Technological progress is now proceeding so quickly that to keep up you need to change smartphones regularly, but if you have a smartphone 2 or more years ago that you no longer use, you can avoid it ending up in a drawer to make dust, reusing it for other purposes.
For example, any Android smartphone can be used as a media player for your TV, so that they can read any audio / video format without having to resort to a TV Box or the purchase of a new Smart TV.
The only real requirement is support for MHL technology (which allows you to connect a special cable for HDMI to the USB socket) or, if your smartphone does not support this feature, support for Miracast (to transmit the contents reproduced on the display to the TV via wireless network) or a Chromecast to use the proprietary Google Cast protocol.
On these lines you will find all the steps to transform an Android smartphone into an absolutely valuable media player for your TV ; I will show you the methods you can use to make the connection between smartphone and TV and finally the apps that you can use for free.
READ ALSO: Guide to connect mobile phone or tablet to TV (Android, iPhone or iPad)
MHL
If you have a device that supports MHL you can buy the suitable cable to connect your smartphone to the TV using HDMI.
These cables are on sale at affordable prices on any e-commerce platform; for this guide I will recommend you to use the cable present here -> Dshs 6.5 feet MHL 11 pin micro USB to HDMI (11 €)
This cable is compatible with Samsung Galaxy (any version), Note 2, Note 3, Note 8 and in general all Samsung devices released in the last 3-4 years.
The connection is quite simple: connect the HDMI socket to one of those available behind the TV, connect the large USB cable to a power charger or to a powerbank and the small USB cable to the smartphone.
The smartphone screen will automatically be transmitted to the TV through the HDMI input used.
Miracast
If you want to use Miracast to connect your smartphone to the TV, make sure that the latter supports this technology by checking in the settings menu or in the Smart TV section.
Once Miracast mode is activated, it will be sufficient to connect the smartphone to the same WiFi network as the TV to transmit the screen using the Transmit function (present on every Android device from 4.4 onwards).
Use this button to find the TV on the network and start streaming your smartphone screen wirelessly.
Chromecasts
Another solution to connect the smartphone to the TV is the Chromecast, which uses a proprietary protocol that can guarantee high compatibility whatever smartphone you use.
If you don't have the Chromecast you can buy it using the following link -> Chromecast (€ 39)
Once the Chromecast is connected to the TV and to your home wireless network, you can transmit the screen using the functionality integrated in Google Home and visible in the image below. This functionality is only available in the Android version of the app.
READ ALSO: Chromecast guide with 18 tricks and applications to make the best use of it
Once connected the old smartphone to your TV with one of the methods described above you just have to use specific apps to get the media player on TV.
VLC (recommended only with Miracast or Chromecast)
The first app you can try is VLC, simple to use without any need for configuration. You can download the app for free from here -> VLC for Android
This app I recommend you use it as a media player for your TV only if you can easily access the screen of the device (for example if you use Miracast or Chromecast), otherwise it is difficult to manage if connected via MHL.
Kodi (recommended with MHL cable)
A good app that you can use if you use the MHL cable is Kodi, a complete media center that can also be managed without problems by another Android device (which will act as a remote control). You can install Kodi on your new media player using the link provided by the Google Play Store -> Kodi for Android
Install this app on your smartphone to convert to media player and enable remote control from the Settings menu -> Services -> Control. Once you have entered this menu, enable all the checkboxes present and also enter an access password, as I indicated in the image below.
READ ALSO: Best Android Apps to watch videos and movies on mobile and tablet
Kodi remote control is now active. In order to make the most of it, try to recover the IP address of the smartphone together with the port number (default 8080), the username (default kodi) and the password (which you have chosen as indicated in the screen above), will be indispensable in the second part of the guide.
Now that Kodi is ready to be controlled remotely, add all the multimedia content you want to play, both if present in the internal memory of the smartphone and if present in the microSD or in other locations on the network (such as for example on another PC with shared folder, on a NAS or any other networked device capable of sharing content).
Now that your media player is ready, leave Kodi running on this smartphone, take another Android portable device and install the following free app -> Yatse: Kodi Remote Control
With this app you can control the Kodi just installed and configured on the other smartphone without any problem, with the ability to choose the content to play, pause, insert subtitles, choose the playback volume, mark the contents already seen and play a variety of extra content like the trailer.
Using and configuring Yatse is simple: connect the smartphone you intend to use as a remote control to the same WiFi network where the other smartphone is present (with Kodi configured), then enter the IP address of Kodi, the port used, the name as host user and password.
