Sitting on a couch, a person occasionally wants to mirror their Android phone to their (larger) TV display. We don't want WiFi, Bluetooth, or any other configuration garbage. We just want to plug the phone into an adapter (which charges our phone), and mirror the phone's screen to the TV while we continue to use the phone. Use our phone, see it on the TV, and the phone charges. Can this be done with an older XT1541 phone?
Not easily. Two main roadblocks:
- not all phone usb-c ports have physical capacity to transmit video. USB-C 2.0 supposedly cannot. USB-C 3.1/2 supposedly can. The XT1541 unfortunately only has USB 2.0.
- not all phones with 3.1 USB's have the Display Port (DP) alt-mode firmware to seamlessly screencast via the USB charging port. Motorola phones that had both were manufactured with Motorola's proprietary "Ready For" configuration. Ready For was short-lived, probably only 2017-2022, possibly due to DCMA overreach. Current Motorola phones lock screencasting to WiFi-only Google Chromecast (now "Google Streaming").
XT1541 is a mixed bag
The 2022 XT1541 lies on middle ground. It was produced during Motorola's "Ready For" years, but did not receive a 3.1 USB-C port or the DP alt-mode firmware. It can screencast nevertheless. The options (ethernet, wifi) are found in the settings icon circled below, or as described in this video.
Note the phone's icon displays "Ethernet", which is part of a longer scrolling message, "No Wi-Fi or Ethernet connection". Ethernet can only occur via the USB-C port; can the XT1541's supposedly 'too slow' 480Mbs USB-C 2.0 handle screen mirroring? Easily. HD 1080p video requires 5-10Mbs, nowhere near 480Mbs. The supposed need for a USB-C 3.1 to transmit video is a myth.
Accordingly, we should have both wired (Ethernet) and WiFi screen-sharing solutions for the XT1541.
solutions
- WiFi, with or without Google Streaming $80. WiFi dongles such as Miracast or similar, run $40. They screen-mirror via home WiFi like Google Streaming, but don't require internet. Google Streaming requires the home WiFi network be internet-connected in order to screen mirror (creepy).
- Wired Ethernet. We'll at least need a USB-C to Ethernet adapter $15. Configuring the Ethernet for the phone mirroring remains unknown as I write this today, but it is the preferred longer term solution.
- A third option looks promising but is not workable. The hybrid Nyrius transmitter ($70), connects to the USB-C, however it requires that a phone have the DP alt-mode firmware. The XT1541 lacks Motorola "Ready For" firmware and thus lacks DP alt-mode.
Wired Ethernet is the safest long-term solution. Turn-on one's WiFi router, turn off its WiFi, and route the screen-mirroring through its physical ports.
Ethernet process/configuration
In progress. Configuration setups are currently being tested. WiFi screencasting allows the phone and TV to discover/detect each other as nearby devices, and then pass the video stream through the WiFi router.
But how can the phone and TV detect each other via wired Ethernet? This may require a dedicated app on the phone to detect the TV on the network, might depend on the TV's firmware, or some other. Not yet sure.
