AirPlay: Your iPhone on the Big Screen

The 60-Second Version

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

• AirPlay sends photos, videos, and music from your iPhone to a TV or speaker.
• Your iPhone and the TV must be on the same Wi-Fi for it to work.
• In Photos, tap the Share button (a box with an arrow) and choose AirPlay.
• In most apps and photos, look for the AirPlay symbol — a TV or speaker with a triangle at the bottom.
• Pick your TV or speaker from the list, and it appears on the big screen.
• To stop, tap the AirPlay symbol again and choose your iPhone, or tap Stop.

What AirPlay Is

AirPlay is a way for your iPhone to send what is on it — a photo, a video, a song, or even your whole screen — over your home Wi-Fi to a television or a speaker across the room. No wires, no fuss.

Think of your iPhone as the remote control and the library, and the TV or speaker as the big screen or the loudspeaker. The phone stays in your hand and does the choosing; the picture and sound come out on the bigger device. You can even keep using your phone for other things while it plays.

• Photos and slideshows, so the whole family can see them at once.
• Videos and TV shows, played big on the television instead of the phone.
• Music and podcasts, sent to a speaker so the sound fills the room.
• Your entire screen — called mirroring — so the TV shows exactly what your phone shows.

What You Need

AirPlay needs two things working together: something to send to, and a shared Wi-Fi connection. Let's make sure you have both before we begin.

This is the part folks miss most often: your iPhone and your TV or speaker must be joined to the same home Wi-Fi network. If they are on different networks — say, the phone on a guest network and the TV on the main one — they will not find each other.

• An Apple TV box — a small black box that connects to your television, or
• A smart TV that says it supports AirPlay (many newer TVs do — more on the next page), or
• An AirPlay-compatible speaker, or an Apple HomePod, for music.

Which TVs Work

You do not need an Apple television — there is no such thing. Many everyday smart TVs can receive AirPlay all on their own. Here is how to tell what you have.

Look on the TV's own menu for a settings item called AirPlay, or look on the box the TV came in for an Apple AirPlay logo. If your TV is more than a few years old and cannot do AirPlay, a small Apple TV box plugged into it adds the feature for you — that is the surest way for any television.

• Roku TVs and Roku streaming boxes and sticks.
• Samsung smart TVs from recent years.
• LG smart TVs from recent years.
• Vizio smart TVs (look for the SmartCast feature).
• Sony and some other brands, on newer models.

Getting Ready to AirPlay

A minute of setup makes everything that follows smooth. Let's get your TV and phone ready to talk to each other.

On your iPhone, make sure Wi-Fi is turned on and joined to the same home network. To check, open Settings, tap Wi-Fi, and look for the checkmark next to your home network's name. That is all — your phone is ready.

• Turn the TV on and make sure it is awake, not in standby.
• If it is an Apple TV box, use the TV remote to switch to that box's input, often labeled HDMI.
• Make sure AirPlay is turned on in the TV's settings if your TV has that switch.
• Confirm the TV is connected to your home Wi-Fi.

Show a Photo on the TV

Here is the first happy success: a single photo, up big on the television. Do this once and the rest of the guide will feel easy.

Once the photo is on the TV, swipe left or right on your phone to move to the next or previous picture. The TV follows along. Your phone is the controller, and everyone in the room watches the television.

• Open the Photos app and tap a photo to open it full-screen.
• Tap the Share button — a small box with an arrow pointing up — usually at the bottom left.
• Scroll down the list and tap AirPlay.
• Tap the name of your TV in the list. Your photo appears on the big screen.

A Photo Slideshow on the TV

A slideshow turns your photos into a gentle, hands-free show on the television — wonderful for a holiday gathering or a quiet evening remembering.

While a slideshow plays, tap the screen to bring up options. You can pause it, speed it up or slow it down, and sometimes add background music. When you are finished, tap Done on your phone.

