Many people know the feeling you get when you're watching something on your phone or laptop and just wish you had a bigger screen. However, you don't want to hunt around and configure different cables and lose the comfort of not having wires around your devices. Then Chromecast is a good solution for you!
Chromecast lets you cast photos and slideshows from different devices to your TV, and this article will help you connect those devices to do so easily.
How to Cast a Photo Slideshow on an Android to a Chromecast
Some Android users will have a slight advantage here and have native Chromecast support. In this case, it is necessary to check if the default photo application is up to date. However, if your Android does not have native support, you must download one of the apps from the Google Play Store, such as CastonTV Free App.
After downloading the app and updating the default photo app, here are the next steps:
- Open the Google Photos app.
- Tap the “Cast” icon in the upper right corner to search for available devices nearby.
- Select "Chromecast" from the list.
- Select the photos you want to stream from the Photos app.
- Press the + (Add) button.
- Select the animation option.
- In the animation screen, tap the three dots in the upper right corner.
- Select the “Slideshow” option.
How to Cast a Photo Slideshow on an iPhone to a Chromecast
Unfortunately, the iPhone will not have native support for Chromecast and you will need to download a free app from the App Store. Search Chromecast Photo Video Cast in App Store, download and install it. Once the installation is complete, follow these steps:
- Open the app and tap the "Cast" icon in the upper right corner.
- Select your “Chromecast” from the list of nearby recipient devices.
- Tap on the “Slideshow” option.
- Select the photos you want from your device.
- Return to the “Slideshow” tab.
- Press the "Play" button.
How to Cast Photo Slideshow on iPad to Chromecast
Similar to iPhone, iPad requires you to upload the same Caster of photos and videos to Chromecast. After downloading and installing the app, the steps are pretty much the same as for the iPhone:
- Open the app and tap the "Cast" icon in the upper right corner.
- Select your “Chromecast” from the list of destination devices.
- Tap the “Slideshow” option
- Select the photos you want to stream.
- Return to the “Slideshow” tab.
- Press the Play button.
How to Cast a Photo Slideshow on a Windows PC to a Chromecast
Connecting your Windows PC to Chromecast may vary slightly depending on the version of Windows you are using. The basic steps for all Windows PCs are:
- Open the folder where the photos you want to stream are located.
- Select the images you want to play in the slideshow.
- Click the down icon in the upper right corner to display the menu bar.
- Select the “Picture Tools” option then “Slideshow”.
- The slideshow will play simultaneously on your PC and TV.
How to Cast a Photo Slideshow on a Mac to a Chromecast
Different from a Windows PC, a Mac computer will not have the slideshow menu. However, this can be overcome by using Google Chrome. You will need to install Google Chrome or update to the latest version if you already have it. These steps also work for a Windows PC.
- Open Google Chrome.
- Add the “Cast” icon to the toolbar by clicking on the three dots in the upper right corner and selecting the “Cast” option.
- Click the “Cast” icon to search for available devices.
- Select your “Chromecast” from the list.
- Select the "Cast" desktop.
- Click on the “Full Screen” option.
- Click on the “Share” button.
- Select the slideshow you want to stream.
If you want to select photos on the spot, you need a Chrome extension called Fullscreen Slideshow installed on your Chrome browser. After installing it, the extension will be visible in the Chrome toolbar. To continue:
- Tap the "Extensions" icon.
- Select “full screen slideshow”.
- Choose photos and set time intervals.
- The slideshow will start in the Chrome tab after selection.
How to Cast Photo Slideshow on Chromebook to Chromecast
For a Chromebook, you also need to download the Chrome Google Cast Extension. Once installed, the Cast icon will be visible on the Chrome toolbar. To start streaming, you must:
- Go to the settings menu.
- Select the “Available streaming devices” option.
- A pop-up window will appear with all the applications you have open, as well as your entire desktop.
- Choose what you want to cast in the pop-up window.
- The slideshow will play in the Chrome tab as well as on the TV.
The last slide
As we have seen, casting a photo slideshow on Chromecast only varies slightly between different devices and operating systems. Also, in cases with larger differences, various phone apps like CastonTV Free App and Chrome browser extensions come in handy to overcome this and use a large screen wirelessly.
What are your experiences using Chromecast with your devices? Have you had any experiences with apps and extensions that we haven't mentioned? Did you encounter any unexpected issues? Let us know in the comment section below.