After a few seconds you will have control of Kodi without having to check the screen of your "media player" smartphone every time.
For example, any Android smartphone can be used as a media player for your TV, so that they can read any audio / video format without having to resort to a TV Box or the purchase of a new Smart TV.
The only real requirement is support for MHL technology (which allows you to connect a special cable for HDMI to the USB socket) or, if your smartphone does not support this feature, support for Miracast (to transmit the contents reproduced on the display to the TV via wireless network) or a Chromecast to use the proprietary Google Cast protocol.
On these lines you will find all the steps to transform an Android smartphone into an absolutely valuable media player for your TV ; I will show you the methods you can use to make the connection between smartphone and TV and finally the apps that you can use for free.
READ ALSO: Guide to connect mobile phone or tablet to TV (Android, iPhone or iPad)
Use an Android smartphone as a media player for TV
MHL
If you have a device that supports MHL you can buy the suitable cable to connect your smartphone to the TV using HDMI.
These cables are on sale at affordable prices on any e-commerce platform; for this guide I will recommend you to use the cable present here -> Dshs 6.5 feet MHL 11 pin micro USB to HDMI (11 €)
This cable is compatible with Samsung Galaxy (any version), Note 2, Note 3, Note 8 and in general all Samsung devices released in the last 3-4 years.
The connection is quite simple: connect the HDMI socket to one of those available behind the TV, connect the large USB cable to a power charger or to a powerbank and the small USB cable to the smartphone.
The smartphone screen will automatically be transmitted to the TV through the HDMI input used.
Miracast
If you want to use Miracast to connect your smartphone to the TV, make sure that the latter supports this technology by checking in the settings menu or in the Smart TV section.
Once Miracast mode is activated, it will be sufficient to connect the smartphone to the same WiFi network as the TV to transmit the screen using the Transmit function (present on every Android device from 4.4 onwards).
Use this button to find the TV on the network and start streaming your smartphone screen wirelessly.
Chromecasts
Another solution to connect the smartphone to the TV is the Chromecast, which uses a proprietary protocol that can guarantee high compatibility whatever smartphone you use.
If you don't have the Chromecast you can buy it using the following link -> Chromecast (€ 39)
Once the Chromecast is connected to the TV and to your home wireless network, you can transmit the screen using the functionality integrated in Google Home and visible in the image below. This functionality is only available in the Android version of the app.
READ ALSO: Chromecast guide with 18 tricks and applications to make the best use of it
The best apps to use your old smartphone as a media player on TV
Once connected the old smartphone to your TV with one of the methods described above you just have to use specific apps to get the media player on TV.
VLC (recommended only with Miracast or Chromecast)
The first app you can try is VLC, simple to use without any need for configuration. You can download the app for free from here -> VLC for Android
This app I recommend you use it as a media player for your TV only if you can easily access the screen of the device (for example if you use Miracast or Chromecast), otherwise it is difficult to manage if connected via MHL.
Kodi (recommended with MHL cable)
A good app that you can use if you use the MHL cable is Kodi, a complete media center that can also be managed without problems by another Android device (which will act as a remote control). You can install Kodi on your new media player using the link provided by the Google Play Store -> Kodi for Android
Install this app on your smartphone to convert to media player and enable remote control from the Settings menu -> Services -> Control. Once you have entered this menu, enable all the checkboxes present and also enter an access password, as I indicated in the image below.
READ ALSO: Best Android Apps to watch videos and movies on mobile and tablet
Kodi remote control is now active. In order to make the most of it, try to recover the IP address of the smartphone together with the port number (default 8080), the username (default kodi) and the password (which you have chosen as indicated in the screen above), will be indispensable in the second part of the guide.
Now that Kodi is ready to be controlled remotely, add all the multimedia content you want to play, both if present in the internal memory of the smartphone and if present in the microSD or in other locations on the network (such as for example on another PC with shared folder, on a NAS or any other networked device capable of sharing content).
Now that your media player is ready, leave Kodi running on this smartphone, take another Android portable device and install the following free app -> Yatse: Kodi Remote Control
With this app you can control the Kodi just installed and configured on the other smartphone without any problem, with the ability to choose the content to play, pause, insert subtitles, choose the playback volume, mark the contents already seen and play a variety of extra content like the trailer.
Using and configuring Yatse is simple: connect the smartphone you intend to use as a remote control to the same WiFi network where the other smartphone is present (with Kodi configured), then enter the IP address of Kodi, the port used, the name as host user and password.
After a few seconds you will have control of Kodi without having to check the screen of your "media player" smartphone every time.
