As an owner of a Chromecast device, I was frustrated to discover that it seemed to be draining my phone battery much faster than expected. After doing some research and testing, I’m here to share my findings and explore potential solutions to this issue.
Casting apps to Chromecast through your phone doesn’t drain its battery because you won’t be actively streaming content from your Android or iOS device. You won’t be playing any media on your phone but rather allowing Chromecast permission to open apps on your TV.
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| Chromecast does not drain phone battery when casting apps, but it does consume battery power when streaming local media from the phone. |
| The Google Home app will not significantly impact phone battery when setting up Chromecast. |
| Using your phone as a remote control to control the apps you cast to your TV can slightly increase battery consumption. |
| When streaming a video or a slideshow to your TV, your phone will also be playing the media, which causes a much higher battery consumption. |
| Chromecast will also consume battery on a laptop if it’s used to stream media. |
| When casting apps from your phone to Chromecast, it’s best to keep your phone on to prevent interruptions. |
Table of Contents
In What Cases Does Chromecast Use Phone Battery?
Nothing is perfect; that’s why there might be some cases where using and controlling Chromecast can use up your phone’s battery. However, the power consumption is usually insignificant here, so it doesn’t get to the point of actually draining your battery.
Using the Google Home App
For example, when setting up Chromecast via the Google Home app on your phone, you’ll be actively using your phone’s power to go through the process. But again, it won’t have a huge impact on your battery’s percentage.
Casting to Your TV
Another scenario is the action of casting itself: opening the app, tapping the “Cast” option, and so on.
But, once the connection reaches your TV, all the commands can be sent via your remote control. So you can drop your phone down and not worry about its battery.
Converting Your Smartphone Into a Remote
A lot of people like to control the apps that they cast to their TV via their phones, using them as a remote control instead of the TV’s dedicated remote.
If you do that, you can expect a slightly faster battery power consumption, but it shouldn’t get to the point where it’s alarming.
Sharing Media Stored on Your Phone
Now, this is the case that will have the most substantial impact on your phone’s battery. When you connect your phone to Chromecast and play videos, movies, a presentation, or a slideshow on your TV, this media will also play on your phone’s screen at the same time.
Therefore, your batteries will lose their power much quicker than all the previous scenarios combined!
Read more: Can I password-protect Chromecast?
Should I Keep My Phone on After Starting a Chromecast Stream?
This tends to vary from one app to another. Yet, as a general rule, it’s best to keep your phone on after starting a Chromecast connection to ensure it doesn’t get interrupted. No one likes a lagging screen in the middle of a fast-paced, action-packed thriller!
Still, many users report that the following apps work just fine if you turn off your phone for any reason after casting:
- Netflix
- Pandora
- Hulu Plus
However, keep in mind that this mostly applies to Android apps. But if you’re using an iPhone or iPad with Chromecast, you can find out if you might be able to turn them off after casting by trying this yourself.
You can also give other apps a shot and see if they’ll perform the same way as Netflix or Pandora.
Yet, as there isn’t a negative impact on your phone’s battery while casting to Chromecast, we don’t see a reason why you might want to switch it off.
Remember that you won’t be able to turn your phone off when sharing local media with Chromecast. If you do this, you’ll have no access to the video or photo files.
Does Chromecast Drain a Laptop’s Battery?
Yes.
Things will be different if you’re using a laptop to cast to Chromecast. The reason behind this is that you won’t be sharing an app with your TV but the screen of your Chrome page through the “Cast” option in the Chrome Settings menu.
What this means is that you’ll first open the Spotify or YouTube webpage on Chrome, cast the screen, then play the media. In this case, the song or video will play both on your laptop and your TV, which will consume your laptop’s battery power.
If it’s a three-hour movie or a few episodes of a series you’re watching, that might drain your laptop’s battery in almost no time. So, always have your charger nearby!
To Wrap It Up
Read more: Chromecast disconnects when phone sleeps
The short answer is no; Chromecast doesn’t drain phone battery as long as you’re casting apps, not directly streaming local media from your phone. In the latter case, Chromecast will consume battery power depending on how long you’ll be using it.
With all this in mind, you can now cast apps from your phone to your Chromecast without worrying about your phone dying in the middle of a movie. So, happy streaming!
