By Will Goodbody, Science & Technology Correspondent
There are now a myriad of devices out there to enable the slinging of video and audio content from mobile devices to monitors.
And with the boom in use of on demand content, like the RTÉ Player and Netflix, more and more people are using them.
Microsoft’s contribution to the market is the Wireless Display Adapter.
The USB stick sized device uses Miracast technology to connect certain devices wirelessly to TVs, projectors and monitors.
You first plug the device into the HDMI port of the screen you wish to connect to.
And because it needs power, you must then connect the USB plug into a port either on the screen or another USB power supply.
After that you turn the TV/display/projector over to the correct HDMI channel where a ready to connect message will greet you.
You then take your Miracast enabled device, which includes Microsoft’s Surface Pro PC/tablet hybrid and some other phones, laptops and tablets running Windows 8.1, as well as certain Android devices running 4.2.1 and later.
Next you connect the device to the display. In the case of Microsoft devices you simply go to “Devices > Project > Add” a wireless display, while with Android based hardware, you navigate to “Settings > Display > Cast”.
If all goes according to plan, you should now see the screen of your device mirrored on the display of the TV, monitor or projector it is now connected to.
It took me a little bit of fiddling around to get it to work, though once up and running the first time it was easy enough to reconnect.
There is limited lag between the two devices and Microsoft promises a 23 foot range, though that may be compromised by walls and furniture.
But overall the product works fine.
The downside is that it doesn’t work with Apple’s iOS, or any other product that doesn't have Miracast.
There are, of course, other products out there which do similar things at similar or cheaper prices – like Roku’s Streaming Stick and of course Google’s Chromecast.
However, one big advantage of the Microsoft Wireless Display Adapter is that it sets up a device to device wifi network of its own, and therefore doesn’t require an existing wireless network to operate.
A handy accessory, perhaps, for the laptop bag or briefcase of business people who are Microsoft device users.
The Microsoft Wireless Display Adapter costs €69.99
