With modern televisions supporting an ever-increasing range of on-demand and streaming apps, mirroring content from a phone or tablet is rarely the ideal solution for accessing that content on a larger screen. big.
But when you’re away from home and you’re not connected to your own apps, or you’re using an older TV without support for the latest apps, or the content you want to view belongs to you or is in a phone. app like TikTok, there are other solutions that will be preferable.
You can connect your Android phone or tablet to a TV wirelessly or with a cable. We’ll describe your options below.
Connect Android to TV with HDMI
If you don’t want to mess with settings, the easiest way to connect your Android phone or tablet to a TV is to use an HDMI cable, provided your device supports streaming over HDMI. You connect one end to the port on the back of your TV and one end to the charging port on your phone, then change the source on the TV to show the HDMI input.
You will notice, however, that a standard HDMI cable will not fit in your phone. If your phone or tablet has a USB-C port, it’s very easy to get around, and you can buy an HDMI cable that has a USB-C connection on one end. We love this UNI cable from Amazon.
If your phone or tablet has an older micro-USB connection, you also need a micro-USB to HDMI cable, but it should be a cable that includes MHL (Mobile High-Definition Link) like this StarTech cable. Note that not all Android phones and tablets support MHL, so try to find out if your model does before depositing money.
SlimPort is another term you might hear mentioned. It is a similar but slightly different technology to MHL, and it can output over HDMI, VGA, DVI, or DisplayPort, while MHL is limited to HDMI. In our experience, many people use these terms interchangeably, but they’re basically talking about an adapter or cable that can convert the USB stream to HDMI.
Some tablets may additionally have Micro-HDMI or Mini-HDMI connections, which will simplify things. With these, you can use a Micro-HDMI or Mini-HDMI to HDMI cable, but you should check your device’s specs to make sure you’re buying the correct cable (these connections come in different sizes). Here are examples of Micro-HDMI and Mini-HDMI cables available on Amazon.
If you don’t have spare HDMI ports on the back of your TV, you may also need to purchase an HDMI switcher to add more, freeing up a port to connect your phone or tablet.
Connect Android to TV Wirelessly
Since not all phones and tablets support HDMI connections, and cables strewn around the living room can be messy, a wireless solution may be preferable.
Casting content from your phone or tablet to your TV is actually very simple, but what confuses things is the sheer number of terms that are used together, from Miracast and Wireless Display to screen mirroring. screen, SmartShare and everything else. There’s also AirPlay, but that’s only used for Apple devices.
Our advice is not to worry too much about these terms: you just look for an option in your phone or tablet settings that alludes to casting or screen mirroring, which can be found under Connected devices or Display settings, depending on your device.
Casting typically lets you stream content from a specific app to your TV – great for watching videos on the big screen – without sharing everything else from your phone. Screen mirroring shares everything from your phone screen, so only use it if you’re comfortable with everyone in the room seeing your notifications.
Most smart TVs will support screen mirroring from Android. If you don’t have a smart TV, relatively inexpensive wireless display devices like Chromecast and Roku can facilitate a wireless connection between your phone or tablet and your TV, and have many other handy uses as well. Check that the screen mirroring option is enabled in the settings of the device you are using.
Now go back to your phone or tablet and make sure it is connected to the same Wi-Fi network as your TV. Find the casting option and select your TV (or your Chromecast/Roku/other wireless HDMI device) to start mirroring the screen. You may be prompted to enter a code displayed on the TV to confirm that you are connecting to the correct device.
You’ll want to put your phone or tablet in landscape mode, make sure the content you want to view is open in full screen mode, and check that the volume isn’t turned down or muted. You might also consider setting Do Not Disturb options to prevent incoming notifications from interrupting playback, especially if they’re likely to be private.
If the app you’re viewing content in has a Cast icon at the top, or if your phone or tablet has a Cast option in the quick access settings of Android’s drop-down notification bar, this process is even easier: tap Cast and select your TV or smart device to start screen mirroring.
Note that some apps, such as Sky’s, won’t allow you to stream their content to a larger screen. There’s no way around this without paying for a plan that allows you to watch this content on TV rather than mobile.
See also: How to connect a laptop to a TV
