ScreenCommand vs iPad Screen Mirroring: A Copy of Your Screen, or a Browser Built for the TV
Screen mirroring is free and built into every iPad and iPhone: plug in a cable or tap Screen Mirroring, and the TV shows a copy of your screen, whatever app is open. ScreenCommand does something else: it puts a full-screen desktop browser on the TV and turns your iPad or iPhone into the trackpad. Here's what each one actually shows, the difference between mirroring and extending, and when free mirroring is the better choice.
Screen mirroring vs ScreenCommand at a glance
Checked against Apple Support · October 2026| Feature | Screen mirroring (built in) | ScreenCommand |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | $4.99 once |
| What the TV shows | A copy of your iPad or iPhone screen | Its own web browser, separate from your screen |
| Fills a widescreen TV, no black bars | ✗Keeps the device's shape | ✓Display's native resolution |
| Websites laid out for the big screen | ✗Sized for the device, scaled up | ✓Desktop pages |
| A cursor on the TV, steered from your device | ✗Only with a paired mouse on iPad | ✓8 cursor styles |
| Shows apps and games | ✓Whatever is on screen | ✗Websites only |
| Netflix and other streaming over a USB-C cable | ✓In each service's own app | ✓In the browser |
| Netflix and other streaming over AirPlay mirroring | ✗The video goes black | ✗Use a cable |
| Works on | Any iPad or iPhone | USB-C iPad on iPadOS 17+, iPhone on iOS 17+ |
Built-in behavior checked against Apple Support in October 2026 and may change. Protected streaming over AirPlay is blocked by the services' copy protection, not by either option.
What screen mirroring shows on a monitor or TV
Connect an iPad without an M-series chip, or any iPhone, to a monitor or TV and it mirrors: the big screen shows an exact copy of the device screen, in the device's own shape. An iPad's squarer, roughly 4:3 picture leaves black bars on both sides of a 16:9 TV, and an iPhone held upright becomes a narrow strip in the middle. Web pages stay sized for the small screen and get scaled up, and everything you do on the device, from notifications to typing, shows on the TV too.
The exception is an app that draws its own picture for the external display. Apple says so in its iPhone documentation: a connected display mirrors the iPhone, except in an app with a second-screen experience, like a video app. That's how a movie can fill the TV while the controls stay on your device, and it's how ScreenCommand works.
Mirror vs extend: which iPads can do more than mirror
Extending makes the monitor a second screen with its own app windows instead of a copy. On iPad that's Stage Manager's extended display, and Apple limits it to M-series models: iPad Air (M1, 2022) and later, iPad Pro 11-inch (M1, 2021) and later, and iPad Pro 12.9-inch (M1, 2021) and later. iPadOS 27 keeps it that way. The base iPad, every iPad mini, the iPad Air (2020) and earlier, and iPad Pro models from before 2021 mirror only. iPhone has no extended display: it mirrors.
See which iPads support extended display, model by model, or read how ScreenCommand compares with Stage Manager.
What ScreenCommand does instead
ScreenCommand doesn't mirror. It draws a desktop-class browser on the monitor or TV at the display's native resolution, edge to edge, while your iPad or iPhone becomes the trackpad and keyboard. The TV shows the web page, not your whole device. It works on iPads that only mirror and on iPhone, over a cable or AirPlay to an Apple TV.
- Desktop websites, no black bars: pages load their desktop layout at the TV's resolution, not a scaled-up copy of a small screen.
- A cursor on the TV: glide a finger on your iPad or iPhone to move it and tap to click, with 8 cursor styles you can spot from the couch. A Bluetooth or USB mouse or trackpad also works on iPad.
- Streaming over a cable: Netflix, Prime Video, Apple TV+, Paramount+ and Peacock play in the browser over a USB-C cable, and YouTube and other web video play over a cable or AirPlay. See what plays where.
- Windows and tabs that stay: up to 4 windows with 12 tabs each, one on screen or two side by side, with your logins still there next time.
- $4.99 one-time: no subscription, no account to create, zero data collection. See the Privacy Policy.
When screen mirroring is the better choice
Mirroring is free, built in, and shows any app. Stick with it if one of these fits:
You want an app on the TV, not a website
ScreenCommand shows websites only. Games, Keynote, photo and drawing apps, and apps like Netflix or YouTube can't reach the TV through it. Mirroring shows whatever is on your screen.
You want the room to see exactly what you see
Showing someone how an app works, or walking a class through your iPad, is what mirroring is for: the TV matches your screen touch for touch. ScreenCommand shows its browser, not your device.
