How to watch movies on your TV via Android phone (Xiaomi): A complete guide to Wi-Fi broadcasting

Why Wi-Fi is the Best Way to Broadcast from Phone to TV

You downloaded the movie on Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 or POCO X5 Pro, but you want to watch it on a big TV screen without any extra wires? Wi-Fi is the most convenient way to connect your smartphone and TV, as long as both devices support modern wireless standards. HDMI-cable USB OTG-adapters, wireless transmission eliminates the confusion of wires and allows you to control playback directly from the phone.

But not all methods are equally effective. For example, Miracast (the built-in technology in Xiaomi TV) can slow at high resolution, and DLNA does not always support subtitles. In this article, we will discuss 5 working ways to stream movies from Android phone to TV over Wi-Fi, including hidden MIUI settings that speed up data transfer, and you will learn how to bypass the restrictions on file formats and why some movies are “not visible” on TV.

1. Miracast: Direct screen phone on Xiaomi TV without router

Miracast technology allows you to duplicate the screen of your smartphone on your TV without intermediaries — enough that both devices support this standard. All Xiaomi TV (starting with the 2018 Mi TV 4A model) and smartphones on MIUI 10+ have built-in Miracast support. The main advantage is that you do not need a router — the connection is installed directly over Wi-Fi Direct.

How to turn on:

• 📱 On the phone: open Settings → Connections and sharing → Wireless display (or Transmit to) TV newer MIUI).
• 📺 On TV: Go to Settings → Connection and sharing → Miracast (or Wireless Display).
• 🔍 Select the name of your TV in the list of available devices on your phone.

Cons of Miracast:

• ⚠️ Image delay to 1-2 Seconds (Critical for games, but not for movies).
• ⚠️ It only works within radius. 5-7 meters from the TV.
• ⚠️ Not all apps (like Netflix or KinoPoisk) HD) The broadcast is allowed via Miracast because of DRM-defense.

Phone on MIUI 10 or newer

Xiaomi TV 2018+ or with Wi-Fi Direct support

Power saving mode on the phone is turned off

Both devices are not connected to VPN

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⚠️ Note: If after connecting the image “breaks” or slows down, try in the settings of the phone to reduce the resolution of the broadcast to 720p: Settings → Screen. → Wireless display resolution. This will reduce the load on the smartphone processor.

2. Google Cast (Chromecast): for streaming from apps

If your Xiaomi TV supports Google Cast (built into Android TV models like Mi TV Q1 or Redmi Smart TV X), you can stream movies directly from apps like YouTube, Google Photos or VLC. Unlike Miracast, it doesn’t transfer the phone screen, but only the content – this reduces latency and saves battery life.

Instructions:

1. Connect your phone and TV to the same Wi-Fi network.
2. Open a supported application (such as MX Player or Kodi).
3. Click the Cast icon (usually in the top right corner) and select your Xiaomi TV.
4. Start the movie and it will start playing on TV.

List of apps that support Google Cast:

• 🎬 VLC (Transmits any formats, including.mkv and.avi).
• 📺 YouTube and YouTube Premium.
• 🎵 Google Photos for home videos).
• 📱 LocalCast (for local files with subtitles).

Miracast (screen duplication)

Google Cast (from apps)

DLNA (Network Protocol)

Local area network (via Explorer)

I don't know what it is.

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⚠️ Note: When streaming via Google Cast, your phone must stay on Wi-Fi. If you switch to mobile internet (for example, to make a call), the connection will be interrupted. To avoid this, turn on the phone Settings option. → SIM-maps and mobile networks → Calling over Wi-Fi.

3.DLNA: Watching movies from your phone over the home network

DLNA (Digital Living Network Alliance) is the standard for sharing media over a local network, where unlike Miracast, the phone acts as a server and the TV acts as a client, which means that you can watch movies stored on your smartphone directly from the TV remote without blocking the phone screen.

How to set up:

1. Put it on the phone. DLNA-server, such as BubbleUPnP or Plex.
2. Turn on the server in the application and allow access to the folders with movies.
3. On your TV, open a built-in media player (such as Mi Video or Media Center) and select the DLNA source.
4. Find your phone name in the list (for example, Redmi_Note_11) and choose a movie.

