iPhone 3G: AirPlay not included?

By Brian Tufo
last updated

The iOS 4.2 GM build seems to missing something -- AirPlay support for iPhone 3G. As we all know, iPhone 3G is already missing several iOS 4 features, and wasn't scheduled to get AirPrint either. Apple has said in the past 2008 hardware just wasn't able to keep up. However, AirPlay was alive and well on iPhone 3G throughout iOS 4.2 betas and Apple's very own website claimed that AirPlay would work for every iOS 4 device, which would include the iPhone 3G.

Obviously we will have to wait until iOS 4.2 goes public to see if Apple will indeed include AirPlay support for iPhone 3G, but as of now it looks like iPhone 3G owners have another reason to be disappointed in their device.

If you are still rocking an iPhone 3G, how do you feel about the possibility of once again being left out in the cold?

[ 9 to 5 Mac ]

Brian Tufo
15 Comments
  • Yeah, because people want a faster phone.. AirPlay makes it slower! Watching a movie is already hard anough for a iPhone 3G and adding a audio stream to it will only make it more crash (that's what I think :/).
  • I think it's best we don't slow our 3G iPhones down even further. At this stage it's better if we just keep getting features that matter, and AirPlay, as the name implies, is for people that use their device as a toy.
  • Well, thats a real blow by Apple but it seems to me that its not on the iPhone 3GS either. Im not sure if I missed it but im on iOS 4.2 GM on my 3GS and I sure as hell dont see it or cant seem to find it or activate it. Another feature that I see is the Text Tone but not with the new tones. Thats another blow especially for iPhone 3GS users
  • I'm sure someone will enable with jailbreak.
  • Slow the iPhone3G under iOS4 down further? Frankly, after my short period with a 3G/iOS4, I do not see how that is possible. If 4.2 supposedly "fixes" 3G/iOS4 performance problems, the worst AirPlay could do is bring it back to the status quo. More to the point, AirPlay is not wallpaper or a systemwide always-on process. It is something specifically enabled during specific apps, so it would have no impact on performance except while the user is explicitly using it.
  • @Kareem: you probably don't have any Airplay enabled devices. In order for the buttons tp appear, you have to be connected to a wifi network with the new Apple TV or Airplay enabled speakers connected to an airport extreme.
    Also the new text tones appear to be iPhone 4 specific. Hope That helps.
  • I for one no longer care. I've upgraded from my 3G to a new Samsung Focus with Windows Mobile 7. I'd actually gone to the AT&T store last night to play with the device a little bit before talking myself into an iPhone 4. As it turns out, Windows Phone 7 blows iOS away. Yes, it's still missing a few key features. Yes, it's a 1.0. But I'll tell you this much: the UI and the integration of apps into the whole of the device is unparalleled.
    I've moved on, Apple, and I'm not looking back.
  • Thanks @Avenged110 for the heads up and it actual work. Thanks but still a bummer that the new text tones tunes is only iPhone 4 only.
  • Sure, I'm bummed my iPhone 3G isn't able to take advantage of AirPrint and AirPlay.
    Just like I'm bummed my VCR won't play BlueRay discs.
  • Windows phone 7 is a 7.0 not a 1.0 retard
  • ******= re-tard
  • That's sad.
  • @T-Mobile iPhone User
    You're right. A VCR doesn't play Blu-Ray discs. But if Apple made your VCR, Jobs would have told you to install the software update anyway for all the other cool new features. Then your VCR wouldn't play anything.
  • AirPlay is not the biggest deal... it might have been nice with my AppleTV. I already have Apple remote which handles my iTunes streaming and speaker control, and some remote functions for the Apple TV.. Nothing here worth tossing a perfectly good phone and device...
  • Airplay is working fine on the 3GS. Just make sure to have the wifi up and running and a suitable device for airplay on the network. The airplay controls will show up once the above is there. it is working from my 3gs to an airport express, powerbook, and TV2.