Projection Mapping on Android: Getting Started with MApp

Most mobile projection mapping apps live only on the App Store. LayerMapper MApp runs on Android too, so a phone or tablet you already own can become a mapping controller – with meshes, shaders, cameras, MIDI and live streaming.

What you need

• An Android phone or tablet with Android 9 or later and OpenGL ES 3.0 (practically every device from the last few years).
• A projector with an HDMI input.
• A way to send the image: a USB-C to HDMI adapter. Not every Android phone outputs video over USB-C – check your model’s specifications for “DisplayPort Alt Mode” or “video output”.
• LayerMapper MApp from Google Play – every feature is free for 30 days.

Step 1: connect and check the clean output

Plug the adapter into the phone and the projector. MApp sends a clean output to the external display: the audience sees only the mapped image, while you keep the interface on the phone.

No video over USB-C on your phone? Direct-LAN is already built into MApp on Android – it sends the output over Wi-Fi. The matching receiver app for Android TV boxes is in final testing and coming soon to Google Play; then a cheap TV box plugged into the projector is all you need.

Step 2: build layers and map the surface

The workflow is the same as on iPad:

1. Add a layer and fill it with clips – videos and photos from your gallery, one of 100+ GLSL shaders, or a live camera.
2. Add a mesh for each surface and assign the layer to it.
3. Warp with multi-point keystone, homography, circle or Bézier meshes; hide spill with a mask mesh.

Step 3: make it perform

• Cameras: use the camera as a live source and mix it into the mapping.
• Music: BPM sync and Ableton Link keep animations in time; audio-reactive parameters follow the music or the microphone.
• Hardware: MIDI Learn maps any control to a controller; DMX / Art-Net (beta) connects MApp to a lighting rig.
• Presets: 16 instant recall slots for live switching.

Step 4: stream it

Live streaming is built into MApp on Android too: send the clean output to YouTube, Facebook or any RTMP server straight from the phone. See how to stream projection mapping live.

Android or iPad – which one?

Both run the same app with the same prices: $11/month, $44/year or $88 lifetime after the 30-day trial. iPad gives you AirPlay and Metal rendering; Android gives you a wider choice of hardware and, soon, the Android TV receiver. You can also use both: MApp on several devices can work together in one show.

Summary

An Android phone, an HDMI adapter and a projector are enough to start projection mapping. Install LayerMapper MApp, map your first surface and grow into cameras, shaders and streaming from there.