Can you use a laptop as a monitor for Xbox One or PS4? Yes you can! And in this guide we’ll show you exactly how to do that. There are many players that want to be able to hook their consoles up to their laptops so that they can play them that way.
Wait as the app installs. You should see the phone listed using the name you set. Select this, then agree to the connection on your device. Moments later a browsable interface will be displayed. Simply find the content you wish to view, click play, and stream it to Xbox One from your phone. Users can keep Xbox One connected at home and then stream the games on iPhone or iPad via Wi-Fi, LTE, and even 5G if you already have an iPhone 12. Microsoft also promises that the new Xbox app is.
If you own an Xbox One or a PS4, then you might be wondering how you can play these consoles on your laptop screen. It might not be obvious at first and this could leave you stumbling around to try to figure out how to get it to work. Thankfully, it’s going to be simple to accomplish this so long as you know what you’re doing.
This little guide is going to help you learn how to play PS4 and Xbox One on your laptop screen with HDMI. There are several steps to consider and you’re going to need to pay attention to each of them.
Take a look at how to accomplish this on the Xbox One first and then stick around to see how it’s done on the PS4. When all is said and done, you’ll have an easy time getting your consoles to display on your laptop screen.
How to Use A Laptop As A Monitor For Xbox One
Connecting your Xbox One to your laptop is going to be significantly less convoluted than the PS4 solutions above. The first option is just going to involve using a standard HDMI cable.
To start things off, make sure that your Xbox One is powered off. Next, ensure that you don’t have any programs running on your laptop.
Plug your HDMI cable into the HDMI port on your Xbox One. Insert the other end of the HDMI cable into your laptop’s HDMI port. Turn your Xbox One on and the laptop should detect it after a couple of minutes have passed.
If it doesn’t detect it, then don’t worry because you can fix this by going to the settings menu. Go to the display settings of your laptop and make the appropriate changes.
Now, you probably know that it won’t work for a normal display because neither your laptop nor your Xbox One have HDMI inputs.
However, you’re going to be able to broadcast the games to your laptop using the Xbox One. This allows you to use your laptop as an alternate screen when you don’t want to play on a traditional television screen.
You can even connect your Xbox One to your laptop without an HDMI cable if you have the latest version of Windows. Connecting the Xbox One to your laptop via Windows 10 is very simple and it might be the best way to go about this.
This is possible because of the DirectX 12 feature on your operating system. The Xbox One has been made to be very compatible with Windows 10.
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All you really need to do is download the Xbox App on your laptop. This makes it easy to seamlessly connect your Xbox One and your laptop.
It’s even going to be possible to join Xbox Live parties when you’re on your PC. Even cross-multiplayer is supported and this gives you more options for enjoying your video games.
Streaming games directly to your PC is going to be easy using this app. You’re going to need a good WiFi connection for this to work properly, but so long as you have that, it should be easy to get things going.
Launch the Xbox app, sign in to your Xbox account, then go over to your Xbox One console. Ensure that you have game streaming enabled in your console settings.
To find this setting, you’ll need to go to the Settings menu and then go to Preferences. Once there, you should see an option that says “Allow game streaming to paired devices.”
You need to make sure that this option is checked so that you can stream games to your laptop. You’ll then see a connect button to the left of the interface that you can click.
Remember that both your Xbox One and your laptop need to be connected to the same WiFi for this to work. As long as you did things properly, it should be easy for you to enjoy video games on your laptop screen.
If you have Windows 10 on your laptop, then this is the route to go when you want to play Xbox One on your laptop.
How To Use A Laptop As A Monitor For PS4
Playing your PS4 on your laptop screen with HDMI is going to be the trickiest part of this guide. It isn’t as simple as connecting an HDMI cable from your PS4 to your laptop.
You see, both your laptop and your PS4 have HDMI outputs. They don’t have HDMI inputs and this is where you’re going to run into trouble.
So, how do you go about playing your PS4 on your laptop screen? The easiest method is to own a video capture card that will work for you.
It’s expensive to go this route, but it’s pretty easy to set things up once you have what you need. You’re going to need to have a video capture card, your laptop, an Internet connection, your HDMI cable, and you’ll have to enable file sharing.
