Use The Smartcast App As A Remote To Install Apps On Your Vizio TV
Vizio TVs are compatible with Google Chromecast. You can use this SmartCast setup to add new apps or uninstall old apps from the TV.
The setup lets you add and control all the applications on your Vizio TV. For this, all you need is a Google Chromecast-enabled application on your phone.
However, it is important to know that Vizio TVs offer a small number of apps. This means you are restricted to the pre-installed app in some cases and you might not be able to access many applications on your TV.
Once you open the SmartCast page of your TV, all the available apps will be displayed. Using the app on your phone, you can control a cursor on your TV.
Using this cursor go to the All Apps section and search for the app you want to install.
Note that some older models do not allow you to install new apps on the TV.
Way Better Than Physical Remote
I got this app after I lost my second physical remote , and I’m never looking back. Both remotes would often not register presses. The only reason I’m giving 4 out of 5 stars is because there is a 1-2 second delay between pressing a button and the action happening. Even though the app registers every press and the delay might not sound like a lot, when you’re typing a search term it’s a little annoying. Love having access to the speech input Beta, even though it currently only processes simple terms/phrases like “home” and “go to “. My main feedback would be that searching for content brings you home even if you have an app currently open, whereas I’d prefer to search in-app.
How To Add Apps To Vizio Smart TV Or Smartcast
When it comes to Smart TVs, Vizio is one of the most popular brands out there. This is because they provide a range of affordable 4K Smart TVs.
However, one issue that has bothered Vizio TV users for a while is installing apps. While some cannot access the Vizio TV store, others complain that their favorite apps arent available on the TV.
This guide will show you how to search for and add apps to Vizio Smart TV, SmartCast, or Apple AirPlay. SmartCast is a service that is used to cast your phone to the TV while Apple AirPlay enables the casting of your iPhone to the TV.
These services enable you to access Android and iOS respectively right on your TV.
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How Do You Add Apps To A Vizio Smart TV
To download apps, you will need to make sure your Vizio TV is connected to the internet. If your Vizio TV is a 2018 model or later, you will need to use SmartCast to stream your favorite TV and movie apps. Pre-2017, and you can install apps through the VIA or VIA Plus platforms.
However, if you own a 2016 to 2017 Vizio SmartCast HD TV, then you will need to stream apps from your personal computer, tablet, or smartphone and cast them to the TV using Chromecast or Apple AirPlay. If you own a Vizio SmartCast 4k UHD TV or a standard Vizio SmartCast TV, then all the apps come preloaded onto the television.
If you do not see the app that you would like to use preloaded on your Vizio Smart TV, then keep in mind that any type of Vizio TV can use a Roku, Fire Stick, or some other 3rd party input device that will allow you to download all the apps that you need.
That being said, let us take a look at how you go about downloading apps to a Vizio Smart TV using Viva and Viva Plus platforms as well as how you use SmartCast
To find all the information you need, all you have to do is do a quick web search and you should get hundreds of results.
However, we have done that part for you and have reviewed some of the highest-rated tech websites as well as the Vizio website to provide all the information you need here in a quick and easy-to-read format.
Screensharing On Vizio TVs Using iPhones/ipads
The Vizio TVs also come with Airplay 2, Apples version of screen mirroring. So lets take a look at how screencasting works on an iPhone to use apps on Vizio TVs.
- Open up the streaming app on iPhone or iPad and look for the Apple Airplay icon.
- Tap on the icon and your device will start looking for your wireless TV. Make sure that both your devices are on the same network.
- You will now be able to stream content right away from your device to the TV. In the same way, you can also stream your music and even share your photos on the big screen.
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Vizio Internet Apps Via And Via +
There wasnt much difference between the Vizio SmartCast and the VIA or VIA Plus apps. These apps enable you to stream content from your favorite apps.
Later, it evolved to become more of an app store. It is an exclusive app store that lists down all the supported apps. Vizio doesnt have Google Play or Apple App Store. It relies on the built-in app store, VIA Plus, to enable you to use other apps.
So, if you want to know all the apps that your Vizio TV supports, you will find them there.
Add Apps On Via/via+ Vizio TVs
Vizio Internet Apps and Vizio Internet Apps Plus are the predecessors of the SmartCast ecosystem. If you have an older Vizio TV set, it likely operates on one of these systems.
