"No Mirroring" error on iPhone with Criterion Channel
January 27, 2024 6:51 AM Subscribe
When I connect my iPhone 15 Pro Max to my Optoma Projector via an HDMI cable, it just works... unless I'm using the Criterion Channel app (which I believe runs on Vimeo), in which case it give me an error and tells me that "mirroring" is forbidden. Criterion's dreadful support is unresponsive. Is there a way around this?
To be clear, this method works with every other streaming service I've tried: HBO, Kanopy, Youtube, Prime, Apple TV+, etc. Very frustrating as I paid for a year of Criterion Channel expecting this would work. Any help appreciated.
To be clear, this method works with every other streaming service I've tried: HBO, Kanopy, Youtube, Prime, Apple TV+, etc. Very frustrating as I paid for a year of Criterion Channel expecting this would work. Any help appreciated.
If it’s a newer projector it may support AirPlay directly without needing an Apple TV aswell
posted by TwoWordReview at 8:26 AM on January 27, 2024
posted by TwoWordReview at 8:26 AM on January 27, 2024
Response by poster: Thanks for the answers.
It's an older projector and I don't have an interest in any AirPlay supported devices.
BlackpPebble's link implies that it might work with an HDCP HDMI cable, or am I misunderstanding that? (I do now know that that is, but Amazon sells them.)
posted by dobbs at 10:22 AM on January 27, 2024
It's an older projector and I don't have an interest in any AirPlay supported devices.
BlackpPebble's link implies that it might work with an HDCP HDMI cable, or am I misunderstanding that? (I do now know that that is, but Amazon sells them.)
posted by dobbs at 10:22 AM on January 27, 2024
BlackpPebble's link implies that it might work with an HDCP HDMI cable, or am I misunderstanding that? (I do now know that that is, but Amazon sells them.
HDCP is a copy protection tech built into the HDMI standard; all HDMI cables support HDCP so an "HDCP HDMI cable" is meaningless.
What's happening here is that your iPhone is an endpoint and Criterion Channel implementation (probably due to the fact that it's built on Vimeo) doesn't allow "mirroring" which in this case means it won't let you play the video on the iPhone and an external monitor at the same time. I don't think there's any way around this.
posted by rhymedirective at 12:01 PM on January 27, 2024 [1 favorite]
HDCP is a copy protection tech built into the HDMI standard; all HDMI cables support HDCP so an "HDCP HDMI cable" is meaningless.
What's happening here is that your iPhone is an endpoint and Criterion Channel implementation (probably due to the fact that it's built on Vimeo) doesn't allow "mirroring" which in this case means it won't let you play the video on the iPhone and an external monitor at the same time. I don't think there's any way around this.
posted by rhymedirective at 12:01 PM on January 27, 2024 [1 favorite]
A good troubleshooting step would be to find out if other Vimeo-based services work or don't work. Basic free videos? For-pay video services that run on Vimeo like Criterion?
posted by intermod at 12:49 PM on January 27, 2024
posted by intermod at 12:49 PM on January 27, 2024
The problem you’re running into is that DRM extends beyond just the HDCP protocol. For a lot of reasons studios will want a higher level of protection than HDCP protocol can provide. HDCP is just saying your device is encrypted between your device and the receiver. This relies on a handshake between the two devices. It is pretty trivial to find a splitter that completes the connection and transfers a lossless (I assume) stream to whatever you want. Furthermore I’m assuming high end equipment probably break this protocol if they’re doing fancy things people do in studios but I could be wrong. Add onto the fact that once HDCP 2.2 is broken it’ll be impossible to go back. AirPlay solves all this and more, it can be updated at the software level and since Apple owns the full experience they can even add additional features like how many time the video can be played, restrict foreign language translations and all sorts of weird things built into distribution contracts.
I remember reading somewhere that dubs have their own weird contracts so some studios can’t show an audio dub out of say the EU. Not that Criterion enforces that in their contracts, but it could if needed.
So that’s why you need AirPlay.
posted by geoff. at 3:23 PM on January 27, 2024 [1 favorite]
I remember reading somewhere that dubs have their own weird contracts so some studios can’t show an audio dub out of say the EU. Not that Criterion enforces that in their contracts, but it could if needed.
So that’s why you need AirPlay.
posted by geoff. at 3:23 PM on January 27, 2024 [1 favorite]
Nthing that it's unlikely for there to be a workaround here with the exact setup you have. It's likely that your situation fits into at least one of the following categories:
posted by Aleyn at 3:34 PM on January 27, 2024 [1 favorite]
- Criterion just straight up detects when you're using an iPhone to HDMI adapter and refuses to work. This seems the most likely based on your error message, and unfortunately, there's absolutely no way to fix that beyond getting something that supports AirPlay attached to your projector, or using a different device like a laptop or streaming box that supports Criterion (like a Roku or AppleTV).
