How to transfer a movie from your phone to your Xiaomi TV: all working ways

Transferring movies from your phone to your big screen is a challenge faced by every second owner of the brand’s equipment. According to Counterpoint Research’s 2023 survey, 68% of smart TV users stream content from their mobile devices at least once a month. However, not everyone knows that Xiaomi TVs have at least 6 different ways to wirelessly and wired video transmission, from standard Miracast to branded solutions like Mi Share.

The problem is that there is no one-size-fits-all method: the choice depends on the phone model (Android or iPhone), the TV firmware version, the router and even the video file format. For example, Xiaomi TVs on the Google TV platform (P1, A Pro series) do not support live streaming via DLNA from an iPhone without additional applications, while models on PatchWall (Mi TV 4S, 5X series) will cope with this task in two clicks. In this guide, we will analyze all the current methods, from the simplest to advanced ones, and also reveal the nuances about which even the official instructions are silent.

1. Wireless transmission via Mi Share (for Xiaomi/Redmi/Poco phones)

The proprietary Mi Share technology is the fastest way to transfer a movie from a Xiaomi, Redmi or Poco phone to a TV of the same brand, which works on the Wi-Fi Direct protocol, which means direct communication between devices without an intermediary in the form of a router, transfer speeds up to 10-15 MB / s (depending on the model), and most importantly, the original quality of the video without compression is preserved.

To take advantage of Mi Share:

• 📱 On the phone: Open the Files app → Choose a movie → Press Share. → Mi Share.
• 📺 On TV: Go to Settings → Connection and sharing → Mi Share and activate the function.
• 🔄 The phone will automatically find the TV in the list of available devices – confirm the transfer on both screens.

⚠️ Mi Share doesn’t work with Xiaomi TVs based on Google TV (series P1, A Pro 2023+). For these models, use the Google Cast method (see Section 3).

Advantages of Mi Share:

• ⚡ Instant connection (no passwords required).
• 🎬 Support for formats up to 4K HDR (if the TV supports).
• 🔒 Encrypted transmission (data does not enter the network).

Telephone and TV are connected to the same Wi-Fi network (even if you use Wi-Fi Direct)

The TV has enabled "Visibility for all devices" in the Mi Share settings

The film file does not exceed 4 GB (protocol restriction)

Power saving mode is turned off on the phone (may interrupt the transmission)-->

2. USB-OTG cable transmission (for large files)

If you need to flip a 10+GB movie (like a high-bitrate MKV), wireless methods can fail because of speed limits, and it’s more reliable to use direct USB connection. Xiaomi TVs (except for the most budget-friendly series) support USB OTG, which allows you to read files from external drives.

You'll need:

• 🔌 Cable USB Type-C → USB-A (for modern phones or a Micro-USB adapter → USB-A (old-model).
• 📁 flash drive or external SSD (formatted FAT32 exFAT).

Instructions:

1. Copy the movie from your phone to your flash drive (use a USB-C → USB-A adapter to connect the drive to your smartphone).
2. Connect the USB flash drive to the USB port on your Xiaomi TV.
3. Open the File Manager app on TV and select your movie.

⚠️ Note: Xiaomi TVs do not support video playback NTFS-If your flash drive is formatted in this format, convert it to exFAT via Settings. → Memory. → Formatting on the phone.

Wireless (Wi-Fi, Mi Share)

Wire (USB, HDMI)

Cloud services (Google Drive, Mi Cloud)

I don't transfer files, I watch online.-->

3. Wi-Fi streaming via Google Cast (for Android and iPhone)

If you have a Xiaomi TV based on Google TV (P1, A Pro 2023+ series) or with Chromecast support, you can use Google Cast technology, which allows you to not only transfer files, but also broadcast the phone screen in real time. This method is universal — works on both Android and iPhone.

How to set up:

1. Make sure your phone and TV are connected to the same Wi-Fi network.
2. On your TV, open the Google Home app (if not, download from the Play Market to TV).
3. On phone: For Android: swipe down notification bar → Click Broadcast → Select your TV. For iPhone: Open the app with video (like YouTube or Google Photos) → Cast icon → Select TV.

The limitations of Google Cast:

• 🚫 Not all video formats are supported (for example, the video formats are not supported, MKV codeced H.265 may not reproduce).
• 📶 Requires stable Wi-Fi (at speeds below 5 Mbps, there will be lags).
• 🔋 The battery consumption of the phone increases by 20-30%.

💡

If the video slows down when streaming, try to reduce the resolution in the Google Cast settings: open Settings → Devices → Screen Broadcast → Quality and choose 720p instead of 1080p.

4.Using DLNA/UPnP (for local area network)

DLNA (or UPnP) is a classic way to share media on a local network, built into almost all Xiaomi TVs, except the newest models on Google TV. The main advantage is that you do not need to install additional applications, but there are also disadvantages: transfer speed is limited by the bandwidth of the router, and some formats (for example, FLAC or DTS) may not play.

How to turn on DLNA on your Xiaomi TV:

1. Go to Settings. → Network → DLNA.
2. Activate the option to Enable DLNA Server.
3. Provide the device name (for example, XiaomiTV_Salon).

How to transfer a movie from your phone:

• 📱 On Android: Use apps like BubbleUPnP or LocalCast, and they scan your local network and find your TV.
• 🍎 On iPhone: Install nPlayer or VLC, As the standard iOS player does not support DLNA.

5. Cloud services: Mi Cloud, Google Drive, Telegram

If the movie is not urgently needed and the TV has Internet access, you can use cloud storage. This method is universal — works on any device, including iPhone, and does not require additional network settings. However, the speed depends on your Internet tariff: it can take up to 1-2 hours to download a film in 4K (~20 GB) on the Mi Cloud.

Comparison of services:

Instructions for Mi Cloud:

1. Download the movie to Mi Cloud from your phone (Cloud app).
2. On the TV, open your browser and go to i.mi.com.
3. Sign in with the same Xiaomi account and download the file.

⚠️ Note: When watching video in Xiaomi TV browser MKV It can play without sound. In this case, download the file to USB-Replay and replay through the file manager.

Advanced methods: FTP-server SMB-protocol

For power users who need maximum speed and flexibility, FTP or SMB protocols are suitable. They allow you to organize full network access to the folders of your phone or TV, for example, you can make a Xiaomi TV network drive and copy movies to it directly from your PC or phone.

How to set up FTP-TV-server:

1. Install the FX File Explorer or Solid Explorer app from the Play Market on TV.
2. Launch it. FTP-server in the application settings (usually in the Network section).
3. Remember the address of the form ftp://192.168.x.x:2221.
4. On the phone, connect to this address through any FTP-client, ES Conductor).

The advantages of FTP/SMB:

• 🚀 Transfer speed up to 50 MB/s (on a local network of 5 GHz).
• 📂 The ability to transfer entire folders with movies.
• 🔧 Support for summary download (you can interrupt and continue later).

💡

FTP and SMB are the only ways to transfer movies over 50GB without losing quality, but they require minimal knowledge of network protocols and only work on a local network.

Comparison of all methods: which one to choose?

To make the choice easier, we have compiled a table comparing all methods by key parameters:

Selection recommendations:

• 🎬 For fast transfer of small files (<4 GB – use Mi Share (if Xiaomi phone) or Google Cast.
• 💾 For the big movies (>10GB) — USB-OTG or FTP.
• 🌍 If you need remote transmission (not at home) – Mi Cloud or Google Drive.
• 🍎 For iPhone - Google Cast, DLNA (application-based.

FAQ: Frequent Questions and Problems