Casting: Your Android on the Big Screen

The 60-Second Version

If you only remember a handful of things about casting, make it these.

• Casting sends a video or photos from your phone up to the TV.
• Your phone and your TV both need to be on the same home Wi-Fi.
• Open an app like YouTube or Netflix, then tap the little Cast button — a screen with waves in the corner.
• Pick your TV from the list, and it plays on the big screen.
• Your phone becomes the remote — pause, play, and change the volume right from it.

What Casting Is

Casting means sending a video, a photo, or music from your phone to your television, so it plays on the big screen instead of the little one in your hand.

Once you send it to the TV, you can set your phone down. The show keeps playing on the television even while you check a text or put the phone in your pocket. The phone is not holding the video — it just told the TV what to play.

• You pick something to watch on your phone, like a YouTube video.
• You tap a button to send it to the TV.
• The TV plays it, big and clear, for the whole room.
• Your phone becomes the remote — you can pause, play, and skip from it.

What You Need to Cast

Casting needs a TV that can receive the signal, and a phone on the same Wi-Fi. Let's make sure you have the pieces.

Many newer TVs have Chromecast built in — check the box, the manual, or the TV's menu for the words Chromecast or Google TV. If your TV does not have it, a small streaming device with Chromecast built in adds it, such as Google's TV Streamer. I can help you pick and set one up.

• A Chromecast device plugged into the TV, or a Google TV, or a TV with Chromecast built in.
• Your Android phone.
• A home Wi-Fi network that both the TV and the phone are connected to.
• The apps you want to cast from, such as YouTube, Netflix, or Google Photos.

Finding the Cast Button

Almost every casting job starts with the same little button. Once you know what it looks like, you will spot it everywhere.

The Cast button only appears when your phone can find a TV to cast to on the same Wi-Fi. If it is missing, the TV may be off, or the phone may be on the wrong network. Turn the TV on, check the Wi-Fi, and the button usually appears.

• The Cast button looks like a small rectangle screen with curved waves in one corner.
• It usually sits at the top corner of the app, near the video.
• It lives inside apps like YouTube, Netflix, and many others.
• When you tap it, a list of nearby TVs pops up to choose from.

Casting a YouTube Video

YouTube is the easiest place to practice casting. Let's send a video to the TV, step by step.

Once it is playing on the TV, your phone is the remote. Tap the video on your phone to pause or play, drag along the bar to skip forward or back, and pick the next video right from your phone. The TV follows along.

• Turn on the TV and make sure it is ready (on the Chromecast or Google TV screen).
• Open the YouTube app on your phone and find a video.
• Tap the Cast button — the little screen with waves in the corner.
• Tap the name of your TV from the list.
• The video jumps to the big screen and plays there.

Casting a Photo Slideshow

Sharing your photos on the big TV is a joy, especially with company over. Google Photos makes it simple.

Open an album, tap a photo to make it full screen, and use the slideshow option in the menu to let the pictures advance on their own. Everyone can sit back and watch the memories go by on the television.

• Turn on the TV so it is ready to receive.
• Open the Google Photos app on your phone.
• Tap the Cast button near the top of the screen.
• Tap your TV from the list — your photos now show on the big screen.
• Open a photo or an album, and swipe through them; each one appears on the TV.

Casting from Netflix and Other Apps

The same Cast button works in Netflix and most other streaming apps. Once you know YouTube, these feel familiar.

When you cast from an app like Netflix, the TV plays the show directly, in the sharpest picture, and your phone is free to do other things. This is smoother than mirroring your whole screen, which we cover next. When an app has a Cast button, use it.

• Turn on the TV so it is ready.
• Open the app you want, such as Netflix, and sign in if needed.
• Tap the Cast button near the top of the screen.
• Choose your TV, then pick a show or movie to play.

Mirroring Your Whole Screen

Sometimes you want the TV to show everything on your phone, not just one app. That is called mirroring, and it is handy when an app has no Cast button.

Mirroring is useful for showing something that has no Cast button of its own — a webpage, a game, or an app that does not cast directly. Keep in mind the whole screen is shared, so texts and notices may show on the TV too.

• On many phones, swipe down from the top to open Quick Settings.
• On a Samsung, tap Smart View; on other Android phones, look for Cast or Screen cast.
• Tap your TV from the list.
• Whatever is on your phone now also shows on the TV.

Adjusting the Volume

Once something is playing on the TV, you can control how loud it is right from your phone, or with your TV remote.

The sound comes out of the TV or whatever it is connected to, not your phone. If you hear nothing, check that the TV is not muted and its volume is up. Your phone's volume buttons usually adjust the TV's volume while you are casting.

• Press the volume buttons on the side of your phone while casting.
• Or use your TV's own remote, just as you always have.
• In the app, tap the screen to bring up the volume slider.
• For a sound bar or receiver, its remote still works too.

Stopping Casting

When you are done, it takes just a moment to stop casting and bring things back to normal.

If you walk away without stopping, casting usually stops on its own when the video ends, or when your phone leaves the Wi-Fi. But it is tidy to tap Stop when you are finished, so nothing keeps playing on the TV.

• Tap the Cast button again — the same one you started with.
• Tap Stop casting or Disconnect.
• The TV goes back to its own screen, and your phone stops sending.
• For screen mirroring, open Quick Settings and tap Smart View or Cast, then Disconnect.

Which TVs Work

Casting needs the right kind of TV or a small device that adds the feature. Here is what works and what does not.

