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How To Stream local content via Chromecast

Chromecast was primarily built for its ability to hook up to online streaming services to bring internet TV to your living room. And while this is mostly how you will use it if nothing else it makes a fantastic YouTube device – there will inevitably be times when you have content stored locally on your device that you would like to put on the big screen. This can be done with photos, music and movies, and there are a range of solutions in the Play store. Our favourite is AllCast, free for limited use and £3.00/$4.99 for the premium version.

Connect to Chromecast
When you first launch AllCast it will begin scanning for a Chromecast or other compatible device (including Roku, Xbox or Apple TV) so ensure you’re connected to the same network or you will not be able to proceed. Select the playback device to continue.

Choose your content
Slide open the sidebar from the left of the main screen to see the various content sources you can stream from. The standard music, gallery and movie options are naturally all included, along with some compatible apps that you have got installed.

Casting content
Pick your source to see a grid of thumbnails showing all your available content. Simply tap on one item to begin casting it to your TV screen. In the case of large, HD movie files it may take some time to begin as the file will need to buffer first.

Improve performance
If you find the buffering issue to be too big of a problem, you can improve the performance by altering the bitrate that the movies stream at in Settings. By default it is set to the highest; changing to a lower setting will reduce quality but also eliminate stuttering.