You have an M-series iPad and want app windows on the monitor
Extend with free Stage Manager instead: real app windows on the external display, no purchase needed. ScreenCommand is for browsing, and for the iPads and iPhones that can only mirror.
Your iPad has a Lightning port
ScreenCommand is made for USB-C iPads on iPadOS 17 or later. A Lightning iPad can still mirror, over AirPlay or with Apple's Lightning Digital AV Adapter.
Looking for Sidecar, Duet or Luna Display?
Those work the other way around: they turn an iPad into a second screen for a computer. Sidecar is built into macOS and extends or mirrors a Mac's desktop onto the iPad. Duet and Luna Display do the same job for a Mac or a Windows PC.
ScreenCommand, and this page, are about the opposite direction: your iPad or iPhone showing a picture on a monitor or TV, with no computer involved. If you want the iPad itself as an extra display for your laptop, Sidecar, Duet or Luna Display is what you're after.
Setup: one connection does both
To mirror your screen (free)
- Connect your iPad or iPhone to the monitor or TV with a USB-C cable, or a USB-C-to-HDMI adapter. The screen appears as a mirror.
- Or go wireless: open Control Center, tap Screen Mirroring, and choose your Apple TV or AirPlay-compatible smart TV.
- To stop AirPlay, open Control Center, tap Screen Mirroring, then tap Stop Mirroring.
To put ScreenCommand's browser on the TV
- Make the same connection: a USB-C cable or adapter (recommended, for the lowest cursor latency), or Screen Mirroring to an Apple TV.
- Open ScreenCommand. The browser appears on the TV instead of a copy of your screen.
- Glide one finger on your iPad or iPhone to move the cursor, tap to click, and tap a text field to type.
On iPhone, a cable needs USB-C video out: iPhone 15 or later, except iPhone 16e, iPhone 17e and iPhone Air. Any iPhone on iOS 17 or later can use AirPlay to an Apple TV.
Cable and adapter advice is in the guide to connecting an iPad to a monitor or TV, and the support page covers troubleshooting.
Frequently asked questions
Why does iPad screen mirroring show black bars on my TV?
Mirroring copies the iPad screen in the iPad's own squarer, roughly 4:3 shape, so a 16:9 TV or monitor fills the leftover width with black bars. An iPad without an M-series chip has no setting to change that. M-series iPads can extend instead with Stage Manager, and apps that draw their own picture on the external display, like ScreenCommand's browser, fill it edge to edge at the display's native resolution.
What's the difference between mirroring and extending an iPad display?
Mirroring shows an exact copy of your screen on the monitor. Extending makes the monitor a second screen with its own app windows. On iPad, extending takes an M-series chip and Stage Manager; every other iPad, and every iPhone, mirrors. On any of them, an app can still draw its own full-screen picture on the monitor, which is how video apps and ScreenCommand's browser fill it.
Can an iPhone extend to a monitor instead of mirroring?
No. Apple says a display connected to an iPhone mirrors its screen, except in apps with their own second-screen picture, like video apps. ScreenCommand is one of those: on an iPhone with iOS 17 or later it puts a desktop browser on the TV and turns the iPhone into the trackpad. A cable needs USB-C video out (iPhone 15 or later, except iPhone 16e, iPhone 17e and iPhone Air); any iPhone works over AirPlay to an Apple TV.
Why does Netflix go black when I mirror my iPad to the TV?
AirPlay screen mirroring never carries copy-protected video, so Netflix, Prime Video and similar services show a black picture, often with the sound still playing. A USB-C cable is different: those services play on the TV in ScreenCommand, and the Netflix app plays too. Netflix removed AirPlay from its app in 2019, so without a cable, use the Netflix app on the TV or on an Apple TV.
Should I use screen mirroring or ScreenCommand?
Use screen mirroring, free and built in, to put an app on the TV: a game, Keynote, photos, or anything you want the room to see exactly as you do. ScreenCommand shows websites only, not apps. Choose it for browsing: desktop websites that fill the TV with no black bars, a cursor you steer from your iPad or iPhone, and tabs that keep your logins. It's $4.99 one-time, no subscription.
Is ScreenCommand like Sidecar, Duet or Luna Display?
No. Sidecar, Duet and Luna Display work in the opposite direction: they make an iPad a second screen for a Mac or PC. ScreenCommand makes a monitor or TV the big screen for your iPad or iPhone, with a desktop browser on it, and no computer is involved.
More product questions (pricing, gestures, privacy) are covered in the main FAQ.