to the same WiFi network, it should appear as a device you can connect to. With the mobile app for iOS, you cannot mirror your display unless you use the Beta option. You have the broadcast options of Photo, Files, or Dropbox. It works in a similar manner to what AirPlay does. Airtame does have a Presenter app that is meant for presenting static files and images. NOTE: At the time of this article being published, the Airtame iOS app had not been updated for iPhone X.

During my testing of both devices, I mirrored my MacBook Pro desktop and opened various files to test out on the screen. I also played video on YouTube. There was about a 2-second delay between my computer and when the signal reached the TV, which I thought was acceptable. The same was true of the mobile connection. We experienced a small delay in transmission, but it was acceptable. For our tests, we were broadcasting in the same room as the Airtame. I don’t know how well the signal would be accepted across a larger space or across a building though. It’s also possible that our broadcast signal was slowed by the number of wireless devices connected to our network (lots of smart home tech). Despite the small delay, the picture quality was very good and so was the audio stream. Connecting to the Airtame was painless and switching between input devices was as easy as selecting stop on one and play on the other.

Conclusion

The Airtame is the portable working companion I’ve been looking for for a long time. I remember having to find the right adapters to connect my MacBook to a simple TV monitor. It took 3 separate adapters! Now, I just have to plug in this tiny dongle and broadcast over the wireless network. It’s an amazing device and I’m eager to see how it works in bigger applications — schools, businesses, etc. I didn’t have any problems using it and it didn’t seem to get overly hot after being used. Airtame is a really slick piece of technology and I think anyone who gives presentations on a regular basis should add it to the ‘go bag’.
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For more information, visit airtame.com.
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Originally published at macsources.com on March 7, 2018.