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How to watch Google Drive movies on your Chromecast
Google’s Chromecast or Android TVs with Chromecast built-in is a great way to conveniently watch movies from various devices on your big screen TV. But storing video files on multiple devices is a pain, so using Google Drive as an online personal movie library is a great workaround. However, Google Drive doesn’t natively support casting directly from the app, so you’ll need another way to cast the file. Here are a few step-by-step methods to try so you can watch Google Drive movies on your Chromecast.
Read more: The best Google TV and Android TV options
QUICK ANSWER
To watch Google Drive movies, you will need to use a secondary app like Google Photos. Tap the three vertical dots next to the file name, select Open with, and choose Open with Photos. Tap the Chromecast icon at the top right corner to cast the video file to your TV.
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Cast using Google Photos
If you’re using Google Drive, there’s a good chance you’re using Google Photos too. Fortunately, Photos supports casting for pictures and video, making it a decent workaround for casting your Google Drive movies.
There are two ways to watch your Drive files using Google Photos. In the first method, navigate to your desired file in Drive. Tap the three vertical dots icon next to the file name and select Open with. Wait for the file to download and tap Open with Photos. The video will start playing, and you can cast it to your Chromecast using the familiar cast button at the top right corner.
Alternatively, you can upload your Google Drive movies and pictures directly to Google Photos. They’ll show up in your Photos app alongside your other images for easy casting.
As of July 10, 2019, there will no longer be a way to sync between the two apps automatically, so you will need to upload files manually. To do this, head to photos.google.com and click the upload button at the top right. Select the new Google Drive options and upload your movies.
Casting Google Drive movies with a dedicated app
The above method is acceptable for watching the occasional video but not suitable if you have an extensive library of Google Drive movies to watch on your big-screen TV. Instead, a dedicated casting app is the better option, and there are quite a few that support casting from Google Drive and other sources.
A few popular choices include AllCast, LocalCast for Chromecast, and BubbleUPnP. These apps are ad-supported, with many offering Pro features if you want to disable ads and get the best quality video. While the user interfaces and features vary from app to app, the general idea is the same. I’ll be using BubbleUPnP as an example of how to watch your Google Drive movies on Chromecast.
BubbleUPnP has a simple interface. Open the app and tap the Library tab. You will see all the local folders and cloud options available. Tap Google Drive. If this is your first time using the app, you will need to sign in to your Google account. Play the file, and you will see it in the Now Playing section. Tap the Chromecast icon to cast the video to your TV.
Keep in mind that to get the whole experience, you will need to upgrade to the app’s Pro version. BubbleUPnP is priced at $4.69. This will remove ads and let you stream videos and movies with no time limit. This is essential if you’re planning to watch a movie.
Read more: How to use Google Drive
FAQs
You won’t see a noticeable lag when casting movies from your phone to Chromecast. There might be an initial stutter, particularly with the audio, but everything works as expected after a few seconds. There was no lag when using either method to cast Google Drive movies to Chromecast.
No. The size of the video file doesn’t make a difference as to whether you can cast it from Google Drive or not. It all depends on how much storage space you have available on Drive, though. You will also need the Pro version of most third-party apps like BubbleUPnP to get unlimited casting.