To enable file sharing, you need to go to the settings in your PS4 menu. After this, you have to go to Network Settings and then proceed to Internet Connection Settings.
Find your router and then proceed to connect with it. If you aren’t using WiFi, then you’ll have to configure the PS4 and your laptop to the router using Ethernet cables.
Next, you’re going to need to use your video capture card that will enable you to connect your PS4 to your laptop. The video capture card should connect to your laptop via the USB port.
You have to install the software that came with your video capture card as well. After this has been accomplished, it’s time to connect your PS4 to the video capture card.
How To Play Xbox One On Your Macbook Pro
Connecting the PS4 to the video capture card involves using an S-video connection cable. Connect the HDMI-in on your capture card with the HDMI-out on the PS4 console.
After this, you can open the software application on your laptop and then power your PS4 on. You should see the software search for the PS4 and then display the PS4 images on your laptop screen.
How To Play Xbox One On My Macbook Pro
Following the above steps will allow you to play games on your laptop screen with ease. This is a lot to remember and it’s going to cost you a fair bit of money, but this method works well.
It’s also great for capturing gameplay if you’re looking to record video for a YouTube channel or something else like that. Those who don’t have the money for a capture card still have one more option to consider to get PS4 games to play on their laptops, too.
PS4 also offers a neat remote play feature that will let you play your PS4 games on your laptop. This basically streams your PS4 gameplay over to the laptop.
You’ll need a USB cable, a good Internet connection, and a Playstation Network account to get this working. You’ll also need to use your TV to get this set up, so it won’t be possible to get remote play working if you only have a laptop and a PS4.
The first thing that you have to do is to go to the Sony website for remote play. This will allow you to download the latest version of the remote play app and you can choose either Windows or Mac.
This app will allow you to stream the gameplay to your laptop screen. Take the time to run the installer and then you can move forward.
To get your PS4 ready for the connection, it’s going to be necessary to activate your PS4 as the primary PS4 for your household. You’ll also need to update the PS4 to the latest firmware.
With this done, you can now go over to your Settings and then go to Remote Play Connection Settings to check if it is enabled. This will allow you to access games from your network and it should work when the PS4 is in rest mode, too.
Activate rest mode on your PS4 if it isn’t activated already. Now go to the remote play app and click Settings in the left corner of the app.
This will allow you to change things such as resolution and frame rate. Click the appropriate settings that will work for your laptop and network and remember that higher settings will eat up more bandwidth.
Connect your Dualshock 4 controller to the laptop by using a USB cable or the Dualshock 4 wireless USB adaptor plug. Hold down the share button on the controller until the light starts to flash. If using the USB adaptor, you’ll have to hold it in a pushing position for several seconds until it is paired.
With all of this done, you should be able to start using remote play. Hit start and sign in with your Playstation ID. This will take you to the PS4 home screen and you can go from there.
You can even put the PS4 back into rest mode when you’re done by holding the Playstation button and then picking the appropriate option. It might have taken some time to set this up, but remote play works pretty well if you have a good enough Internet connection.
See which wireless controllers are supported
- Xbox Wireless Controller with Bluetooth (Model 1708)
- Xbox Elite Wireless Controller Series 2
- Xbox Adaptive Controller
- Xbox Wireless Controller Series S and Series X
Pair a controller to your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Apple TV, or Mac
- Press the Xbox button to turn on your controller.
- Press and hold the Connect button for a few seconds to put your controller into pairing mode.
- Follow the steps to pair a controller to your iOS or iPadOS device, Apple TV, or Mac.
If your controller doesn’t connect or work as expected
- Unpair it, then pair it again. If you still can't pair or connect, get help pairing your Bluetooth accessory to your iOS device.
- Make sure that you're not trying to connect too many Bluetooth accessories at once. Apple TV 4K and Apple TV HD support up to two of the same kind of controller at once, or one controller with a combination of Bluetooth audio devices. Other controller and audio Bluetooth limits vary by device.
- Check that the firmware on your controller is up to date.
- Some controller functions aren't supported when paired with an Apple device, including the controller's audio jack. Contact Apple Support for more details.