How to show a photo from your phone on a TV Xiaomi 4S: all working ways

You want to show pictures from your vacation on a big screen, but you don't know how to quickly and without loss of quality transfer them from your phone to Xiaomi Mi TV 4S? This model supports several ways of wireless and wired broadcasting, but each of them has nuances. For example, Miracast can broadcast the whole screen, and DLNA is only suitable for individual files. In this article, we will discuss all the current methods, from standard Screen Mirroring to little-known functions like Mi Share, and also explain how to avoid common errors like "no signal" or low resolution.

Xiaomi 4S features built-in support for Wi-Fi Direct and AirPlay (starting with MIUI TV 3.0 firmware), which makes it easier to connect to both Android and iPhone. However, not everyone knows that you need to pre-sync devices on the same network or enable special settings on the TV to work reliably. We have tested all methods on Mi TV 4S 55" and 4S 43" models - and are ready to share working schemes, including bypassing the restrictions when locking the screen on the phone.

1. Preparation of the Xiaomi 4S TV to receive images

Before you transmit a photo, you need to activate the reception function on the TV, and without that, none of the ways will work.

1. Update your firmware. Go to Settings → About TV → Update your system and install the latest version of MIUI TV. At the time of testing (2026), the current version is 3.3.1+.
2. Turn on Wi-Fi. Go to Settings → Network & Internet → Wi-Fi and connect to the same network as your phone. For Wi-Fi Direct, a network connection is not necessary, but is recommended for stability.
3. Activate Reception Modes: 📱 Screen Mirroring (for screen duplication): Settings → Connection and Sharing → Wireless Display. 🖼️ DLNA/UPnP (for individual files): Settings → Applications → System Applications → Media Server. 🔄 Mi Share (for Xiaomi smartphones): Settings → Connection and Sharing → Mi Share.

If the TV doesn’t appear in the list of available devices on your phone after enabling features, try rebooting both devices or resetting network settings to the TV via Settings → System → Settings Reset → Network Reset.

⚠️ Warning: On some Xiaomi firmware 4S, Mi Share may conflict with Screen Mirroring. If one method fails, turn off the other in your TV settings.

2. Wireless transmission via Screen Mirroring (Miracast)

This is a versatile method that works on most Android smartphones (starting with version 4.2) and even on some iPhone models (with limitations).The bottom line is that the phone screen is completely duplicated on the TV, including all notifications and interface.

Instructions for Android:

1. Open your phone’s settings and go to Connected Devices → Wireless Display (on Xiaomi this may be called Screen Translation).
2. In the list of available devices, select your Xiaomi 4S (the name will be in MiTV-XXXX format).
3. Confirm the connection on the TV by clicking Allow in the pop-up window.
4. The image delay is usually 100 to 200 milliseconds, which is noticeable when you scroll through the gallery. It's not critical for static photos.

The iPhone (iOS 12+) will require a workaround, as Apple does not support Miracast directly.

1. Install ApowerMirror or Screen Mirroring from the App Store.
2. Connect both devices to the same Wi-Fi network.
3. Run the app on your phone and select Xiaomi 4S from the list.
4. Note: The iPhone will display a black bezel at the edges of the screen due to the difference in aspect ratio (16:9 on TV vs 19.5:9 on iPhone 12+).

⚠️ Warning: If the image on your TV flashes or brakes when connecting via Screen Mirroring, try reducing the phone’s screen resolution to 720p in the developer settings (Settings → About Phone → Assembly Number (7 taps) → Screen Resolution).

3. Transfer via Mi Share (only for Xiaomi smartphones)

Mi Share is Xiaomi’s proprietary Wi-Fi Direct technology, but with fast file transfers, ideal for sending photos in original quality without compression, and the main condition is that both the phone and the TV must be connected to the same Mi Account (not necessarily, but speeds up the process).

Step-by-step:

1. On your TV, turn Mi Share on Settings → Connection and Sharing → Mi Share.
2. On the Xiaomi smartphone, open the Gallery, select a photo and tap Share → Mi Share.
3. From the device list, select your Mi TV 4S. If it isn’t, update the list by pulling down.
4. On the TV will appear a notification about the incoming file - confirm acceptance.

4.Using DLNA/UPnP to view photos

DLNA (Digital Living Network Alliance) is a standard for sharing media over a local network, allowing you to stream photos, videos and music from your phone to your TV without duplicating the screen. On Xiaomi 4S, this feature is built into the Media Player app.