- The adapter you're using on the iPhone doesn't support HDCP. From what I can tell, the Apple-branded one does, YMMV for third party ones though.
- Your projector doesn't support HDCP. Without knowing specifically what model of projector you have, I don't know whether this would be the case, but it seems relatively unlikely if the other streaming services work, as they likely require HDCP.
posted by Aleyn at 3:34 PM on January 27, 2024 [1 favorite]
It may not be what you're looking for, but streaming devices other than Apple TV have Criterion Channel apps. We stream on our Roku, as well as directly to iDevices.
posted by lhauser at 3:47 PM on January 27, 2024 [1 favorite]
posted by lhauser at 3:47 PM on January 27, 2024 [1 favorite]
I should add that the key/handshake is usually FairPlay or Widevine and then the streaming is via your standard codes with things in there for ads. AirPlay is just branding, which is why Criterion apps with no Apple ecosystem work. You can also buy an HDMI receiver that connects to the internet and does the handshake and VOD streaming. It still has to comply with DRM meaning no downloading and the devices are very expensive, like $3k+. As far as I know there’s no requirement for radio, you could do this with any medium that can connect to the key server.
posted by geoff. at 4:52 PM on January 27, 2024
posted by geoff. at 4:52 PM on January 27, 2024
Response by poster: I appreciate the answers thus far. Thanks.
I must say I'm very confused by this whole thing, so my apologies. I had a stroke and have lingering comprehension issues sometimes.
I'll try and state my situation and my confusion clearly.
I have an iPhone 15 Pro Max. I have an Optoma HD70 projector, which came out in 2006. Google says of the projector: "HDMI (w/HDCP) input".
I have no idea if the cable (which are also 2006 or even older) are HDCP compliant.
I have had zero problems streaming anything from the phone to to projector until I tried Criterion Channel (CC).
Possibly of interest is that I can stream CC just fine from my Macbook air when running it in the Chrome browser. However, this does not work on the iPhone and trying it in Safari leads to both picture and audio streaming but it's out of sync.
Would it be worthwhile to get a USB-C to HDMI cable with HDCP 2.3 in it? Or is this page that BlackPebble linked saying that HDMI-out from an iPhone is a no go no matter what for the Criterion App?
If it is a no-go and Airplay is the only solution, then my confusion is somewhat worse because after hours of Googling, I can't seem to get an answer.
For instance, this projector, which "supports Airplay" says "Please be informed that paid streaming apps have copyright protection that prevents mirroring from mobile devices due to policies enacted and enforced by content owners, therefore you can't Airplay them from your mobile device."
This projector which supports Airplay 2 has numerous reviews saying it doesn't.
I know I can buy one of these Apple TV boxes which says it supports Airplay, but does that not connect to my projector via HDMI leading to exactly the same problem I'm having now? How is connecting this to my projector different from connecting my iPhone?
Also, since the projectors above cannot stream paid services through Airplay, does this Apple TV box only allow me to stream Apple TV+ shows via Airplay or can I stream HBO and Kanopy and my other things?
And... as I type this, I think maybe I'm completely misunderstanding the Apple TV box altogether and that my phone is not involved with it at all and that it's its own thing that I somehow send my streaming service logins to and it works independently with my projector? If that is the case, are Kanopy and other services able to be on it?
In addition... what are the different capacities for? What would one store on such a thing? Is it for recording television shows that aren't streaming like a VCR?
And right now when watching anything but Criterion, I send the video signal to my projector with my cable but I send my audio out via bluetooth to either my stereo or my earbuds. Will this Apple TV box or Airplay setup still allow that? If the Apple TV box is not phone-dependent, can I stream my audio via bluetooth or only via cables?
Man, am I confused.
posted by dobbs at 3:02 PM on January 28, 2024
I must say I'm very confused by this whole thing, so my apologies. I had a stroke and have lingering comprehension issues sometimes.
I'll try and state my situation and my confusion clearly.
I have an iPhone 15 Pro Max. I have an Optoma HD70 projector, which came out in 2006. Google says of the projector: "HDMI (w/HDCP) input".
I have no idea if the cable (which are also 2006 or even older) are HDCP compliant.
I have had zero problems streaming anything from the phone to to projector until I tried Criterion Channel (CC).
