HBO Max Has Some Workarounds for Roku and Amazon Fire TV Users

WarnerMedia has yet to overcome an impasse with both Roku and Amazon to get the fresh new streaming services on the hardware manufactured by the companies. Even though NBCUniversal was able to come to terms with Roku earlier this summer and get Peacock on Roku devices around the world, WarnerMedia has yet to come to terms with the equipment providers to get HBO Max on said devices.

Luckily for those hoping to get HBO Max on the big screen, there are some workarounds in place that will allow you to kick back and relax and enjoy Game of Thrones on something other than your phone or tablet. Probably the easiest and most basic set-up to get HBO Max on your television — if you don’t have any of the approved devices that carry it, that is — is the use of an HDMI connection between your TV and laptop or mobile device. Just connect your laptop and TV with an HDMI cable and voila, you can power HBO Max on your laptop and mirror it to your TV.

Sure, it adds yet another cord to your setup and can be burdensome having to step around a laptop sitting in front your TV, but most people have plenty of extra HDMI cables lying around where they can make this happen at once. Just make sure you choose something worthwhile to binge so you don’t have to keep getting off the couch to control movie or show selection on your computer.

The second option is to “cast” HBO Max from your mobile device to your television. If you’re an Apple fiend and have both an iPhone (or iPad) and a device with AirPlay, you can AirPlay HBO Max videos from your phone to said device. Certain televisions from LG, Samsung, and Vizio that natively have AirPlay software built-in.

Casting is also a choice for Android and Windows users if you have a recent Roku player. Should your phone and Roku device be on the same wireless network, you’ll be able to cast from your phone with ease. This option does require some tweaking to the default settings, where users have to go to “Settings,” “System,” and “Screen mirroring,” before they can allow casting from phone to television to take place.

It should be noted the above options are only for those who have Roku devices, Fire Sticks, or neither option. HBO Max is already available on iOS, Android OS, Chromecast, Samsung TVs, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4.

Cover photo by Dogukan Keskinkilic/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images