xBound wireless HDMI system is AirPlay for Android
Apple’s AirPlay wireless streaming technology is hardly revolutionary in functionality, what with things like DLNA being available and all. It is, however, very simple, and requires only a $99 Apple TV to give you both audio, video and screen mirroring from (certain) iOS devices to a screen. xBound is a new system for Android that appears to have the same plug and plug simplicity and the same mirroring capabilities. It consists of software on the Android side that wirelessly connects to an HDMI dongle and then gives you a wireless display. The demo video above shows a lot of the same functionality that AirPlay has, including screen mirroring, screen rotation, and the ability to intelligently switch between mirroring and external display mode (in the demo, the movie and Angry Birds play at different resolutions and aspect ratios than the phone screen).
The dongle is priced at €99, which is cheaper than an Apple TV in Europe, but more expensive than one in the US if they don’t adjust the price in other ways than just converting from euro to dollars. You do however get a smaller device that isn’t a standalone media device (for better or worse). I’m of course only comparing with the Apple TV since the simplicity and functionality of the two systems are pretty similar, it’s not like you can choose between them as they’re for different platforms. It seems like a good accessory, and the intelligent mirroring/output mode is definitely an upgrade form more convoluted wireless streaming setups.
[Droidcon via Engadget]