An older TV with no smart features and no Chromecast plugged in cannot receive a cast on its own. The good news is that a small streaming device with Chromecast built in, such as Google's TV Streamer, turns almost any TV with an HDMI port into one you can cast to.

• A TV with Chromecast built in — many newer TVs have this.
• A Google TV, which has casting ready to go.
• Any TV with a Chromecast device plugged into an HDMI port on the back.
• Some smart TVs and streaming sticks that list Chromecast among their features.

Casting Music to a Speaker

Casting is not just for video. You can send music to the TV, or to a speaker that supports it, and fill the room with sound.

Casting music to a TV plays the sound through the TV's speakers or its sound bar. Some smart speakers can also receive a cast, so you can play music in the kitchen while the phone stays with you. Your phone controls it all like a remote.

• Open a music app like YouTube Music or Spotify.
• Tap the Cast button inside the app.
• Pick your TV, or a speaker with casting built in.
• Play a song or playlist — it comes out of the TV or speaker.

When the TV Doesn't Appear

If your TV is not in the list when you tap Cast, it is almost always one of a few simple things. Work down this list.

Restart your phone — turn it off, wait a moment, and turn it back on. You can also unplug the Chromecast or TV for ten seconds and plug it back in. These simple resets clear up most stubborn cases. If the Wi-Fi itself is the trouble, that is worth a closer look.

• Is the TV on, and showing its home or Chromecast screen?
• Are the phone and the TV on the same home Wi-Fi network?
• Is the phone on Wi-Fi at all, and not just cell data?
• Try turning the TV off and on again, and reopening the app.

Everyday Casting Tips

A few small habits make casting even more pleasant. Here are the ones folks appreciate most.

The first time you cast, it feels like a bit of magic. By the third, it feels like second nature. Give yourself a little grace while you learn, and remember it is only a couple of taps.

• Turn the TV on first, then reach for the Cast button — it appears more reliably.
• Keep your phone on your home Wi-Fi, not just cell data, so casting is always ready.
• Use an app's own Cast button when it has one; mirror only when it does not.
• Tap Stop casting when you are finished, to keep things tidy.

Sharing Photos with the Whole Room

The best reason to learn casting is this one: showing your photos to family and friends on the big TV, all together.

No more handing a little phone around the room and everyone squinting. On the big TV, every face lights up at once. It turns a stack of photos into an evening together, and your phone does all the work from your lap.

• Before folks arrive, make an album in Google Photos of the pictures you want to show.
• Turn on the TV and cast from Google Photos.
• Open the album and start a slideshow.
• Sit back and let the pictures tell the story while everyone watches.

Setting Up a Chromecast Device

If your TV does not already have casting built in, a small Chromecast device adds it. Setting one up is a one-time job, and then casting is ready whenever you want it.

Once it is set up and named, that name is what you will tap when you cast. You only do this setup once. From then on, casting is just a couple of taps in any app that has a Cast button.

• Plug the Chromecast into an HDMI port on the back of the TV.
• Plug its small power cable into a wall outlet or the TV's USB port.
• Turn the TV on and switch it to that HDMI input with your TV remote.
• Follow the setup on screen, using the Google Home app on your phone.
• Join it to your home Wi-Fi when it asks, and give it a name like Living Room.

Casting from Your Web Browser

Sometimes the video you want is on a website, not in an app. You can cast that too, using the Chrome browser on your phone.

This is handy for a video on a news site or a webpage that has no app of its own. If a website's video has its own small Cast button on the player, you can tap that instead. Either way, the video ends up on the TV.

• Open the Chrome browser and go to the page with the video.
• Tap the three dots in the corner to open Chrome's menu.
• Tap Cast from the menu.
• Pick your TV, and the page or video shows on the big screen.

Using Your Phone as the Remote

Once something is playing on the TV, your phone does the job of a remote control. There is no need to hunt for the TV's own remote.

You do not have to hold the phone the whole time. Once a show is playing on the TV, set the phone down and enjoy. Pick it back up whenever you want to pause or change what is playing.

• Tap the video on your phone to pause or play it on the TV.
• Drag along the time bar to skip forward or jump back.
• Pick the next show or the next photo, and the TV follows.
• Turn the volume up or down with the phone's side buttons.

Casting and Your Privacy

Casting is safe and simple, but it helps to know what shows on the TV and what does not, so nothing catches you by surprise.

For most things, cast from an app with its Cast button — then only what you chose appears on the TV. Save whole-screen mirroring for when you truly need it, and turn it off as soon as you are done.

• When you cast from an app, only that video or those photos go to the TV.
• When you mirror your whole screen, everything on your phone shows on the TV.
• A text or a call notice can pop up on the TV while you are mirroring.
• Stopping the cast brings everything back to just your phone.

What's in the 27-page PDF

• What casting is and what you need to do it (pages 3-5)
• The Cast button, and casting YouTube and photos (pages 6-9)
• Mirroring your whole screen and adjusting volume (pages 10-13)
• Stopping casting, which TVs work, and casting music (pages 14-17)
• Fixing it when the TV doesn't appear, and everyday tips (pages 18-20)
• A cheat sheet and plain-English word list (pages 21-22)

Why I wrote this

I write these as printable handouts because a guide you can keep in a drawer beats a web page you have to find again. No jargon, no judgment, no rushing. If you'd rather have someone sit beside you and go through it together, that's a flat $99 first visit with the 30-day follow-up included — serving Portage County from Atwater, Ohio. — Bill