The pros of DLNA:

• ✅ No image delay (unlike Miracast).
• ✅ You can control playback from the TV remote.
• ✅ It works even if the phone is locked.

Cons:

• ❌ Not all formats are supported (e.g.,.mkv with). DTS-sound may not be reproduced).
• ❌ Requires a stable connection to the router (with a weak signal, the film will “hang»).

4. Local area network (SMB/FTP): film-collection

If you have a large collection of movies on your phone (like a microSD card), it’s easier to configure SMB access (like a network drive), which requires a little more customization, but allows you to view content without unnecessary delay and with support for all formats.

Step-by-step:

1. Put it on the phone. FX File Explorer or MiXplorer (Source: Support) SMB-server).
2. Turn it on. SMB-server in the application settings (usually in the Network section) → SMB-server).
3. Remember the server address (e.g. ftp://192.168.1.105:2222).
4. On the TV, open Mi Video → Network Storage → Add the device and enter the address.

Advantages of SMB:

• 📁 Access to all folders of your phone (not just multimedia).
• 🔍 Support for search by movie titles.
• 📶 It works even with a weak Wi-Fi signal (unlike Miracast).

⚠️ Attention: When in use SMB The phone will be actively working processor, which will lead to accelerated battery discharge, it is recommended to connect the smartphone to charge or use the power saving mode for background processes.

5. Specialized applications: Kodi, VLC and LocalCast

If built-in methods don't work (for example, the TV doesn't support Miracast or DLNA), third-party apps can be used.They often offer advanced features such as streaming without buffering or support for rare formats.

Top.-3 broadcaster:

• 🎥 Kodi + plugin UPnP/DLNA: It allows you to stream movies from your phone to TV with minimal delays. It supports playlists and subtitles.
• 📺 VLC: Built-in UPnP server and support for Google Cast. You can stream even underquality files.
• 🔄 LocalCast: Automatically converts formats if the TV doesn’t support them (e.g..mkv) →.mp4).

How to set up Kodi:

1. Install Kodi on your phone and TV (if you don’t have Kodi on TV, use Mi Video with DLNA support).
2. On your phone, go to Settings → Services → UPnP/DLNA and turn on the option.
3. On TV in Kodi, select Videos → Files → Add Video Source → Overview → UPnP devices.
4. Select the phone from the list and start playing.

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If the movie is not playing because of codecs, try the VLC on your phone to enable the option "Convert when broadcast" (Settings → Streaming → Transcoding).

The answer to the problem: why the movie is not broadcast on TV

Even with the right settings, you can get errors, and here are 5 of the most common problems and solutions.

1.The TV doesn't see the phone in the list of devices

• 🔌 Check if both devices are connected to the same Wi-Fi network (even if you use Miracast without a router, they must be in the same range). 2.4 GHz/5 GHz).
• 🔄 Reboot the router and disable the function on it AP Isolation (it blocks the interaction of devices on the network).
• 📱 On the phone, turn on the developer mode (Settings) → The phone. → Version. MIUI — Press 7 times and activate the Wi-Fi debugging option.

2.The film is played with jerks or slows down

• 📶 Check the speed of Wi-Fi: for Full HD (1080p) You need at least 10 Mbps to 4K — 25 Mbps.
• 🔧 In router settings, change your Wi-Fi channel to a less loaded one (use applications like WiFi Analyzer).
• 📱 On your phone, disable background apps that may be consuming traffic (like Google Play update or cloud backups).

3. No sound during broadcast

• 🔊 Check if the TV supports the movie audio codec (e.g., the video, DTS Or Dolby Digital. Use it. MX Player with option SW-decoding.
• 🎧 Connect to the TV external speakers or sound panel through HDMI ARC effluent.

💡

If the phone and TV are connected to the same network, but the broadcast does not work, try manually specifying the phone. IP-phone address in settings DLNA I'll see you on TV. IP You can set up → Wi-Fi → [your network] → IP-address.

FAQ: Answers to Frequent Questions