You can now cast Quibi to a TV using AirPlay

Quibi is starting to add long awaited features to its short-form video streaming service that were a glaring omission at launch.

As we recently reported, Quibi is working on new features to improve thier current mobile-only situation including one that will fix one of the apps major flaws.

“There are a whole bunch of things we have now seen in the product that we thought we got mostly right, but now that there are hundreds of people on there using it, you go, Uh-oh, we didn’t see that.”

Jeff Katzenburg

A feature that finally landed is the ability to stream shows and “movies-in-chapters” on TV screens. The method for casting from an iPhone to a TV is Apple’s AirPlay protocol. In order to use this feature today you need an iPhone and an AirPlay compatible TV. Android users will get Chromecast support in June, according to Tom Conrad of Quibi.

With AirPlay support now official and Chromecasrt support confirmed for June, next will be the ability to screenshot images and clips for social media sharing. Quibi was only launched pn April 6th but now has 1.3 million active users, according to The New York Times.

Related Reading: Quibi Stories

Quibi Overview

The service is from the mind of Jeffery Katzenberg and former HP CEO Meg Whitman. It was designed specifically for smartphones and the shows are like movies that you consume in small 10 minute or less portions. After spending $1 Billion on shows and their stars we will see if people really want to stare at their small screens at home during the pandemic or opt for larger ones.

Since it was designed for smartphones their are no other apps available not even a web app. If you are willing to watch video on your phone when you laptop, tablet and TV are nearby then checkout the show lineup below.

One of the neat tricks that app has up its sleeve is the ability to play the content in either landscape or portrait. It seems to handle the rotating well, it even reconfigured the credits for the orientation. The rotating of your phone can sometime reveal areas of the shot not seen in one orientation, so you might find yourself with a pop socket rotating your phone during the shows.

T-Mobile customers will be able to trial Quibi for 1 year.

There are a few glaring omissions we need to point out:

• No user profiles like Netflix
• Only one stream at a time
• Just phone apps, no TV, Laptop, Tablet apps
• AirPlay support for casting to TV’s

The price for the service is $4.99 (with Ads) or $7.99 (Ad-free). The price seems high considering the only way to enjoy the content is on one phone at a time. Might be worth trying for 90-days though.