[help] Best way to "cast" device to TV

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dragnandy

Limp Gawd
Joined
Jul 28, 2008
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This thread is about mirroring, extending, and casting your screen to a TV. I think this falls under Computers & Gadgets, but if not, mods please move to the correct sub forum..

Hardware-wise, I have a old custom PC, hooked up with ethernet. Old laptop, planning on upgrading to Microsoft's SP4. PS4 over wifi, and a regular LG HDTV (not 'smart tv')

I have been simply using an HDMI cable to connect my laptop to the TV. But what is the best solution to connect my desktop (in another room) and future SP4 to the TV? Miracast, Chromecast, roku, and what not..I'm fairly unfamiliar with how powerful these devices can get. Is there any strong software I can use to do this over my private network? Is it necessary to get additional hardware (like a chromecast/miracast) and which one?

I'm looking for a simple solution that would allow me to either extend or mirror my screen on either device (desktop or SP4). Any suggestions?

Thanks.

edit: From what I understand about devices like Chromecast (maybe they've gotten better since release), it will send whatever you want to cast(youtube videos, etc) to the device and the chomecast itself will connect to wifi and stream to the TV. I'm looking for a more straightforward device that simply copies what I'm doing on my desktop/laptop and sends it over to the TV. Something that I can support not just the Chrome browser or youtube player, but anything I bring up (VLC, media player, documents, streams, etc..)
 
You "can" stream your desktop to a chromecast by casting a tab in chrome, hitting full screen, and minimizing the browser. Works ok, can stream vlc by doing this with little to no lag, but I use an app called localcast to stream things off my nas to the chromecast. Easier to use and the quality, especially the audio, is better.

I'm sure there is a device that would work better for streaming the desktop.
 
interesting, did not know the chromecast can do that. Would you recommend I wait for the chromecast 2?

Any other suggestions?
 
How do you plan on controlling the desktop PC that is in another room from the TV?
 
Ideally, I'd have an SP4 to control and play videos/movies. And this "solution" would work for both my desktop in another room, and the SP4.

Walking to another room to start a movie or stream wouldn't be an issue for me though..
 
Miracast is exactly what you want, based on your description. It comes built into Windows 8+ as long as your hardware supports it. I use my Amazon Fire TV Stick as a Miracast receiver for my TV, but there are many devices that support Miracast streams.
 
..as long as your hardware supports it. do you mean as in a Fire TV Stick?

and I have Win 7.
 
dragnandy said:
..as long as your hardware supports it. do you mean as in a Fire TV Stick?

and I have Win 7.
Click to expand...

If your machine supports the Intel WiDi Drivers, you can use Miracast on Windows 7.

You might also consider Steam In-Home Streaming if you're mainly streaming games, though it can stream XBMC and other media players as well.
 
I think the chromecast/fire stick is definietly going to be the cheapest choice at this point. Considering you have older hardware and not a newer that would certainly have Intel WiDi Drivers compatibility.
 
hmm, sounds like I'll go with chromecast/fire stick. I'll do research and pick between those 2.

I'm a bit confused about Miracast. Do I need a 'miracast compatible' device like the Surface Pro 4 (win 10) along with a 'miracast compatible' TV ( HDMI dongle )?
 
dragnandy said:
hmm, sounds like I'll go with chromecast/fire stick. I'll do research and pick between those 2.

I'm a bit confused about Miracast. Do I need a 'miracast compatible' device like the Surface Pro 4 (win 10) along with a 'miracast compatible' TV ( HDMI dongle )?
Click to expand...

Your hardware needs to be compatible with Miracast to use it. You need a server (a PC with Miracast-compliant casting software installed) and a receiver (a standalone media device like FireTV or Roku, or a PC with a Miracast client installed). You can find out if your Windows 7 hardware supports Miracast by installing Intel's WiDi drivers. If not, Chromecast (which requires no special hardware on the PC casting side) is probably the way to go.
 
I use a chromecast and it's the best thing you can get for $35, get the first gen and it's $20 (not that much of a difference anyways)

As someone mentioned, you can cast your desktop on it as well
 
those steam links are basically just remote control stations that plug into your tv for $50
 
Yeah, chromecast is a good one. I have 3 in three different rooms and I can basically cast anything on my phone.
 
Personally I'd use a HDBaseT HDMI over Ethernet extender.

Monoprice has a good one.

But then again, my entire house is already wired with Ethernet, making this easy.
 
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