Windows Phone owners will soon be able to send video to TVs like Apple and Android can using a new Miracast-powered HDMI-equipped dongle that Microsoft will soon launch.
The discovery of FCC filings by Microsoft for a new HDMI dongle with USB, power connecter and Wi-Fi connection codenamed the HD-10, fuelling expectations that a Chromecast competitor is coming soon.
The filings can be
seen here, but seem heavily redacted with notices that “You are not authorized to view this page” when trying to open individual documents.
Wikipedia states that “Miracast is a peer-to-peer wireless screencast standard formed via Wi-Fi Direct connections in a manner similar to Bluetooth. It enables wireless or wired delivery of compressed standard or high-definition video to or from desktops, tablets, mobile phones, and other devices”.
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While this sounds very much like what the Chromecast and AirPlay through Apple TV are able to do, tech site Gigaom notes that: “Miracast doesn’t come with any of the advanced multi-screen features that are offered by Google’s Cast protocol, including the ability to queue up media from multiple participants at the same time, or play multiplayer games.”
Gigaom also states that: “Another key difference is that Miracast is based on streaming media directly, in a P2P-like fashion, from the sender device to the receiver, whereas Google Cast merely points the receiver to a media resource that can be hosted in the cloud.”
This makes the Chromecast a lot more intelligent than Miracast, but future dongles and more capable Miracast standards are surely in the works.
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| FCC logos for Microsoft’s Miracast dongle |
WindowsPhoneDaily was the first to make the discovery, initially suspecting the device was a Qi wireless charger but when reading through the documentation realised it was an HDMI dongle that was being crafted instead.
The Windows Phone blog points out that Windows Phone 8.1 already has a new feature called “Project My Screen” using Miracast technology
already built-in to various TVs and projectors, but that a dedicated Microsoft Miracast dongle would bring compatible screen sharing to any HDMI-equipped screen.
Nokia Power User
uncovered the device’s name and notes the device will be manufactured by Foxconn.
