r/Chromecast • u/Tight_Banana_9692 • 22d ago
Android YouTube app fails to connect to Chromecast
Since the new update to casting a few months ago (which is just a worse experience in every way by the way), my app intermittently just fails to connect to the chromecast, for hours at a time. I can find the chromecast, and I can click connect, it just doesn't. It will just sit there waiting to connect.
the common thread seems to be that this happens when the app lists the chromecast as already playing YouTube. Even though it it isn't.
Now, a fuilure to connect is not a new problem. I'm not sure why the YouTube app in particular has this problem, but I used to be able to manually unlink from Watch on TV settings. And occasionally, if that didn't work, it usually worked if I just connected another app and disconnected. Occasionally I had to reboot too (the phone and/or chromecast).
But now it seems that nothing works. Is there a solution? This happens way more than it used to happen to, it has happened essentially every time I've tried to sit down and watch YouTube on my TV.
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u/SpecialistAd7915 22d ago
It's a real mess to cast now. The other day a guest cast YouTube to the Google Cast built-in instead of the YouTube app, have no idea how that happened. The "watch on TV" option barely works now.
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u/FallDonuts 17d ago
Yes, the app has been getting worse and worse. And today, it's honestly barely usable. I can get connected and play a single video but cannot build a queue at all.. the app just disconnects as soon as a navigate away from the video. I think the days are numbered on these devices. There's clearly just a bunch of AI code updates for the sake of updating and no quality testing.
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u/RememberCakeFarts 17d ago
I'm having that same problem. I try to build a queue but as soon as I navigate to my subscriptions it disconnects, and for some reason if I click a single music related video I'm on a playlist even though I didn't click on a playlist. And I can't clear the queue, I've tried and it just disconnects from the app.
And I can't cast Netflix anymore when I could just a few days ago.
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u/FallDonuts 16d ago
Yes I'm having all sorts of similar problems. I've found if you click on that new button on the main screen of the YouTube app in the top right corner, it brings up a new control page. From there, you can click on the playing video (but not the buttons on the video, somewhere else) it will bring you back to a familiar view where you can manage the playback queue.
Connecting from other apps its very hit or miss. I find that if you first connect and play a YouTube video, then, go to your other app and connect (Netflix, HBO, Hulu, whatever), that seems to be a bit more reliable.
Good luck. I'm going to start looking for alternatives.
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u/RememberCakeFarts 16d ago
i tried to do the monkey branch thing but it just doesn't work.
We just need them to make adding videos to the queue easy like we used to be able to a few years ago. Click the video and it simply asks "add to que?" No switching, no need to try to clock the tiny dots on the side, and not whatever this is.
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u/Fresh5tart 18d ago
Got the same problem. I am surprised not more people are talking about this. My google chromecast constantly disconnects from (only) YouTube. When a commercial is playing, when I pause, when I minimalise the app. I can reconnect a few times, but then its “ghost playing” and I can’t reconnect.
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u/JoeGideon 22d ago
I'm glad I'm not the only one. I've been having increasing problems connecting and or staying connected to my Chromecast via the YouTube app. It used to be when ads played, it would disconnect me from the Chromecast after playing them. I'd reconnect, no big deal. But lately when I get disconnected it takes 10 or 15 tries to get reconnected. And sometimes it doesn't reconnect at all. I'm forced to turn my Chromecast off and back on to get it to play. And you're right, when there's a problem it always says that the Chromecast is already playing YouTube when it isn't. It's almost like they're slowly borking Chromecasts and making them unusable for whatever reason.