Getting things from your phone onto your TV
Most casting guides fail because they assume every TV is the same. They are not. Google Cast is missing from the majority of smart TVs sold. Hisense runs two entirely different systems depending on where you bought it. TCL ships four.
These guides start by working out what you actually own, then give you the method that works on it — and say plainly when something simply cannot be done.
Find your TV
Nothing working?
Work through the checklist. Nine times in ten it is Wi-Fi bands, router isolation, or a feature your TV does not have — and one common failure cannot be fixed by any app at all.
Which method does what
| Casting a file | Screen mirroring | |
|---|---|---|
| What happens | The TV plays the file itself | The TV shows a live copy of your screen |
| Picture quality | Full | Depends on signal |
| Phone usable meanwhile | Yes | No |
| Battery | Barely touched | Drains fast |
| Netflix, Disney+, Prime | Use the app's own cast button | Black screen — copy protection |
| Works on | Almost every smart TV, via DLNA | Depends on the TV |
If you want to watch one video or show some holiday photos, casting the file is better in every way. Mirroring is for when you genuinely need the whole screen — an app, a game, a presentation.
The app behind these guides
Send Apps to TV finds your TV over DLNA and hands it photos, video, music or documents — and on Android TV and Fire TV it installs apps from your phone, split APKs included. No cable, no cloud, no account.
Get it free on Google Play