Do you need to display the image from your smartphone screen on a large monitor for presentation, gaming or watching movies? Often, wireless technologies such as Chromecast or Miracast fail due to an unstable Wi-Fi connection, causing delays and signal breaks.
Using USB cable to transmit a video signal from Android to Windows or macOS is the most reliable solution. This method provides minimal latency, a stable high-resolution picture and allows you to simultaneously charge the device.
In this article we will analyze in detail the software and hardware methods for organizing wired broadcasting, compare popular utilities and give tips on optimizing image quality.
The advantages of a wired connection over Wi-Fi
Why should you choose a cable if there are many wireless adapters? The main argument is the stability of the data transmission channel. When using USB interface you completely eliminate the influence of interference from neighboring routers and microwave ovens.
The data transfer speed through the port USB 3.0 or USB-C significantly exceeds the throughput of most home Wi-Fi networks 5 GHz. This is critical for shooter or rhythm games, where every millisecond of delay affects the result.
In addition, a wired connection relieves the load on the smartphone processor that inevitably occurs when encoding a video stream for wireless transmission. You get a smoother picture and less heating of the device case.
⚠️ Attention: To achieve maximum data transfer speeds, make sure you are using a high-quality USB 3.0 or higher cable. Cheap charging cables often only support the USB 2.0 protocol, which will limit the resolution and frame rate.
Preparing equipment and enabling debugging
Before starting setup, you need to perform a number of preparatory steps. Most screen mirroring apps require activating a special developer mode on your gadget.
Go to Settings → About phone and find the item Build number. Click on it 7 times in a row until a notification appears indicating that you have become a developer. After this, a new section will appear in the settings menu For developers.
Inside this section, find the switch USB debugging and activate it. When you connect to a computer for the first time, a request to confirm access will appear on the smartphone screen - be sure to check the box “Always allow from this computer.”
☑️ Preparing for broadcast
It is also worth checking the USB operating mode when connected. By default, the phone can charge without transferring data. Lower the notification shade and select mode File transfer (MTP) or PTP, depending on the requirements of the software you are using.
Scrcpy: The best open solution for mirroring
If you are looking for a tool with minimum latency and high picture quality, pay attention to the utility Scrcpy. This is an open source application that does not require installation of additional apps on the smartphone itself.
The app works through the protocol ADB (Android Debug Bridge). It captures a video stream from the screen and transmits it to the PC, while simultaneously broadcasting keyboard and mouse clicks back to the phone. This turns the laptop into a full-fledged control panel.
To start, just unpack the archive with the app and run a simple command in the terminal. Scrcpy automatically adjusts the bitrate and resolution to match the capabilities of your cable and port.
scrcpy --bit-rate 8M --max-size 1920 --max-fps 60Key benefits of this method include no ads, complete freeness, and cross-device clipboard support. You can copy text on your computer and paste it into messages on your phone.
Commands for advanced Scrcpy users
You can mute the sound from your phone (--no-audio), record the screen during a broadcast (--record file.mp4) or change the screen orientation using the Ctrl+Arrow key combination. The full list of commands is available in the documentation on GitHub.
Use of proprietary utilities: Samsung Flow and Vysor
Device owners Samsung can use the ecosystem application Samsung Flow. It offers deep integration with Windows, allowing you not only to mirror the screen, but also to receive notifications directly to your desktop.
For other brands, Vysorremains a popular solution. This app has a user-friendly graphical interface that makes setup easy for beginners. However, the free version limits the image resolution and contains advertising.
Installation is carried out through the app store or the official website of the developer. After connecting the cable, the app will automatically detect the device and offer to start mirroring.
| app | Cost | Latency | Requires Root |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scrcpy | Free | 35-70 ms | No |
| Vysor | Freemium | 50-100 ms | No |
| Samsung Flow | Free | 40-80 ms | No |
| AirDroid Cast | Paid (USB) | 60-90 ms | No |
The choice of specific software depends on your tasks. For games, Scrcpy is better suited, and for office work with notifications - Samsung Flow or analogues from the manufacturer of your smartphone.
If you use Vysor and see low picture quality, try switching the rendering mode to "Hardware" (hardware acceleration) in the app settings to use the video card of your laptop.
Solving problems with sound when broadcasts
One of the most common problems with a wired connection is the lack of sound on the computer. The ADB protocol by default transmits only the video signal, leaving the audio on the source device.
In modern versions Android 11 and higher, it is now possible to capture system audio via ADB, but this function requires proper configuration. In the Scrcpy utility, just add the flag --audio at startup.
If your version of Android is lower than 11, you will not be able to transmit sound programmatically. In this case, you will have to use external solutions, for example, an application AudioRelaythat broadcasts the audio stream over the network or through the same USB tunnel.
⚠️ Attention: On some smartphone models (especially Xiaomi and Huawei), audio capture may be blocked by the manufacturer at the firmware level. In this case, only using an external microphone placed near the phone speaker or purchasing a specialized HDMI capture will help.
Also check the sound settings in the Windows operating system itself. Make sure that the default playback device is not the laptop speaker, but the virtual device created by the broadcasting app.
For audio streaming on Android 10 and below, software methods via USB often do not work reliably; in such cases, it is more advisable to use a Bluetooth connection for audio in parallel with a USB cable for video.
Alternative method: Video capture via HDMI
If software methods do not give the desired result or your laptop does not have a powerful video card to process the stream, you can use the hardware method. To do this, you will need an adapter USB-C to HDMI and a video capture card.
Connect the adapter to your smartphone, and connect the HDMI cable to the capture card, which is inserted into the USB port of the laptop. The computer will perceive the phone as a regular webcam.
This method is universal and works even on locked bootloaders or devices with a damaged system, since it does not require access to the OS through debugging. The picture is transmitted in the native resolution of the smartphone screen.
However, this method has a significant drawback - an additional delay for encoding and decoding the signal by the capture card. For watching video, this is not critical, but for dynamic games it can be noticeable.
Which adapter should you choose?
Make sure that your smartphone supports video output via the USB-C port (MHL technology or DisplayPort Alt Mode). Budget models often lack this function, and the adapter simply will not work.
Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
Why does the laptop not see the phone when the cable is connected?
Most likely, the “File Transfer” mode is not enabled on the phone or the ADB drivers are not installed on the computer. Also check the integrity of the USB cable - many cables only support charging.
Is it possible to play games on a phone through a laptop without delays?
Yes, when using a USB 3.0 cable and a app like Scrcpy, the latency is less than 70 ms, which is quite comfortable for most genres, including shooters and racing.
Will the phone be charged during the broadcast?
Yes, when connected via the USB port of a computer or network adapter, the device will receive power. However, under high load (games + broadcasting), the charge may be consumed faster than it is received.
Do you need superuser rights (Root) for broadcasting?
No, all the methods described in the article (Scrcpy, Vysor, Samsung Flow) work on standard, unmodified firmware without the need to obtain root access.