Can i mirror my macbook to my tv

If you use an iPhone or Mac and you want to cast a video from a specific app on your iPhone or Mac to your TV, you can use AirPlay. However, if you want to cast your whole screen — with all of the windows or applications you may have open — then you’ll want to use mirroring.

You can mirror your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, or Mac screen on an Apple TV or an AirPlay 2-compatible smart TV. (Here are the system requirements.) The requirements for screen mirroring are similar to those for AirPlay: make sure your device is up to date and that it’s connected to the same Wi-Fi network as your TV.

Below, we’ll walk you through the steps for mirroring your screen.

Mirror your iPhone screen:

These instructions are for iPhones, but the steps for an iPad or iPod touch are similar.

• Open the Control Center by either swiping up (iPhone 8 or earlier) or swiping down from the upper-right corner (iPhone X or later)
• Tap “Screen Mirroring” (on an iPad, you’ll tap “AirPlay”)
• Select the device you want to use from the drop-down options (on an iPad, you’ll have to toggle on “Mirroring” after this step)

• You may get a pop-up window asking for a code. Enter the code displayed on your TV here.
• Now, you’re mirroring your iPhone screen. To exit out of the Screen Mirroring window, tap anywhere on the screen outside of that window, and do the same to exit out of the Control Center. If you have an iPhone 8 or earlier, you can also press the home button twice.
• To stop mirroring your screen, open the Control Center, tap the Screen Mirroring button (it should now be highlighted and show the name of the device you’re mirroring on) and then tap “Stop Mirroring” at the bottom of the window that opens up. (On an iPad, you’ll have to tap the AirPlay button, toggle off Mirroring and then tap “iPad” on the list of devices.)

Mirror your Mac screen:

• Click on the AirPlay button in the menu bar, in the top-right corner of the screen. (If you don’t see the AirPlay button, you will have to enable it. See the instructions below.)
• Select the device you want to cast to

• You may be prompted to enter the code from your TV. Input that code in the window that pops up on your Mac.
• You should now be mirroring your Mac screen. You have a couple of options for adjusting the proportions of the display, and you can access these through the AirPlay button in the menu bar. Click on “Mirror Built-In Display” to have your TV match the display to the proportions of your Mac screen. Click on “Mirror Apple TV” to have the display on your Mac match the proportions of the TV display.
• To switch off Screen Mirroring, click on the AirPlay button again. Then, click “Turn AirPlay off.”

Enable AirPlay on your Mac

If you don’t see the AirPlay button in the menu bar at the top of your screen, you will have to enable it. Here’s how:

• Click on the Apple button in the menu bar in the top-left corner of your screen
• Click “System Preferences”
• Click “Displays”
• Make sure “Show mirroring options in the menu bar when available” is selected

Those are the basics of mirroring your iPhone or Mac screen. If you don’t need to cast the entire screen, you can use AirPlay to stream videos from individual apps on your iPhone, Mac, or Windows PC to your TV.

A laptop with plenty of hard drive space is perfect for storing all your photos, videos and music. But when it comes to watching videos and looking back at your photos, you can't beat a big, high-resolution TV screen.

Built-in wi-fi is almost ubiquitous in modern TVs, and connecting a laptop to one is really easy as a result. Even if your TV isn't as smart as the latest sets, the wealth of connections on laptops means there are usually plenty of options for connecting your laptop with a cable.

As well as displaying anything on your hard drive, once a laptop is connected your TV effectively becomes a monitor. You could browse the internet, play games and use any software on your laptop on a bigger screen.

In this guide we'll take you through the process of getting your Windows laptop or Apple MacBook connected with your TV.

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How to connect a Windows laptop to your TV wirelessly

Miracast is a piece of software included in Windows 8.1, 10 and 11 which allows your laptop screen to be displayed on a compatible TV screen. It's a process called screen mirroring. You'll use your laptop's trackpad and keyboard as normal, but your TV will be the display.