How to set up:

1. On the TV, turn the Media Server on to Settings → Applications → System Applications → Media Server.
2. On your phone, install a DLNA client application, for example: Android: BubbleUPnP or LocalCast. iPhone: nPlayer or VLC.

Send to → [Name of your Xiaomi 4S]

Features of DLNA on Xiaomi 4S:

• 🖼️ Supported formats are JPEG, PNG, WEBP (but not HEIC with iPhone).
• 🔄 The maximum resolution for broadcasting is 3840×2160 (4K), but there may be slowdowns.
• 📡 Speed depends on the power of the router: 4K requires Wi-Fi 5 GHz.

⚠️ Warning: If the photos in the TV gallery are displayed in low quality, check the Media Server settings: go to Settings → Applications → Media Server → Broadcast quality and select Original.

5. Wired connection via HDMI or USB

If wireless methods are unstable or you need to show photos in the maximum quality without delay, use a wired connection. Xiaomi 4S has HDMI 2.0 and USB 3.0 ports that support direct data transfer.

Method 1: HDMI (for Android)

• 📱 Buy an adapter USB-C/Micro-USB → HDMI (e.g. Xiaomi Mi USB-C to HDMI Adapter).
• 🔌 Connect your phone to your TV via an adapter and cable HDMI.
• 📺 On the TV, select the HDMI signal source (usually HDMI1 or HDMI2).
• 🔧 The phone may need to enable Developer Mode → Debugging on HDMI.

Method 2: via USB (like a flash drive)

• 🔗 Use the USB-OTG cable (for Android) or Lightning-USB (for iPhone).
• 📁 Connect your phone to port USB on your TV.
• 🖥️ On TV, open the File Manager app and select the DCIM or Pictures folder.

If the TV can’t see the phone via USB, check:

• 🔌 The cable supports data transfer (not all charging cables are suitable).
• 📱 File Transfer mode is enabled on the phone (on Android, a notification will appear when you connect).
• 🔧 On the TV in Settings → Devices → USB the Autoplay option is enabled.

💡

If the image does not occupy the entire screen when connecting via HDMI, click on the Menu → Image → Screen Mode and select Fit under the screen or 1:1.

6. Alternative methods: cloud services and third-party applications

If standard methods don't work or you need to show a photo remotely (for example, from another room), use cloud services or specialized applications, the main advantage is that you do not need to configure the local network.

Method 1: Google Photos (for Android/iPhone)

1. Upload the photo to Google Photos on your phone.
2. On your TV, open the Google Photos app (if not, install it from the Mi App Store).
3. Sign in with the same account and select an album.

Method 2: Send Anywhere

• 📱 Install the app on your phone and TV (available from the Mi App Store).
• 🔑 On your phone, select a photo, generate a 6-digit code.
• 📺 Enter this code on your TV in the Send Anywhere app.

Method 3: AirPlay (for iPhone)

• 🍎 Make sure the TV is upgraded to MIUI TV 3.0+ (AirPlay support added from 2022).
• 📶 Connect both devices to the same Wi-Fi network.
• 🖼️ On your iPhone, open a photo, tap Share → AirPlay and select Xiaomi 4S.

Comparison of cloud methods:

💡

Cloud services are convenient for remote access, but depend on the speed of the Internet, for local transmission, you better use Mi Share or DLNA.

7. Solving common problems

Even with the right setup, errors can occur, and here are the most common ones and ways to fix them:

Problem 1: TV not visible in the list of devices

• 🔄 Restart the router and both devices.
• 📡 Check that the phone and TV are connected to the same network (not the guest!).
• 🔧 On your TV in Settings → Network and Internet → Additional enable Wi-Fi Direct.

Problem 2: Image is slowing or tearing

• 📶 Switch to 5 GHz Wi-Fi (less loaded).
• 🖼️ Reduce the broadcast resolution in Screen Mirroring settings.
• 🔌 Connect your phone to charge (low battery power may limit performance).

Problem 3: Photos don't open on TV

• 📁 Check the file format: Xiaomi 4S does not support HEIC (iPhone) and RAW.
• 🔧 Update the TV firmware (older versions had bugs with WEBP).
• 🖥️ Try opening a photo through the File Manager, not the gallery.

Problem 4: No sound when broadcasting the screen

• 🔈 On your phone in Screen Mirroring settings, turn on the option to Transmit Sound.
• 📵 Check if the phone is in No Sound mode.
• 🔧 On your TV in Settings → Sound, select HDMI as the sound source.

FAQ: Frequent questions