Canon’s Surprising New App Offers Wireless Multi-Device Live Streaming
Canon Inc. announced Live Switcher Mobile, a new iOS and iPadOS application that delivers multi-device integration and switching for live streamers, including content creators and gamers.
Before diving into the app itself, this announcement has two interesting aspects to consider upfront. The first is that its announcement comes from Canon Inc. in Japan, not Canon USA. This is atypical, as the majority of Canon reveals include support from Canon USA. The second is even more unusual, as Live Switcher Mobile is a Canon imaging product that does not interact with any Canon cameras, at least not yet.
With those oddities out of the way, what is Live Switcher Mobile? Canon describes the application as a smartphone app that makes it easy for solo operators to swap between video feeds. However, the app works with video feeds from connected iPhone and iPad devices rather than video feeds from Canon cameras.
A main hosting device runs the app and provides the primary camera. On this device, users can switch between video feeds, see picture-in-picture, assign overlays, set up camera-switching behavior, and display captions.
The primary device connects to a second or third unit, such as a second iPhone and an iPad, to collect the additional camera feed(s) required for camera switching. These devices all communicate wirelessly, so there are no cords running from camera A to camera B or C.
Canon notes that without the constraints of wires, users can set up different camera devices just about anywhere, providing easier overhead shots, dynamic angles, and more. Users can swap between cameras with a simple tap on their main controlling device or set up screen switching at specific intervals.
The app also allows users to input text and select overlays, including custom ones with user-specific branding.
The Canon Live Switcher Mobile app includes free and paid versions. The free version allows users to switch between camera sources, see picture-in-picture, overlay text, display viewer comments from SNS, connect to external streaming platforms like Facebook and YouTube, record, mix audio, use external audio output, and more. However, the free version has some significant limitations, the most apparent of which is that the free version has ads. These ads are not shown to viewers, but the user will see them. The app also adds a watermark to the video output and is limited to HD (not Full HD) resolution.
The paid version, which is $17.99 per month, or nearly $216 annually, removes ads, has adjustable size and position for picture-in-picture, ditches the watermark, allows overlaying images from the connected smartphone, and offers Full HD resolution. Neither version has 4K video support.
Canon Live Switcher Mobile is available now.
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Image credits: Canon