How do you install apps on them, then?
The process is pretty similar to SmartCast.
- Press the home key on your remote control. This will take you to your TVs main menu.
- Navigate to the All Apps section.
- Youll see a list of all the applications you can install on your TV. Select the one you want and install it.
Casting apps are unfortunately not available on VIA and VIA+.
But there is an alternative: the old-fashioned way.
If you want the convenience of Chromecast without getting a SmartCast Vizio TV, you can buy a separate Google Chromecast device and plug it into the HDMI port at the back of your TV.
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How To Download Apps On Vizio Smart TV
Apps are an integral part of a Smart TV. In this article, you will read how to download apps on Vizio Smart TV.
Smart TVs give us access to enjoy programs on widescreen from the comfort of home. With hundreds of apps, people can watch Netflix, Disney+, YouTube, and so on all in one place. Many smart TV allows users to download/install apps on their TV while some others dont.
Vizio smart TV was known to allow its users to install their favorite apps. Though, in 2016, after Vizio launched its SmartCast platform users were left with no idea how to download apps on VIZIO smart TV.
Download Apps From App Store
As I said, the easiest way to install apps on VIZIO TV is accessing the app store. If youre using VIA or VIA+ TV, then open the built-in app store to perform this quick method.
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How To Download Apps On Vizio TV Without V Button: Easy Guide
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I invested in a Vizio Smart TV a few years ago and was pretty happy with its performance throughout.
It is still going strong. However, a few weeks ago I accidentally spilled coffee on the TV remote.
Although the remote is working fine, the V button has been rendered useless.
I was quite bummed about this since the V button on a Vizio TV remote is essential to access Smart TV features.
In addition to this, I always downloaded new apps on the TV using the V button.
Nevertheless, I wanted to look into possible alternatives to the V button before I thought about replacing the remote.
I was mostly concerned about how to install and uninstall applications without the V button. So, I hopped onto the internet to look for possible solutions.
After going through several forums and blogs on the internet, I found that there are a few ways of accessing the Play Store without the V button.
To save you the hassle of going through all that information, I have listed all the possible workaround to using the V button on a Vizio Smart TV remote in this article.
To download apps on Vizio TV without a V button, the best method is to use the Vizio Internet Apps Plus Platform. You can also sideload apps on the TV using a flash drive or use the SmartCast app.
How Do I Download Apps On My Vizio TV Without The V Button
Screen casting is the only way to go. VIZIO SmartCast 4K UHD TVs launched between 2016 2017 and SmartCast TVs from 2018 wont allow you to install apps externally. Make use of the preinstalled apps or you can make use of the cast feature to screencast from your Android or iOS mobiles and tablets.
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Use Apps On Vizio TVs Using Screencast
As we mentioned earlier that Vizio TVs come with a limited number of apps, so it is possible that you may not find some apps that you want to use on your TV. So how to use those apps on your TV. The best and simple solution to use these apps is by using Screencast.
Since most of the Vizio TVs have the Screencast option, it is quite easy to cast an app from your mobile screen to your TV. So, lets see how to screencast onto a Vizio TV.
- Make sure that your Vizio TV and your mobile device are on the same Wi-Fi network. It is required to be on the same network so that your mobile device will be able to easily detect your TVs wireless display.
- Open up the app that you would like to cast. For example, if its the YouTube app, open it and tap on the Connect to device icon.
- It will now search for wireless displays on the same network, once your TV shows up, select it and you can now screencast to your Vizio TV.
How To Delete An App From Your Vizio Smart TV
If you want to remove a streaming service from your My Apps list on your VIZIO smart TV, you will need to delete it entirely. If you delete an app, you can reinstall it at a later date using the same method to add an app to your VIZIO smart TV.
- Navigate to the My Apps tab.
- Highlight the icon for the app you want to delete.
- Select Delete from the submenu.
- Click OK next to the delete option.
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Another Way To Do This Is In Case You Experience Any Issues
2. Next Type the name of your APP you want to download and then hit space and type apk for smart TV.
Note: .
3. An option appears to download the app from Apk .
4. Next, you see on your screen the download APK file .
5. Next Again you will see the download app button after scrolling down .
6. Press Ok to initiate downloading
After downloading complete
7. Next Click the Downloaded app after Press Open
8. Next Press an Install Button at a right corner of a Download App on Smart Cast TV.
Done Enjoy.
