Q: If my Mac air is older than 2011 and not supported for Apple TV what can I do to upgrade my Mac Air ?

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If you have a non-compatible MacBook Air and you want to mirror the MacBook Air onto the Apple TV, you can use a third-party application instead of AirPlay Mirroring. In this case, you can use AirParrot > http://www.airparrot.com It has got a good reputation and it works great

About AirPlay and Airplay Mirroring

AirPlay Mirroring requires a second-generation Apple TV or later, and is supported on the following Mac models: iMac (Mid 2011 or newer), Mac mini (Mid 2011 or newer), MacBook Air (Mid 2011 or newer), and MacBook Pro (Early 2011 or newer). For non-qualifying Macs you can try using Air Parrot.

Several Apple Articles Regarding AirPlay

Apple TV (2nd and 3rd gen)- How to use AirPlay Mirroring

How to set up and configure AirPort Express for AirPlay and iTunes

About AirPlay Mirroring in OS X Mountain Lion

iTunes 10- About playing music with AirPlay

Troubleshooting AirPlay and AirPlay Mirroring

Using AirPlay

Thanks to the $15 Beamer, AirPlay streaming is still possible on Macs  that do not support Airplay and mirroring.

Another solution is the Air Parrot.