A few more details about the issue:

* The keyboard still works, but the Bluetooth mouse and PS4 controller don’t respond properly when using the external display.
* Steam Link works normally on the iPhone itself when the HDMI adapter is disconnected.
* I tried another genuine Apple HDMI adapter, but the issue remained.
* With the default streaming resolution, the image sometimes appears smaller on the external display. The mouse cursor appears to move on the screen, but the actual input position doesn’t seem to update. Clicking in different places still activates the same spot.
* If I reconnect, the image returns to full screen, but the cursor no longer moves and I can’t interact with the stream.

Other users seem to be experiencing similar controller issues with external displays. Could this be a Steam Link bug? Has anyone found a workaround?

I'm experiencing this exact same issue on my iPad running iPadOS 26.6.2.

Steam Link displays normally on my external monitor, and my Bluetooth keyboard works, but the mouse cursor stays on the iPad and won't control the PC. The iPad's usual Steam Link control interface is also completely blank.

This exact setup worked perfectly as recently as October 17. I've restarted everything, reconnected Bluetooth devices, and even completely deleted and reinstalled Steam Link. Nothing has fixed it.

Disconnecting the external monitor immediately restores normal mouse functionality.

Definitely seems like a recent regression affecting external displays. Hoping Valve can investigate and push a fix soon!

I found a workaround that lets me control Steam Link on my external monitor about 70% of the time, although it is still unreliable.

1. Turn Bluetooth off.
2. Launch Steam Link and connect to the PC.
3. Immediately connect the HDMI adapter and switch the display to the external monitor.
4. The iPhone itself must show the game screen, not a black screen.
5. If the external monitor shows the game in a smaller-than-full-screen image with no audio, turn Bluetooth back on.

With this sequence, mouse input sometimes works. However, if the external display switches to full screen, the controls do not work for me.

Even when it works, the mouse cursor seems to move in sync on both screens, but the cursor positions on the iPhone and external monitor do not seem to match. This makes clicking difficult, and I sometimes accidentally touch the iPhone’s home bar, which disconnects the stream.

This seems to be related to how Steam Link handles external display switching and cursor coordinates. Has anyone else experienced this, or found a reliable fix?

I just wanted to bump this thread as this is my exact issue and makes Steam Link almost useless for me. iOS version 27.0.1.

Just an update. I'm on 27.2 and the issue is still persistent. I think Steam is going to need to update the steam link app as it sounds like a fundamental change in how iOS handles external screen connections.
I'm not an expert, but testing with AI's help has left me with the following:
"The input routing architecture in iOS 27 simply won't pass those synthetic events through to the external monitor context.
The fact that the clicks stay bound strictly to the iPhone screen—even when mirroring—means the UIWindowScene mapping on iOS 27 is trapping the mouse's coordinate space to the primary display's bounds."

This is fixed for the next update.

When will the next release be? I am seeing the same issue with controllers and touch controls

Originally posted by slouken:

This is fixed for the next update.

Thank you so much for fixing the mouse and audio issues in the latest TestFlight version! I really appreciate your work. Steam Link is now almost back to normal when using my iPhone with an external monitor.

I have two issues I’d like to ask about.

1. The iPhone home indicator

When using a mouse with an external monitor, the home indicator at the bottom of the iPhone screen can easily be triggered accidentally. When this happens, Steam Link exits and returns to the iPhone Home Screen, interrupting my game.

I’m not sure exactly when this behavior started, but it has become a frequent problem. Is there any way to prevent this? It would be great if Steam Link could hide or disable the home indicator while streaming to an external monitor, or otherwise prevent it from interrupting the stream.

2. Blurry and fluctuating image quality

When streaming to an external monitor, the entire image repeatedly switches between blurry and sharp, several times per second. The game itself continues running, but the image quality keeps fluctuating. I also noticed stuttering in games, and YouTube playback may show similar image quality fluctuations when using the same adapter.

The image looks fine when using Steam Link directly on my iPhone. I’m not sure whether this is a Steam Link issue or a problem with my setup, but I wanted to report it in case it helps.

Thank you again for your hard work!

Glad to hear this is fixed, I'm having a similar problem on the latest VisionOS on my M2 Vision Pro. I'll keep my eyes peeled for the next TestFlight update

This should be fixed in version 1.4.5. Please let me know if you have any issues!