So what is the Whaale app?
It is an iOS app that adds multi-room Airplay capabilities to your iOS device without needing to get a computer or NAS involved. While it has some limits, it is great if you are willing to put up with their "nickel and diming" you to death (more on that later).
Who is it for?
It is for people in the Apple ecosystem that own at least one iOS device and more than one Airplay receiving device and want to play audio on them at the same time. An Airplay receiving device consists of Apple's Airport Express, the AppleTV 2 & 3, and any third party product that has Airplay built in. This can consist of individual speakers, receivers, etc.
If you have Airfoil installed on your computer, your computer can usually become an Airplay receiving device, as well. However, I tested Whaale with Airfoil Speakers that I have on a Mac and while the app and the Mac seem to connect, nothing played through the speakers. Therefore, I don't recommend this app for using with Airfoil. (NOTE: You can still use the Airplay features built into the Control Center on iOS to send the audio from Whaale to the Mac running Airfoil, but you lose the multi-room capabilities of Whaale in the process).
It can play one song across all receivers or you can choose different sources to send to each speaker (I have tested it with two simultaneous streams to two separate speakers and it played without an issue).
If you have Airfoil installed on your computer, your computer can usually become an Airplay receiving device, as well. However, I tested Whaale with Airfoil Speakers that I have on a Mac and while the app and the Mac seem to connect, nothing played through the speakers. Therefore, I don't recommend this app for using with Airfoil. (NOTE: You can still use the Airplay features built into the Control Center on iOS to send the audio from Whaale to the Mac running Airfoil, but you lose the multi-room capabilities of Whaale in the process).
It can play one song across all receivers or you can choose different sources to send to each speaker (I have tested it with two simultaneous streams to two separate speakers and it played without an issue).
So what are the limits mentioned above?
The main limit is that it only works with certain players. In other words, you can't just launch Pandora or Spotify and play them on multiple Airplay speakers with this app. You have to use one of the sources in the app. The app has iPod, MediaServer, Internet Radio, Deezer Radio and Deezer Music. Unfortunately, Deezer isn't currently available in the US unless you have a SONOS and I am not sure I would want to switch from Rdio anyway. According to Whaale, you can get Spotify (Premium only), but you need to buy the Amplified app and the Audiobus app. Personally, I don't like Spotify enough to spend another $10, plus the price of the Whaale feature to get it on multiple Airplay devices at the same time. For those times I want multi-room audio for Spotify or Rdio, I will put a computer in the mix and use Airfoil. However, I don't listen to multi-room audio that often, so you have to decide for yourself if it is worth the extra money to get Spotify to work with Whaale.
Other Limits?
Currently, you can use 6 Airplay speakers. That isn't really a big deal, but the fact that it only shows 6 Airplay speakers on the screen at once means that if I want to get to speaker #7, #8, #9, etc.. in my setup, I have to move speakers to the "stage" (this is where you move speakers that you want to hear) until the speaker I am looking for shows up in the six speakers that are listed. Also, I don't like the fact that most of the speaker names are abridged because of the limited space in the speakers section of the app. Personally, I would prefer more space for the speakers and less space for the "stage". Also, the panel to the left of the speakers isn't really needed and takes up too much space. It give you the ability to get to another screen, but you can do the same by swiping to the left.
What was meant by "nickel and diming"?
There is a free version of the app (Whaale LE) that has limited features and there are "in app" purchases. To get the paid version of Whaale, the cost is currently $7.99. You get the ability to play on 2 speakers, but to add more, the price ranges per speaker. They can cost $.99 (for each up to 4 speakers to $1.99 each speaker (for 5 & 6). Then, if you want to have media server access, that costs another $.99, for internet access another $.99, Whaale Family which allows you to control speakers from more than one iOS device is $4.99.
Personally, I would have liked the option of one price to update everything and a discount for buying everything would have also been nice. I have not used the Whaale Family feature, but I may end up adding it since I have been known to switch from iPhone to iPad and I believe this may be a more seamless experience. Even if you add everything, the price isn't that bad if you want to use iOS and for whatever reason, can't put a computer in the mix.
Personally, I would have liked the option of one price to update everything and a discount for buying everything would have also been nice. I have not used the Whaale Family feature, but I may end up adding it since I have been known to switch from iPhone to iPad and I believe this may be a more seamless experience. Even if you add everything, the price isn't that bad if you want to use iOS and for whatever reason, can't put a computer in the mix.
Thanks Apple!
As I have written about in the past, Apple could "sherlock" this app and provide Airplay multi-room streaming with all apps, not just the limited plug-ins available by Whaale. However, for very little money, you can get iOS multiple room streaming now and for me it was worth a few bucks if just for the ability to stream music to the entire house via an inexpensive Seagate Personal Cloud Storage NAS or using the app's internet radio stations (see some of the "Genres" below). Not to mention that you can just stream to the iOS device directly if you just want to listen on your iPad/iPhone. The great thing that I love about the app is that there is a free version you can use to try it out and see if it is for you or not. However, I admit that I was quickly hooked after the trial.
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