Here's how your iPhone 15 can run on an external display

(Image credit: Apple)

One of the biggest things at the Wonderlust event was the new USB-C port on the bottom of the iPhone 15 — although now it looks like there is more to it than meets the eye. Apple's support site has confirmed something that might give you one more reason to upgrade this year.

As well as reaffirming the ability to charge other devices from your iPhone 15 and connecting it to Apple devices, the Apple site confirms that you can connect an iPhone 15 to a USB-C display or TV via its USB-C port. This means you can watch your iPhone on a big screen.

To connect to a USB-C display, use any cable that supports USB 3.1 to get up to 4K resolution and 60 Hz. Just plug it in and you’re ready to go. It’s not going to extend your home screen like you’ll find on a MacBook, but it duplicates and blows up what is already there — for the likes of Netflix and YouTube, that could be huge with bigger screen viewing.

A little more is needed to get the iPhone running with a traditional HDMI display. You will need to grab an adapter from USB-C to HDMI and the screen has to support HDMI 2.0 to get 4K resolution and 60Hz.

Only the start — iMore’s take

As well as all of the above, the support site confirms the ability to connect to the following devices:

CarPlay compatible cars
External storage devices
Monitors and external displays
Microphones
External battery packs
USB to Ethernet adapters
SD cards using SD card adapters

Though the idea of connecting to an external display to annoy your friends with TikToks or share family photos is great, this is only the start of where your iPhone 15 could take you. I take particular interest in the microphone element. Potentially, with nothing but a USB-C mic and Garage Band, you could put together entire albums worth of material. This is particularly useful for artists who use beats and other artist's music to make new songs.

Your iPhone 15 could help you create live shows and, with the ability to connect external hard drives, could record hours’ worth of high-quality video. Apple has a fantastic suite of creative apps and changes like this only further support creatives who want to use their devices on the fly.

James is a staff writer and general Jack of all trades at iMore. With news, features, reviews, and guides under his belt, he has always liked Apple for its unique branding and distinctive style. Originally buying a Macbook for music and video production, he has since gone on to join the Apple ecosystem with as many devices as he can fit on his person.

With a degree in Law and Media and being a little too young to move onto the next step of his law career, James started writing from his bedroom about games, movies, tech, and anything else he could think of. Within months, this turned into a fully-fledged career as a freelance journalist. Before joining iMore, he was a staff writer at Gfinity and saw himself published at sites like TechRadar, NME, and Eurogamer.

As his extensive portfolio implies, James was predominantly a games journalist before joining iMore and brings with him a unique perspective on Apple itself. When not working, he is trying to catch up with the movies and albums of the year, as well as finally finishing the Yakuza series. If you like Midwest emo music or pretentious indie games that will make you cry, he’ll talk your ear off.