• In Photos, open an album or select several photos you want to show.
• Tap the Share button, then choose Slideshow, or tap the three-dots button and choose Slideshow.
• Once it is playing, tap the AirPlay symbol and pick your TV so it shows on the big screen.
• The pictures advance on their own, with a slow, pleasant motion.

Play a Video on the TV

A home video of the grandkids, or a clip a friend sent you, plays beautifully on the television — with sound coming through the TV speakers.

Use your phone to pause, play, and drag along the little timeline to skip forward or back. The TV mirrors whatever you do. The video's sound plays through the television, so you may want to turn the TV volume up a little.

• Open the Photos app and tap a video to start playing it.
• Tap the AirPlay symbol — a TV shape with a triangle at the bottom.
• If you do not see it, tap the Share button first, then choose AirPlay.
• Pick your TV, and the video plays on the big screen with sound.

Streaming Shows From Apps

Apps like a streaming service, a church service, or a news clip can often be sent to the TV too, using the same AirPlay symbol.

Some apps have their own button for sending to a TV instead of the standard AirPlay symbol. If you do not see the AirPlay symbol, look for a small screen or TV icon in the corner of the video. It usually does the same job.

• Open the app and start playing the show or video on your phone.
• Look for the AirPlay symbol on the playing screen — the TV shape with a triangle.
• Tap it and choose your TV from the list.
• The show jumps to the television, and your phone becomes the remote.

Adjusting the Volume

Once something is playing on the TV, you have a few easy ways to make it louder or softer. There is no single right way — use whichever feels natural.

If the picture is on the TV but the sound is still coming from your phone, tap the AirPlay symbol and make sure your TV, not your iPhone, is the chosen device. For videos, the sound should follow the picture to the TV.

• Use the ordinary TV remote's volume buttons — this is often the simplest.
• Press the volume buttons on the side of your iPhone while a video plays.
• Open Control Center on your phone and drag the volume slider.
• For a HomePod or speaker, use the volume control shown in the playing screen.

Stopping AirPlay

When you are finished, bringing things back to your phone — or turning the TV off — is quick. Nothing gets left running by accident.

Stopping AirPlay does not change anything on your phone or the TV — it simply ends the connection. Your photos, videos, and music are all still right where they were. You can start again any time in the same way.

• Tap the AirPlay symbol again wherever you started it.
• Choose your iPhone from the list to bring playback back to the phone, or
• Tap Stop AirPlay, or simply stop the video and turn the TV off.
• For screen mirroring, open Control Center, tap Screen Mirroring, and tap Stop Mirroring.

Mirroring Your Whole Screen

Sometimes you want the TV to show exactly what is on your phone — every tap and swipe. That is called screen mirroring, and it is handy for showing a website, a game, or an app that has no AirPlay button.

Whatever you do on your phone shows up on the TV, held upright or turned sideways as you turn the phone. It is the most flexible way to share, though it can lag a little. To stop, open Control Center, tap Screen Mirroring, and choose Stop Mirroring.

• Open Control Center: swipe down from the top-right corner of the screen.
• Tap Screen Mirroring — two overlapping rectangles.
• Tap the name of your TV in the list.
• Your whole phone screen now appears on the television.

Send Music to a Speaker

AirPlay is not only for pictures. You can send music, podcasts, and radio to an AirPlay speaker or an Apple HomePod, so the sound fills the room instead of coming from your phone.

You can also open Control Center, press and hold the music box in the top corner, then tap the AirPlay symbol there to pick a speaker. This works no matter which music app you are using, which many folks find handy.

• Open the Music app (or your podcast or radio app) and start a song.
• Tap the AirPlay symbol — here it looks like a speaker with a triangle.
• Choose your AirPlay speaker or HomePod from the list.
• The music now plays through the speaker, big and clear.

Speaker Volume and Rooms

Once your music is playing on a speaker, you control it all from your phone — and if you have more than one speaker, you can send sound to several rooms at once.

