Apple has made it very easy for people to share their iPhone screen by streaming it into another AirPlay-compatible device. The same is also true for the iPad and the Mac.
But what happens next? Say for example you are no longer interested in sharing that screen. Do you just leave it there? Contrary to what you may assume it's not that simple to turn off AirPlay and a lot of people struggle with it. But you can follow a few simple steps to do it.
So, the easiest way to do it would be to tap the AirPlay icon on your phone and simply head over to Turn Off AirPlay and tap it. It doesn’t matter whether you are using the phone or iPad to stream video or anything else. It should be able to close after this happens.
However, in case you are using AirPlay to mirror your devices, the process is not nearly as straightforward. But you can still do it. So, start by opening the Control Center on your device.
This is done by swiping down from the top right section of the screen. In case you are using an older device, that is iOS 11 or older, you can swipe up from the bottom of the screen to access the Control Center. Once you are at the Control Center, go ahead and tap screen mirroring. From there, you can click “Stop Mirroring” and you will be done.
But what if you are using a Mac? Well, it’s more or less the same as with the iPhone and the iPad. You will need to first of all launch the Control Center. The icon is often located at the top right corner of your Mac computer. Once you have access to that menu, head over to the Screen Mirroring, and from there, you will see a pop-up menu with display preferences.
Head to the "Built-in Retina Display” and click it. On the menu that appears, click on “AirPlay Display”. Turn it off and you are good to go. The process to close AirPlay on the Mac is a bit more complicated but still, it can be done.
So, what are the benefits of turning off AirPlay when you are not using it? For starters, it will save you a lot of power. Mirroring is one of the most power-intensive processes in any phone or computer and as such, there is no real need to keep it on if you don’t use it.
In addition to this, there are always security risks when you live AirPlay on. Phones these days can be hacked in many ways. The only thing a hacker needs is possible access. Although Apple has done well to safeguard devices against potential breaches, you still need to do your part to be safe.
This may involve routine stuff like keeping AirPlay off when you don’t need it. Finally, you will be able to enhance the speed and efficiency of your device.