Possibly of interest is that I can stream CC just fine from my Macbook air when running it in the Chrome browser. However, this does not work on the iPhone and trying it in Safari leads to both picture and audio streaming but it's out of sync.
Would it be worthwhile to get a USB-C to HDMI cable with HDCP 2.3 in it? Or is this page that BlackPebble linked saying that HDMI-out from an iPhone is a no go no matter what for the Criterion App?
If it is a no-go and Airplay is the only solution, then my confusion is somewhat worse because after hours of Googling, I can't seem to get an answer.
For instance, this projector, which "supports Airplay" says "Please be informed that paid streaming apps have copyright protection that prevents mirroring from mobile devices due to policies enacted and enforced by content owners, therefore you can't Airplay them from your mobile device."
This projector which supports Airplay 2 has numerous reviews saying it doesn't.
I know I can buy one of these Apple TV boxes which says it supports Airplay, but does that not connect to my projector via HDMI leading to exactly the same problem I'm having now? How is connecting this to my projector different from connecting my iPhone?
Also, since the projectors above cannot stream paid services through Airplay, does this Apple TV box only allow me to stream Apple TV+ shows via Airplay or can I stream HBO and Kanopy and my other things?
And... as I type this, I think maybe I'm completely misunderstanding the Apple TV box altogether and that my phone is not involved with it at all and that it's its own thing that I somehow send my streaming service logins to and it works independently with my projector? If that is the case, are Kanopy and other services able to be on it?
In addition... what are the different capacities for? What would one store on such a thing? Is it for recording television shows that aren't streaming like a VCR?
And right now when watching anything but Criterion, I send the video signal to my projector with my cable but I send my audio out via bluetooth to either my stereo or my earbuds. Will this Apple TV box or Airplay setup still allow that? If the Apple TV box is not phone-dependent, can I stream my audio via bluetooth or only via cables?
Man, am I confused.
posted by dobbs at 3:02 PM on January 28, 2024
The AppleTV, Chromecast, Roku, and Firestick devices will all have Criterion, kanopy, Max, and other services as apps. They don't usually interact with your phone at all, but some can do screen mirroring. A common use for them is to turn a non-smart TV into a smart TV. You plug the device in, attach it to the HDMI port on your projector, connect it to your wifi, download the app for the streaming service, give it your login credentials, and that's pretty much it. No need to use your phone or laptop, and it remembers the login.
They all can send audio to bluetooth headphones, there might be buggy implementations on a per app basis, but it's a common enough use case that I would expect in 2024 for any bugs to be ironed out or at least have easily searchable workarounds.
The difference between them is mostly UI and what ads they push. (If you want to do stuff like custom roms or sketchy pirate things, then there are differences, but most people will never care about that). More expensive versions of each device is likely to have faster hardware, and this year's model will be faster than last year's. Apple TV is likely to play most nicely with your other Apple stuff, but the other options will be cheaper.
posted by surlyben at 5:49 PM on January 28, 2024 [1 favorite]
They all can send audio to bluetooth headphones, there might be buggy implementations on a per app basis, but it's a common enough use case that I would expect in 2024 for any bugs to be ironed out or at least have easily searchable workarounds.
The difference between them is mostly UI and what ads they push. (If you want to do stuff like custom roms or sketchy pirate things, then there are differences, but most people will never care about that). More expensive versions of each device is likely to have faster hardware, and this year's model will be faster than last year's. Apple TV is likely to play most nicely with your other Apple stuff, but the other options will be cheaper.
posted by surlyben at 5:49 PM on January 28, 2024 [1 favorite]
dobbs: "I know I can buy one of these Apple TV boxes which says it supports Airplay, but does that not connect to my projector via HDMI leading to exactly the same problem I'm having now? How is connecting this to my projector different from connecting my iPhone?"
AppleTV doesn't have a built-in display (it only connects to the device that displays the media), so the app may not see this the same way as sending to multiple screens directly from your phone. I'd recommend, if you happen to know anyone with an AppleTV, try it - don't buy a device unless you know you'll use it and that it works the way you expect.
posted by caution live frogs at 7:50 AM on January 30, 2024
AppleTV doesn't have a built-in display (it only connects to the device that displays the media), so the app may not see this the same way as sending to multiple screens directly from your phone. I'd recommend, if you happen to know anyone with an AppleTV, try it - don't buy a device unless you know you'll use it and that it works the way you expect.
posted by caution live frogs at 7:50 AM on January 30, 2024
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posted by BlackPebble at 7:47 AM on January 27, 2024 [1 favorite]