You probably have plenty of multimedia files on your smartphone. However, sometimes a relatively small phone screen isn’t optimal for watching high quality videos, so you may want to transfer the video stream from your phone to a TV set. Actually, the “TV-smartphone synching” is a simple process that does not require special experience or knowledge. So, if you want to watch videos from your phone on your TV, read on to discover the options available.
What you need to know first
Of course, the most important aspect is the availability of Smart TV functionality on your TV. For example, if you plan to synchronize your smartphone and “smart” TV, you have to set up a wireless Internet connection. Some TV models do not have a built-in Wi-Fi adapter. Therefore, a mobile device should be connected via special wires.
The second point is the quality of the video you want to send to a big screen. Keep in mind that today even low-end models allow you to play video in Full HD, while 4K is rather a characteristic of more expensive devices. Furthermore, before you turn on the video, first check if your TV supports this particular format. In case it doesn’t, use Freemake Video Converter for re-encoding. It’ll be also useful to do automatic video crop if a video on your device has unwanted black borders which will spoil the picture on a large TV screen.
Well, what are the ways of playing video from smartphone on TV?
1. Transfer video via USB
Of course, this is the easiest and most affordable way to connect. First, absolutely all modern devices are equipped with this interface. Secondly, the USB cable is included in the basic package of all smartphones, since it is often a component of the charger.
How to watch video from a smartphone on TV? It’s very simple; follow the step by step instructions:
- One end of the USB cable is inserted into the appropriate connector of the phone.
- The second end of the wire connects to the TV, the connector is often located on the back of the device (see picture below).
- On the smartphone open notifications and choose to use the device as a drive.
- Open the TV menu and select the signal source – USB.
- Files and folders that can be opened using the remote control will appear on the screen.
In fact, the interface will be very much like a mobile file manager. Unfortunately, it will not be possible to broadcast a video from a smartphone to a TV, running in online mode. After all, the mobile device acts as the most ordinary flash drive.
2. Play video from phone to TV via Wi-Fi
To synchronize your smartphone and TV for later mirroring video to a large screen via a wireless Internet connection, you must first download special software. There are many different applications for connecting a TV to a smartphone. Perhaps one of the most popular is BubbleUPnP for DLNA.
To view the video on the big screen, you need to connect the TV and mobile gadget to the same Wi-Fi network. Then run the previously downloaded application. In the main menu, you need to select your TV and the desired file to play on it.
3. Use ready options for video transmission
Mostly all modern mobile devices are equipped with an integrated image transfer option to a TV screen. The only difference is that the name of the function varies depending on the manufacturer. For example, in Samsung devices it is called Screen Mirroring, Sony – Mirror Link, Apple – AirPlay. Despite the name, the principle of operation remains identical, the equipment is synchronized via Wi-Fi, and then the picture is sent onto a large screen.
After all, the ways described above depend a lot on the TV model you have. The more modern it is, the more opportunities you get. Read also how to send music to TV via Bluetooth connection here.