Method 3
If you have the app installed on other devices and wish to stream content to your smart TV, you can mirror or cast the content for a faster result. Turn on Apple Airplay or Google Chromecast if you have one. Then choose your VIZIO SmartCast TV by pressing the Cast button.
That concludes our discussion. You now have more choices when it comes to adding apps to your VIZIO SmartCast TV that are not listed. Were you able to find the apps you needed on the Google Play Store, or did you have to sideload them into your smart TV?
Further How To Add Apps To Vizio TV Without V Button can be found in this detailed topic.
More:
How Are Apps Installed On A Vizio TV
If you have purchased a new Vizio TV, then you should have a SmartCast television and you will need to use SmartCast to stream your favorite apps. We will explain how to do this in a minute.
If you have purchased a used 2017 or earlier Vizio TV that runs the VIA or VIA Plus platforms, then you may want to keep some of the apps that the previous owner has downloaded, however, you may have to make sure that all the apps have been logged-out of by the previous owner.
Keep in mind that it may be easier to just wipe the TV and reset your Vizio TV to its factory settings so you can have a fresh start and download only the apps you plan on using.
Either way, you will want to remove all the apps you do not plan on using to ensure you have enough space for all the apps you intend to install. Here is a breakdown of the step-by-step process of installing apps through the Viva and Via Plus platforms as well as how to use SmartCast.
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How To Add Apps To Vizio Smart TV Using Via Plus
If your VIZIO smart TV is running the VIA Plus platform, you can install apps on your VIZIO smart TV easily. Just follow these directions:
- Press the V button twice on your remote.
- A list of installed apps will be displayed under the My Apps tab.
- Navigate through the Featured, Latest, All Apps, and Categories tabs to locate the app you want to install.
- Press and hold the OK button until the name of the app you want to install appears in the My Apps list.
Can You Download More Apps On A Vizio Smart TV
You can download more apps on Vizio Smart TV by using a streaming device or casting. Streaming devices such as an , Roku Ultra or Nvidia Shield TV work wonders for Vizio Smart TVs.
A Firestick is the least expensive option out of the three while the Nvidia Shield serves as the absolute ultimate streaming device. Ive used all three in the past and theyve worked wonders for me on Vizio TVs.
As discussed earlier, aside from using a streaming device or casting you simply cant download more apps on a Vizio Smart TV as they are built-in already.
Adding apps on Vizio Smart TV not listed in App Store is also possible through casting. This works by using Vizio Smart TVs SmartCast which uses both Airplay 2 and Chromecast.
Vizio has drastically improved their Smart TV capabilities however they left out the best part: the ability to add more apps of your choosing.
These built-in Vizio apps differ greatly from other mainstream Smart TVs as they use HTML 5. The pro to this is that Vizio apps update themselves, sort of like a web based application would.
The con to these built-in apps is that Vizio doesnt enable you to download more apps without using one of the methods listed in this post. Most likely due to the way they make their apps.
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How To Organize Your Installed Apps
So youve amassed some useful apps on your TV. Now what?
All of your installed Vizio TV apps will be displayed on the home screen in the so-called App row.
SmartCast TVs allow you to change the order in which your apps appear on your screen. To do this, select the Customize App Row button at the end of the app list. This will let you move your apps around the home screen, arranging them in any order you like.
If you want to make Netflix the first app that shows up on the screen, you can. Its all up to you.
How Can I Add Apps To My Vizio Smart TV
Before attempting to add apps to your Vizio Smart TV, it could be best you start by determining the platform its running on.
This way, youll know whether you should install the app or cast your favorite content on your mobile devices.
Here are the platforms and other details you require:
- The Vizio Internet Apps : Found on Vizio TVs released between 2009 and 2013. Allows you to install apps.
- Vizio Internet Plus : Found on Vizio TVs released between 2013 and 2017, it allows you to install apps.
- SmartCast with No Apps: Found on Vizio HD Smart TVs released from 2016 to 2017, you cant install apps on them. This platform doesnt provide built-in apps. However, you can cast your favorite content from Chromecast-enabled apps on it.
- SmartCast with Apps: Found On Vizio 4K UHD Smart released into the market from 2016 to 2017, and Vizio TVs released since 2018. You cant install apps on this platform. You either use the in-built apps or cast your content.
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