Cast Basics
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If you're not familiar with Cast terminology and concepts, review the
Cast Glossary before going through the Design Checklist.
Before a Cast session can begin, both the sender device (for example, a mobile phone or tablet)
and the receiver device (for example, a Chromecast plugged into a TV) must be connected to the
same Wi-Fi network.
There are two ways users can start a Cast session:
1. Connect & play: Connect to a Web Receiver before playing content,
content starts from the beginning
2. Play & connect: Connect to a Web Receiver while playing content,
content starts on the Web Receiver at its current position on sender device
1. Connect & play
Android
Tap the Cast button
Cast home screen
Select a receiver
Web Receiver app loading
Play the content
Web Receiver playing content
iOS
Tap the Cast button
Cast home screen
Select a receiver
Web Receiver app loading
Play the content
Web Receiver playing content
Chrome
Tap the Cast button
Cast home screen
Select a receiver
Web Receiver app loading
Play the content
Web Receiver playing content
2. Play & connect
Android
Play the content
Cast home screen
Tap the Cast button
Cast home screen
Select a receiver
Cast home screen
Cast connected
Web Receiver playing content
iOS
Play the content
Cast home screen
Tap the Cast button
Cast home screen
Select a receiver
Web Receiver playing content
Chrome
Play the content
Cast home screen
Tap the Cast button
Cast home screen
Select a receiver
Web Receiver playing content
On Chromecast, a home screen with photos, time and device status appears when no sender devices
are connected. When Web Receiver apps stop running, the home screen is shown.
For more information about how Web Receiver apps stop running, see:
Android
Sender disconnected
Cast home screen
iOS
Sender disconnected
Cast home screen
Chrome
Sender disconnected
Cast home screen
Images used in this design guide
are courtesy of the Blender Foundation, shared under copyright or Creative Commons license.
- Elephant's Dream: (c) copyright 2006, Blender Foundation / Netherlands Media Art Institute /
www.elephantsdream.org
- Sintel: (c) copyright Blender Foundation | www.sintel.org
- Tears of Steel: (CC) Blender Foundation | mango.blender.org
- Big Buck Bunny: (c) copyright 2008, Blender Foundation / www.bigbuckbunny.org
Except as otherwise noted, the content of this page is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License, and code samples are licensed under the Apache 2.0 License. For details, see the Google Developers Site Policies. Java is a registered trademark of Oracle and/or its affiliates.
Last updated 2024-09-18 UTC.
[null,null,["Last updated 2024-09-18 UTC."],[[["\u003cp\u003eSender and receiver devices must be on the same Wi-Fi network to initiate a Cast session.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eUsers can start a Cast session using either "Connect & Play" where content starts from the beginning, or "Play & Connect" where content resumes from its current position.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eChromecast displays a home screen when idle or no sender devices are connected.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eThis guide uses images courtesy of the Blender Foundation, under copyright or Creative Commons license.\u003c/p\u003e\n"]]],[],null,["# Cast Basics\n\nIf you're not familiar with Cast terminology and concepts, review the [Cast Glossary](/cast/glossary) before going through the Design Checklist. \n\nBefore a Cast session can begin, both the sender device (for example, a mobile phone or tablet)\nand the receiver device (for example, a Chromecast plugged into a TV) must be connected to the\nsame Wi-Fi network.\n\n[Cast sequence](#cast-session-sequence)\n---------------------------------------\n\n\nThere are two ways users can start a Cast session:\n\n\n**1. Connect \\& play:** Connect to a Web Receiver before playing content,\ncontent starts from the beginning\n\n\n**2. Play \\& connect:** Connect to a Web Receiver while playing content,\ncontent starts on the Web Receiver at its current position on sender device \n\n### 1. Connect \\& play\n\n### Android\n\nTap the Cast button \nCast home screen \nSelect a receiver \nWeb Receiver app loading \nPlay the content \nWeb Receiver playing content \n\n### iOS\n\nTap the Cast button \nCast home screen \nSelect a receiver \nWeb Receiver app loading \nPlay the content \nWeb Receiver playing content \n\n### Chrome\n\nTap the Cast button \nCast home screen \nSelect a receiver \nWeb Receiver app loading \nPlay the content \nWeb Receiver playing content \n\n### 2. Play \\& connect\n\n### Android\n\nPlay the content \nCast home screen \nTap the Cast button \nCast home screen \nSelect a receiver \nCast home screen \nCast connected \nWeb Receiver playing content \n\n### iOS\n\nPlay the content \nCast home screen \nTap the Cast button \nCast home screen \nSelect a receiver \nWeb Receiver playing content \n\n### Chrome\n\nPlay the content \nCast home screen \nTap the Cast button \nCast home screen \nSelect a receiver \nWeb Receiver playing content \n\n[Cast home screen](#cast-home)\n------------------------------\n\nOn Chromecast, a home screen with photos, time and device status appears when no sender devices\nare connected. When Web Receiver apps stop running, the home screen is shown.\n\nFor more information about how Web Receiver apps stop running, see:\n\n- [Cast dialog, while casting](/cast/docs/design_checklist/cast-dialog#sender-cast-menu-casting)\n- [Sender stops cast](/cast/docs/design_checklist/sender#sender-control-end)\n- [Web Receiver app idle](/cast/docs/design_checklist/receiver#receiver-ui-idle)\n- [Web Receiver paused](/cast/docs/design_checklist/receiver#receiver-ui-pause)\n\n### Android\n\nSender disconnected \nCast home screen \n\n### iOS\n\nSender disconnected \nCast home screen \n\n### Chrome\n\nSender disconnected \nCast home screen \n\n\u003cbr /\u003e\n\n**Images used in this design guide**\nare courtesy of the Blender Foundation, shared under copyright or Creative Commons license.\n\n- Elephant's Dream: (c) copyright 2006, Blender Foundation / Netherlands Media Art Institute / www.elephantsdream.org\n- Sintel: (c) copyright Blender Foundation \\| www.sintel.org\n- Tears of Steel: (CC) Blender Foundation \\| mango.blender.org\n- Big Buck Bunny: (c) copyright 2008, Blender Foundation / www.bigbuckbunny.org"]]