Using your phone as a remote is a great way to ensure that you always have control over your television while also giving you more mobility when navigating different apps and capabilities on your television. While there are a few steps involved in linking your phone to your tv, it only takes a couple of minutes.
To connect your phone with your Vizio TV, you will need the SmartCast app, which you will pair with your television. Ensure that your tv is on and connecting to the same network as your phone. Once you add your tv as a new device, you will get a code to pair the two devices together.
Keep reading to learn how to connect your television to your home network, how to add your television as a new device on the SmartCast application, and ways to troubleshoot some of the issues you might come across in the process.
How to Connect Your TV to the Internet
You will need to connect your TV to the same network as your phone before you can add your television as a new device through the SmartCast app. You will need to connect your TV to the same network as your phone; otherwise, the pairing will not work.
To connect your Vizio TV to a WiFi network:
- Press the “Menu” button on the remote.
- Select “Network” to open a new menu.
- Select “Network Connection” then the “Wireless” option. This will display a list of WiFi networks to choose from.
- Select your network and enter your WiFi password. A dialogue box will open to confirm when your connection is complete.
Suppose you are having trouble connecting using a WiFi connection or ensuring that you will have consistent internet speed while streaming or gaming. In that case, using a wired connection is a better choice.
To connect to a wired network:
- Use an Ethernet cable to connect your Vizio TV to your internet router.
- Press the “Menu” button on the remote.
- Select “Network” to open a new menu.
- Select “Wired Network.” A dialogue box will open to confirm when your connection is complete.
How to Pair Your Phone with a Vizio TV
Now that your Vizio TV and your phone are connecting to the same network, you can begin the process of pairing the two devices together.
To pair your phone to your TV:
- Download the SmartCast app.
- Open the app to the home menu on your phone by logging in to your profile or as a guest, then navigate to the home menu of your TV.
- Open the dropdown menu at the top of the screen on the app called “Select Device.”
- Press the “Get Started” button on the dropdown menu to open a list of available devices for pairing.
- Find your television on the list and press the “+” button to the right of its name.
- You will get a prompt to enter a 4-digit pin code on your phone. Look at the top of your TV’s home menu to find your code and enter it into the app.
Once entering the pin, the app should automatically open the remote on your phone, and you can begin controlling your television through the app.
Do all Vizio TVs have SmartCast?
If you want to connect your phone with your Vizio TV, you will need one with smart TV features. Luckily, any Vizio TV from 2016 and later has a SmartCast feature, so you should be able to connect through the application.
How to Troubleshoot Your Vizio TV Not Connecting to the Internet
If you’re having issues connecting to your home network with WiFi, you should try a wired connection before any of the following solutions. A wired connection will let you know whether the issue is your WiFi or your router since if the wired connection works, it’s unlikely that you need to fix something with your router.
Some of the issues that might cause problems with connecting to the internet are:
- The number of devices connecting to the network. Try disconnecting any devices you aren’t using that could compete for bandwidth.
- How far your TV is from your router. Your television might be out of range for your WiFi, or some furniture might be in the way that is interesting with the connection.
- Other devices are causing interference. Transmitting devices like baby monitors, cell phones, and Bluetooth devices can occasionally mess with the signal.
If you think it could be an issue with your router, you should try power cycling it. To power cycle your router:
- Unplug the router from the outlet and remove any backup battery. Not all routers have a backup battery but be sure to check for one if you’re unsure.
- Leave the router unplugged for at least ten seconds.
- Put any batteries back and plug in the router.
- Turn on the router and wait for it to go through the starting process.
If you continue to have issues, then you can try removing the network from your TV’s list of connections and adding it again or resetting your router to factory settings.
How to Display Your Phone on a Vizio TV
If instead of using your phone as a remote, you want to mirror your phone screen onto your television, you can do so with only a few steps.
To mirror your phone screen on your tv:
- Ensure that your TV and phone are connecting to the same network.
- Select the “Cast” icon on your phone. Usually, this is in the dropdown menu of your phone’s home screen, or you can search for your casting settings under your phone’s settings.
- A list of devices you can cast to will appear on your phone. Find your TV and select it. You should now see your phone screen or application mirrored on your TV screen.
Final Thoughts
If you have the SmartCast application, it’s an easy process to connect your phone to your Vizio TV so that you can use it as a remote, or you can use the cast feature on your phone to mirror your phone screen on your television. Most of the issues that come up with this process involve connecting to a network and having fast enough internet to maintain the connection.
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