Send AirPlay Video from an iPhone or iPad to a Mac, PC, or TV with XBMC

XBMC is a powerful free app that turns any Mac or PC into a full fledged media center. The newest version has been updated with a slew of improvements, but most interesting for iPhone and iPad users is the addition of AirPlay video support. This means you’ll be able to wirelessly transmit video from an iOS device to anything running XBMC, whether it’s a Mac hooked up to a TV or an old PC, here is how to set that up and get AirPlay video working.

Enable & Set Up AirPlay Server in XBMC on a Mac or PC

This will be the same for Mac OS X, Linux, or Windows:

1. Get the latest version of XBMC (free)
2. Launch XBMC and scroll over to “System”
3. Choose “Settings” from the submenu and click on “Network”
4. Scroll down and find “Allow XBMC to receive AirPlay content”, click the dot next to it so that it’s blue
5. Optionally, set an AirPlay password (this is largely unnecessary for private networks)

Export AirPlay Video to XBMC from an iPhone or iPad

Now from the iOS device:

1. Start playing a video as usual from a variety of video apps
2. Tap the video to show the control bar, then tap the AirPlay icon
3. Look for “XBMC (Computer Name)” and tap on it to begin AirPlaying the video

Unfortunately XBMC will only accept non-DRM video to be shown with AirPlay, meaning some trailers within Trailers app and a fair amount of content downloaded from iTunes won’t show up at all. You’ll know instantly if it’s working or not because the video either works or it doesn’t within XBMC.