TV Cast Pro for Samsung TV

Review by eFreeware

TV Cast Pro for Samsung TV is a paid Android browser from 2kit consulting, priced at $6.99, that sends video playing on the web to a Samsung television or Blu-ray player instead of showing it on the phone. The developer's basic pitch is that you can skip buying a streaming box: if your Samsung set already has Smart Hub or VEWD (formerly Opera TV), the app uses that to receive the video. It has been on Google Play since November 2016 and carries a 4.0 average from 2,044 ratings, with more than 50,000 installs.

The reason to consider it is the age range it covers. Support reaches back to the 2010 C series and forward to the 2017 M, MU and Q sets, plus Blu-ray players that run the same smart platform. That is a much older span of hardware than most casting tools bother with, and it is the gap this app is built to fill. If your television falls in that window and you would rather not replace it, this is the kind of tool that makes the set useful again.

It is worth being clear about the shape of the thing before you spend anything. This is not a mirroring app: it does not copy your whole Android screen to the TV, only the video portion of a web page. That distinction matters, because it explains both what works well here and what will not work at all.

How the casting actually works

You browse the web inside the app, navigate to a site with a video on it, and the app looks for the video stream on the page. When it finds one, the link appears below the browser. A single tap on that link sends the video to the Samsung TV or Blu-ray player, and playback happens on the television rather than the phone. The developer describes this as upgrading your existing set rather than adding a box to the shelf.

There is a setup step on the television side. On the TV or Blu-ray player, open the Samsung App Store, find the video section and add the free companion app. Next, type your Android device's IP address with the Samsung remote's number pad and arrow keys. That is a fiddly bit of remote control work, and it is the part most likely to frustrate someone the first time.

The formats the developer lists include mp4, m3u8 and HLS livestreams, along with video served over HTTPS, and Full HD output. If you have a direct video URL rather than a web page, you can paste it into the browser's address bar and play the file straight on the television. The app also handles live-tv shows and online movies, as long as they are not protected by DRM.

What the Pro edition adds

The paid edition is the part that separates this from the free version the developer also offers. The headline extra is a remote playbar, which gives you scrubbing, forward, rewind, play, pause and stop while you are still browsing. The playbar works on all Samsung Smart TVs, which makes it the most broadly useful addition if you watch anything longer than a clip.

The other addition is an ad blocker for most sites you visit, which can be turned on or off in the settings. There are no sponsoring ads in this edition either. Beyond that you get bookmarks, which you can add and manage from a dedicated menu or straight from the browser, and the ability to set a personal homepage once you have bought the app.

The last Pro feature is a desktop mode, which changes the browser's user-agent so websites load their desktop layout rather than the mobile one. One limit: serving a desktop page does not make casting work on sites that use Flash video. Desktop mode is about getting the fuller version of a site, not about widening what can be cast.

What it asks of you and your setup

The app costs $6.99 up front. There are no ads, so the price is the whole of the financial commitment. Refunds, per the developer, are only available within 24 hours of purchase and require the Google Purchase ID. That is a short window, which is a real argument for trying the free edition first.

The free edition is not just a demo of the interface; the developer explicitly asks you to test your own websites and videos in it before paying. The reasoning is blunt and fair: if casting fails on your sites in the free version, upgrading will not make it work. Since the app depends on recognizing the video stream inside a page, a site that defeats the free edition may defeat the paid one too.

On the hardware side you need a Samsung Smart TV from 2010 to 2017 or a Blu-ray player with Smart Hub or VEWD, the companion app installed on that device, and your Android device's IP address entered through the TV remote. Some video simply will not cast: Flash video, Google Play movies, Netflix, Amazon, HBO and other DRM-protected content are unsupported. Those services protect their streams deliberately.

Getting a stubborn video to cast

Some pages hide their video well enough that the app does not spot the stream immediately. The developer's advice for that case is to start playing the video on the Android device first; once it is running, the link tends to get detected and can then be sent to the television. It is a small extra step, but it is the difference between a page that appears to do nothing and one that works.

That is worth doing before concluding that the app is at fault.

When a specific video, movie or livestream still will not cast, the app includes a report feature that sends the website and video link to the developer, who says they will try to add support. If you go that route, it is more useful than a one-star review with no detail, which the developer points out gives them nothing to act on. There is also an FAQ to check first.

Privacy and permissions

The developer makes a point about permissions: the app asks for as little as possible on Android, and they state that it does not access your identity data, accounts, device ID, phone status, GPS location or contacts. They frame this as a contrast with other apps and suggest checking any app's permissions before trusting it.

The general advice to look at what an app requests before installing it is sound regardless of which app you are considering.

A casting tool for older Samsung sets

TV Cast Pro is a narrow, purposeful app. It exists to put web video onto Samsung televisions and Blu-ray players from a specific era, and it does that through a browser rather than through screen mirroring. The $6.99 price covers the playbar, the ad blocker, bookmarks, a custom homepage and desktop mode. The 4.0 rating from 2,044 ratings suggests a generally satisfied but not uncritical audience.

The clearest fit is someone whose Samsung TV was made between 2010 and 2017, who wants to watch web clips, online movies and livestreams on the larger screen without buying new hardware. It also suits anyone who prefers a browser-based approach to casting, where you find the video yourself and send the link across.

The app will not help with DRM-protected services such as Netflix, Amazon or HBO, and it will not mirror your phone's screen. It also depends on a companion app and an IP address entered by remote, and it asks you to test your own sites in the free edition before paying. If your viewing is mostly on those subscription services, the app is not aimed at you. For the specific hardware it targets, though, it is a focused and reasonably priced way to keep an older Samsung screen in service.

What's new in version 2.68

- Bugfixes Please rate us on Google Play == It‘s very quick and will help us improve this app to provide you with better features and services.