It is always great to have videos and other media on your iPad 3, as you can catch up with them when you are on the go. However, having the same media on both your PC and iPad is a waste of memory space. Furthermore, syncing the devices using iTunes is a laborious process. Another hurdle people face  when trying to transfer video files is while they are transferring a media file in a non-iPad friendly file format. You will have to convert the file into MPEG-4 or H.264 format before transferring them to your iPad.



Streaming apps are the best solution to this problem. Using them, you can directly stream videos from your computer or laptop to your iPad 3. There are many apps you can find on the iStore which dos the job for you. But here  are the best streaming apps you can find in the market today.

Air Playit

This video streaming application is the best app in the list mainly because of its file format conversion capabilities. You don’t have to install third party video conversion software in case the video you want to stream in not in MPEG-4 or H.264 format. It offers live conversion with more than three hundred and twenty audio and video conversion codec. So it literally supports every possible file format.

Air Playit uses the Wi-Fi connection or the 3G/4G network to stream videos from your computer or laptop to the iPad 3. If you are going out of network range, no need to worry. There is a feature that allows you to download the files while it is streaming and store it on your iPad. So, you can watch it even when there is no network connection.

Another unique feature of this app lies in its capability to stream DRM videos from iTunes. It will allow users to watch DRM-protected media files which were directly downloaded from the iStore without taking up any space on your iPad 3. Since the app is built using a simple HTTP server, you can access the playlists using any of the web browsers. You can also stream media to your TV as the app supports TV-Out feature.

Air Video

This app is also similar to the Air Playit app and has all the similar features. The only noteworthy differences between these two are that Air Video is a paid app although it also has a free version, and it cannot play DRM protected videos which were downloaded from the iStore. Another drawback of this app is that the free version will limit the number of items on display. If you can compromise on these features, Air Video is the app for you.

Steps to Use Air Playit

There are two versions of Air Playit: the server software and the client app. You need to install the server software form of Air Playit on your computer or laptop. The client app should be installed on your iPad 3.

After installing the software, add the media you want to stream on the share folder and click on the ‘add folder’ option. Launch the app on your iPad 3 and click on the server to add it. Make sure that the connection is not interrupted in the middle. Browse the folder which you want in your iPad and click on play. You are good to go.

Penny Cooper is a writer by profession and likes to blog about her varied interests. You can find interesting related posts on media server and Home server 2011 on Homesystemintegration blog where Penny is a contributor.