Get started

Play games, make video calls, and use your phone’s apps on any TV or monitor.

Connect phone with TV

Connect with cable

Use an HDMI or USB-C cable to connect your phone to a TV or monitor.

  1. Open Smart Connect on your phone, and then tap Displays.

  2. Use a video-enabled USB 3.1 USB-C cable or USB-C-to-HDMI cable to connect phone with external display.

    USB-C: Certain dock-enabled devices, such as monitors, can be connected directly to displays via USB-C cable. Try connecting your monitor with your phone via USB-C to see if they are compatible. Not all phones support video out through USB-C.

    HDMI: You can use a USB-C to HDMI adapter to connect to your display via HDMI cable. Connecting via HDMI cable offers reduced latency and smoother performance. Not all phones support video out through USB-C.

  3. Choose an experience.
Tips
  • If the external display doesn’t detect the phone automatically, change the display’s input to the port that’s connected to the phone.
  • Some USB-C cables and adapters are not symmetrical. If you experience an issue, try reversing the connector.

  • If the HDMI port on the display is obstructed, use a male-to-female HDMI port extender to connect the USB-C to HDMI cable to the display.

Connect wirelessly

Smart Connect supports Miracast-compatible displays and Chromecast devices.

  1. Open Smart Connect on your phone, and then tap Displays to search for nearby Miracast-compatible displays and Chromecast devices.

    Miracast: Identify Miracast displays by looking for the Smart Connect icon next to your device's name. When you connect Miracast devices wirelessly, you can launch the Experience Hub on your display. Miracast doesn't require a local Wi-Fi network. Check your display's model specifications to determine whether it is a Miracast device.

    Chromecast: You can identify Chromecast displays by looking for the Cast icon next to your device name. Displays only supports display mirroring with Chromecast devices. Experience hub is not supported on Chromecast devices.

  2. Choose the wireless display you wish to connect to.

  3. If connected with a Miracast-compatible display, choose an experience.

    If connected with a Chromecast device, your phone’s screen is mirrored to the connected display. Apps that are compatible with Chromecast devices may have more functionality if you connect to a Chromecast device from the app.

To disconnect a display, do one of the following:

  • Open Smart Connect on your phone, and then tap Displays > Disconnect.
  • While using your phone as a trackpad, tap .

Tap on a display under My Displays to rename or forget the display, or choose which experience to launch when connecting to the display.

About Smart Connect display experiences

After connecting your phone with an external display, choose a Smart Connect display experience.

  • Mobile desktop: Use your phone and mobile apps on an external display with multiple windows for a more productive workspace.
  • TV: Use your Android video apps on the big screen for a better viewing experience on the go or at home.
  • Video chat: Make your chats larger than life by moving them to the big screen. Built-in smart software tracks face movements to keep you front and center in video calls and recordings.
  • Game: Unleash your favorite games on any big screen TV or monitor at the speed of 5G (5G service plan and 5G network coverage required; available only in select areas; device not compatible with all 5G networks; coverage/compatibility may be expanded to additional areas in the future. Contact your service provider for details).
  • Windows 365: If you have a Windows 365 subscription and enterprise-ready Motorola smartphone such as ThinkPhone by Motorola, you can access your Cloud PC (desktop, apps, settings, and content) from your phone.
  • Mirror display: Mirror what’s on your phone’s screen to the external display.

The TV, Game, and Video chat experiences use apps on your phone that are related to each experience. Choose the app you want to use, or select to add or remove apps.

Tips
  • If a Bluetooth mouse is paired with your phone, use the mouse to launch an app. Or, use your phone as a trackpad or remote.
  • Some mobile apps are not compatible with an external display.
  • For the best viewing experience, you may need to adjust the display mode, brightness, or overscan on your external display.

Use phone as trackpad or remote

If a Bluetooth mouse is not paired with your phone, your phone becomes a trackpad or air mouse when you connect it to an external display.

If your phone is foldable, the external display may be used as a trackpad.

Tap to switch between air mouse and trackpad modes.

Tap or to switch between trackpad and directional pad.

Tap to switch audio output between your phone and the connected display.

To learn about trackpad gestures and how to use the air mouse, tap > Trackpad tutorial.

To choose a different Smart Connect experience, tap .

When your phone’s Auto-rotate setting is on, rotate the phone, and tap Unlock position. Then, when trackpad is at the desired orientation, tap Lock position.

Fix issue with wireless connectivity

Some TVs (including older Sony TVs) don’t support Miracast while the TV is connected to a Wi-Fi network.

If you experience issues with a wireless connection, try the following:

  1. Disconnect TV from Wi-Fi network, then try again to connect your phone.
  2. If the issue remains, on your phone, go to Network & internet > Wi‑Fi > Network preferences > Wi-Fi Direct, then remove all remembered groups. In your TV settings, remove your phone from the list of connected devices, then try again to connect your phone.