For Miracast to work you'll need a compatible TV. To check, head into the network settings on your TV and look for a screen mirroring option. If you see screen mirroring this usually means the TV supports Miracast, but it's possible the TV uses its own proprietary screen mirroring software, in which case it will explain how this works on screen or in the manual.

Once screen mirroring is on, you can start connecting your laptop to your TV. 

Windows 11

• Press Windows + I on your keyboard and you'll get the settings menu. Then select Devices from the menu, followed by Bluetooth & other devices.
• Next, select Add Device followed by Wireless Display or Dock.
• Now you'll see a list of devices your PC can connect to and one of those should be your smart TV, select it and you'll start seeing your PC on your TV screen.

Windows 10

• Right click the bottom right corner of your screen and select Open action centre.
• In the action centre, select the box labelled Connect.
• The computer will search for wireless displays. Look for a display that matches the brand and model number of your TV.
• Select your TV, once the computer has found it.
• The computer or TV may ask for a pin code to complete the connection. It will be displayed on one device and you'll need to enter it into the other.

Your TV should now display what's on your laptop screen. You can choose whether you want the TV to duplicate the screen (mirroring), or extend the display if you want to carry on using your laptop screen as well.

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Windows 8.1

The process is slightly different if you're using this older version of Windows.

• Go into your Settings and select Devices.
• In the Devices screen select Project.
• Next select the Add wireless display option.
• Your laptop will now search for compatible devices. Look for a display that matches the brand and model number of your TV.
• Select your TV, once the computer has found it.
• Your TV will display a pin which you need to enter into your laptop.

You should now see your laptop screen mirrored on your TV screen. You can also choose to extend the display onto your TV if you want to carry on using your laptop screen, too.

Use a Chromecast

If your TV doesn't support Miracast or screen mirroring, you can link it to your laptop with a Google Chromecast, such as the latest Google Chromecast with Google TV. 

You'll need to have the free Google Chrome browser installed on your computer for this to work.

• Open the Chrome browser and click the three dot icon. You'll find it just below the X you use to close the window.
• Select Cast... from the dropdown menu.
• A separate box will pop up and start searching for your Chromecast.
• While it's searching click the Cast to dropdown menu and select Cast tab to display your current Chrome tab or Cast desktop to mirror your computer screen on your TV.
• Click the Chromecast you want to connect and you'll see your laptop display on your TV.

You can read more about Chromecast in our guide to the best streaming devices.

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How to connect a MacBook to your TV wirelessly

Apple uses AirPlay to link devices together to stream media from MacBooks, such as the Apple MacBook Pro 16-inch.

To get your MacBook screen to display on your TV wirelessly, you'll also need an Apple TV or a TV with Apple AirPlay 2.

• Click the AirPlay icon on the MacBook's menu bar.
• Select the Apple TV, or TV you want to connect to from the dropdown menu.
• Select the Apple TV input on your TV to start displaying your MacBook's screen.
• Once connected, you can select Mirror Built-in Display, which will set the resolution to the same as your MacBook, Mirror Apple TV, which use your TV's maximum resolution, or Use As Separate Display if you want to carry on using your MacBook screen and use the TV as an extra display.

Apple TVs aren't cheap (the latest model is £159), but you can achieve the same result with a £30 Chromecast. The connection process is the same as with a Windows laptop.

If your TV doesn't support wireless screen mirroring, you can still connect your laptop or MacBook the old-fashioned way.

How you do it will depend on the ports on your TV and laptop. Ideally, you should use an HDMI cable. This transmits both video and sound, which is handy if you're watching a video or want to listen to music through your TV.

Some older laptops don't have HDMI outputs. If yours doesn't, look for a VGA port instead. Unfortunately, VGA only transmits video, and newer TVs don't have VGA inputs. 

You may also a see a micro-HDMI output on your laptop. You can buy a cable that has this smaller HDMI connector (such as the Amazon Basics cable - available for

) at one end and a full-size connector at the other. 

Connecting your laptop in this way will give you the same options as a wireless connection. You'll be able to mirror your laptop screen or extend the display or your laptop.

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