Mobile phones are handy and easy to access for any need in our daily life. We can access anything in the world by just clicking on the right keys. They can aid you in the dire time and be a life savior at times. With mobile phones, you can even play video games without the use of a gamepad, as the touch in the mobile phone helps navigate and controlling in the game. But, mobile phones are not the best device to play games.
The screen of mobile phones is too small compared to where else you can play video games. Though it is handy and everyone owns one, it can be used as a medium to play video games. But it does not have the views and details of a larger screen like PCs and TVs.
New generation smart televisions have more features and specifications. From video streaming to downloading apps to use on TV, televisions have evolved a lot since. Streaming video games is one of the best features of smart TV, nowadays.
Compared to the view from larger screen TV, to a smaller-screen mobile phone, any gamers will always go for the option to play on TV. As smart TVs are smart, using them can be sometimes complicated. Not everyone will be able to crack the process. We are here to help you in situations like this, and make it easier for you – the gamers, to access and stream Android games on your smart TV.
Screen Mirroring
One of the best features all smartphones includes in their new generation of phones for the past five years is Screen Mirroring. This is a feature most smartphone users are not aware of and discard as something of the least matter. But actually, it is something all smartphone users can take advantage of. With the Screen Mirroring feature, you can stream anything that is played on your phone on another phone, PC, or, TV screen.
This feature is available in all Android devices, but they are named differently. Huawei and Honor call it MirrorShare, Samsung’s is Smart View, and LG named it Screen Share. Though known with different names, they all are based on Miracast.
There are many apps you can use to Screen Mirror your Android phone or device to your Smart TV. Though these apps will need a wifi connection to connect, Screen Mirroring that’s default on your Android device does not need any external network.
Using Default Screen Mirroring Setup In Your Android Phone Or Device
You can activate Screen Mirroring through wifi, as they use wifi to share and receive. As there are many Android devices, each device’s settings and the dropdown list varies. Therefore, the terms used to access Screen Mirroring may vary. Though, most of the time, the steps are somewhat the same. Following are the steps to activate Screen Mirroring on your Android phone or Tablet and your Smart TV;
- Then, go to the “Settings” app on your Android phone, and your Smart TV.
- On the left of your Android phone or device, you will see the symbols next to the term each Android device would have named it. Select the one with the TV symbol. On your Smart TV, select “Network” ( or symbol symbolizing a tower and network).
- Then, on your Smart TV, select “Expert Settings” or anything that suits an advanced connection. On your Android phone or device, you would have a dropdown list of available devices to Screen Mirror your device.
- Then, select “Wifi Direct” or the name near it, on your Smart TV.
- Then, select the Smart TV’s ‘Device name’ given on your Android phone or device’s drop list. And vice versa.
After completing these steps, you will be able to stream video games on your Smart TV. All you have to do is, open the video game you want to play on your Android device, keep it in the same direction as your Smart TV is facing, then play the game with the connected gamepad.
Using Apps To Mirror Cast Your Android Phone To Stream On Smart TV
Screen Casting is different from Screen Mirroring. They have many differences among them, and by knowing their differences, gamers will be able to select one among the two which is suitable to stream their video games. A few differences are;
- No network to Screen Mirroring, while to cast you should connect both the devices to the same wifi when casting.
- Screen Mirroring mirrors everything from the Android device while casting only works on selected apps.
- While Screen Casting, what is being cast will not change when you use your phone, but on Screen Mirroring, whatever is in your phone will be shown on the TV.
- Screen Mirroring does not need any extra app, it is activated using defaults on the “Settings” app. Whereas, in Screen Casting sometimes you should download an additional app on your Smart TV to access Screen Mirroring.
If you want to Screen Mirror what is in your phone but do not want to change what is mirroring, when you click and swipe on your phone, Screen Casting is the better choice. Playing video games through Screen Casting or Screen Mirroring is the gamers’ choice. Following are the best Screen Casting apps to try and stream to play video games on your Smart TV;
- Game Cast
- LetsView
- ApowerMirror
- ChromeCast
- Air Mirror
- Smart Cast
There are many more mirror-casting apps that you can try. Some apps need an additional app on the Smart TV to connect Screen Casting. After downloading the app you wanted to try, open the app and follow the instructions to connect the Android device to your Smart TV.
Playing video games on a bigger screen can be more exciting and interesting than slouching and squinting onto your phone to view your phone’s small screen.
Using Hardware Tools
Screen Casting or Screen Mirroring can be an easy way to stream your Android phone or device to your Smart TV, to view apps, images, videos, and many more. But they can lag sometimes, and it can be a problem when playing fast-paced or action games. Sometimes, even with a faster connection, there are lags in the Screen Mirroring. You can solve it with a wired connection.
If you connect your Android phone or device to your Smart TV manually, you will be able to play your video games with no lag in the video streaming of your games. If you are playing action games or fast-paced games, and want to play them on a bigger screen rather than on a small screen, you can get hold of these adapters.
You can plug them into your Smart TV, just like the gaming consoles, except here, your phone is on the other end. You can do this process by getting an adapter that connects both your Android phone or device and your Smart TV.
Though there are also media streaming adapters available for you to purchase online. You can use these adapters to connect your Android phone or device and the Smart TV. First, you have to connect the adapter to the Smart TV through a wire. Then, connect your Android phone or device to the streaming adapter wireless.
To conclude, these are the ways you can stream Android games from your Android device to your Smart TV, for a bigger and larger screen experience.