If you have speakers in different rooms, tap the AirPlay symbol and put a checkmark next to more than one speaker. The same music then plays through all of them together — lovely for a gathering that spills from the kitchen to the living room.

• Use the volume buttons on the side of your iPhone, or
• Open Control Center and drag the volume slider.
• Tap the AirPlay symbol to see each speaker with its own volume slider.
• Slide each one up or down to balance the rooms.

Control Center: Your Shortcut

Control Center is a hidden panel that gives you quick handles for AirPlay, volume, and mirroring — all in one place. It is worth learning because it works from almost any screen.

Because Control Center is always a swipe away, you can start or stop AirPlay without hunting through an app. Many folks find this the single most useful trick in the whole guide once it becomes a habit.

• Swipe down from the very top-right corner of the screen to open Control Center.
• The music box in the corner shows what is playing; the AirPlay symbol sends it to a speaker or TV.
• The Screen Mirroring button (two rectangles) sends your whole screen to a TV.
• Swipe up from the bottom, or tap an empty area, to close Control Center.

When the TV Does Not Appear

The most common hiccup is tapping AirPlay and not seeing your TV in the list. Nine times out of ten, it is one of a few simple things. Work down this list calmly.

If everything looks right and the TV still will not appear, turn the TV off and on again, and do the same with your phone. This clears the most common little glitches. Give each a minute to fully wake up and try AirPlay once more.

• Is the TV turned on and awake, not in standby or on a different input?
• Are the phone and the TV on the same home Wi-Fi, not a guest network?
• Is AirPlay switched on in the TV's own settings?
• Is the phone's Wi-Fi turned on, rather than only cellular data?

When It Is Choppy or Drops Out

Sometimes the TV appears and plays, but the picture stutters, the sound falls behind, or it disconnects. This is almost always about the Wi-Fi signal, and there are easy ways to steady it.

An Apple TV box connected to the television with a cable often gives a more reliable picture than an older smart TV's built-in AirPlay. If you find yourself fighting choppy playback often, that small box can be a worthwhile fix.

• Move closer to your Wi-Fi router if you can, or bring the phone nearer the TV.
• Turn off other devices that may be streaming heavily at the same time.
• Restart your Wi-Fi router by unplugging it for thirty seconds, then plugging it back in.
• Try again in a few minutes; passing network traffic often settles on its own.

AirPlay and Your Privacy

AirPlay is safe and private by design, but it is worth understanding a couple of small points so you always feel in control of what shows on the TV.

If you ever use AirPlay somewhere public, like a hotel or a waiting room, be careful — you might see other TVs in the list. Only ever send to a screen you are sure of, and never mirror private photos or messages on a screen strangers can see.

• AirPlay works over your own home Wi-Fi — nothing is posted to the internet for others to see.
• You choose exactly what to send, and it stops the moment you say so.
• With mirroring, remember the TV shows everything on your screen, including notifications.
• In a home with several TVs, always double-check you picked the right one before you send.

Bringing It All Together

You now know how to put photos, videos, and music from your phone onto the big screen. The last step is simply making it a comfortable part of family life.

Try showing just one photo on the TV each time a family member visits. That small, repeated success keeps the whole skill from slipping away, and before long it will feel as natural as picking up the remote.

• Keep a favorite album ready so you can start a slideshow the moment guests arrive.
• Save videos family members text you, so you can watch them together on the TV.
• Set up a speaker for the music you love most, and play it hands-free.
• Practice the Control Center swipe now and then so it stays fresh.

What's in the 27-page PDF

• What AirPlay is and what you need to use it (pages 3-6)
• Putting photos, slideshows, and videos on the TV (pages 7-10)
• Volume, stopping AirPlay, and mirroring your whole screen (pages 11-13)
• Sending music to a speaker or HomePod (pages 14-16)
• Fixing it when the TV will not appear (pages 17-20)
• 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