While visiting your friends and family this holiday season, you might want to show off your latest photos or broadcast movies his TV spending time together. However, logging into your streaming service account on someone's TV can be difficult.
Luckily, with most modern TVs, you probably don't need to log in at all to do this. In most cases, telephone you carry with you right now, you can connect directly to your TV, and you can also share your screen or cast it using your own accounts saved on your phone.
Many TVs now come with built-in support for AirPlay, Chromecast or Miracast, which allow you to connect your phone wirelessly. The hardest part isn't whether you can connect your phone to your TV (because you probably can). Instead, you need to know what wireless streaming connection your phone supports and make sure the TV you want to connect to also supports it.
We'll talk about how this works depending on whether you're using an iPhone or an Android phone. We'll also indicate when you'll use AirPlay, Chromecast, or Miracast to connect, depending on what device you have.
iPhone supports AirPlay and Chromecast
Apple iPhone devices have two ways to wirelessly connect to your TV. At the system level, iPhone can use AirPlay to stream media from video and music apps to any device that also supports AirPlay. Originally exclusive to Apple TV, AirPlay now supports many Samsung, LG, TCL and Vizio TVs, as well as Roku streaming devices. Chances are, if your device supports the Apple TV app, it also has AirPlay support somewhere in its settings.
You can access AirPlay in one of two ways. If you're using a supported app like Paramount Plus, you'll need to tap the AirPlay icon represented by the TV with a triangle. You can also access AirPlay from your phone's Control Center by tapping the icon represented by two rectangles and then selecting the device you're streaming to. Using the latter option, you can also mirror your phone's screen to your TV to display apps like Instagram or TikTok that don't enable AirPlay from within.
Screen mirroring settings on iPhone.
If you are trying to connect to a TV running Google TV or Google TV streameriPhone also supports Chromecast. Similar to using AirPlay from a media app, you'll tap the Chromecast icon, represented by a rectangle with three wavy lines. Then you'll tap the device you want to cast to. The biggest difference between AirPlay and Chromecast working on an iPhone is that you won't be able to mirror your iPhone's display via Chromecast.
The Chromecast icon is circled in this screenshot of the Paramount Plus app.
Some apps, like YouTube, combine these casting options for convenience. When you click the Google Chromecast button in the submenu, you'll be able to choose between using AirPlay or Chromecast, or connecting directly to the YouTube app on your TV using a code.
And if you want to connect your iPhone to your TV using an HDMI cable, you can use either USB-C to HDMI adapter if you have iPhone 15 or newer or Lightning to HDMI Adapter for iPhone 14 and Earlier. This adapter will allow you to mirror your screen without using AirPlay.
Android always supports Chromecast, sometimes supports Miracast
Duplicating the Smart View screen from Samsung.
Android phones don't support AirPlay, but sometimes they support for two wireless broadcast options which connect to almost any TV.
Firstly, all Android phones support Chromecast. Therefore, if your TV has a built-in Chromecast or has Google TV streamer connected, you will be able to connect your phone by clicking the Cast icon in the app. You can also set up a screen casting shortcut in the Quick Settings drop-down panel, providing an even faster way to quickly cast to your TV. CNET Nelson Aguilar compiled the guide for this.
The Google TV operating system includes support for Chromecast.
And while it's not supported on all Android phones, Samsung and Motorola make Android phones that support Miracast for screen mirroring. These features are labeled Smart View and Ready For, respectively, and allow you to connect your phone to TVs or displays that support a setting often called Screen Mirroring. Later Motorola phones such as Razr UltraThey call this feature Smart Connect. What's unique about Miracast is that many Windows PCs also support this style of casting, and on my recent trip it came in handy to play some Jackbox games.
An additional note about these features from Samsung and Motorola: both support connecting your phone to your TV or computer monitor using a USB-C to HDMI cable, if you have one on hand. This can be especially useful if you're trying to do more resource-intensive things on your phone, like connecting to a larger screen so you can use your phone more like a computer.
YouTube TV on your phone connected to the app on your TV.
More tips for connecting your phone to your TV wirelessly
While many TVs and streaming devices support one or more of these methods, it's possible that you won't have an ideal option when you travel. For example, you might have an Android phone, but the TV in your hotel room only supports AirPlay or blocks access to the HDMI port. But for home use, now that many TVs support multiple connection options, you have a good chance of setting up a method that will work for everyday viewing.
You should also keep in mind that, as with video streaming, your network may also affect the effectiveness of your TV's wireless connection. With this in mind, you should place your phone as close to the router as possible, which will make the connection easier. If the video quality deteriorates while streaming, you can also turn the stream off and on again to reset the connection.
But if your phone and TV can connect using one of the above methods, otherwise you will be able to stream any movie or music from your phone to TV.
