TV as Computer Monitor - Comments Page 4

Hi, I was looking for a way to connect my laptop to a TV so i could use it to watch movies and play games on. So then i stumbled upon your page. Everything sounds great, the only problem is that i have a laptop which does not have the S-Video or the RCA, there is only the VGA. My question is, do you know of anyway i can still use this laptop to connect to a TV?

EDITOR'S NOTE: You'll need a vga to s-video adapter.

Hi trying to connect my pc to lcd tv.My comp is a fujitsu/siemens scaleo p multi media edition. My video card has no video out,just video in.,comp in,audio in ,tv antenna,fm antenna.Need help thank you

EDITOR'S NOTE: You seem confused by the terminology. Your video card is on your computer, not your TV.

We plan to buy a 32" flat panel HDTV. Our primary use is for the kids to watch DVD's and for us to use as a computer monitor.

How much of the screen will the computer display actually fill? Will we be comfortable using the screen from a distance of about 6 feet (from the couch!)

Thanks.

We are actually trying to do the opposite - connecting a Samsung Syncmaster 730B to a cable TV box.

What is the best/cheapest way to do this? Since we already have the remote control with the cable TV box, I think we only need a signal converter and a sound output. Any suggestions?

Thanks!

Hi Bob!. My Tv is a D-Boss Lcd or Plasma Tv. or i dont know what is but lets go to the point! Mine is a HD Tv but its not HD ready! Can i install it or What? PLZ help BOB!

EDITOR'S NOTE: I don't understand how you can have an "HD TV" that is not HD ready... Sounds like a contradiction.

Which connection is better? I have a plasma tv which has the VGA input, so from computer connecting directly using the monitor cable or use the S-video on the computer to go to a receiver which does the upconversion to an HDMI which is then connected to the TV via HDMI.

EDITOR'S NOTE: My guess is that the VGA will give a better picture -- less conversions. Try it and let us know...

Hello there I just bought myself a sweet 50 inch Sony Lcd screen and thought it would be pretty awesome if I could hook my computer into it. I went down to Radio Shack and the local geek helped me, he gave me a double ended svideo cable which I gladly bought I then plugged this in to my laptop and my massive tv changed it to the appropriate channel and got nothing but black. Can you please help me?

EDITOR'S NOTE: I don't think it's a "channel" thing. You might need to tell your computer so use a different "input." See if your remote has an INPUT or CHANGE A/V button.

I am using a 26 inch widescreen HDTV as my monitor. Is there a was to expand the screen area. The biggest I can go is 1366 x 768. I was hoping I can fit more onto the screen.

EDITOR'S NOTE: That should be dependant on your computer's video card.

I am hooking up my IBM laptop(running XP) to a Sony HDTV and it works fine until I try to watch a movie (DVD or Netflix download). In both cases the movie window goes to a black screen on the TV while still showing the movie on the laptop screen. Any advice on how to fix this problem? Thanks.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Could be a limitation of your laptop's video card.

My birthday is coming up, and I plan on mounting a TV on my wall to act as my computer monitor for gaming and other things, and to act as my actual TV for console systems. I have only two questions. Won't the TV set have a significantly lower resolution then a monitor of the same size? And will I be able to take advantage of the TV's input switcher and switch to an Input for my console without having to unplug stuff?

EDITOR'S NOTE: If you get an HD TV, then the resolution should be 1920x1080. As the the input switching, it sounds like it should work.

I have a Dell laptop has VGA and my DLP HDTV has DVI, I bought a vga cable and a vga to dvi connector. After I hooked them up, I still couldn't see anything display on my tv. Is there any thing I need to set up on my laptop?

EDITOR'S NOTE: You might need to change the input on your TV. Look for a button the remote for that.

im using a compaq laptop and it has a vga port on it so does my 37" lcd tv when i plug both ends in and turn the television to vga im not getting a picture. my question is that is there something on my laptop that needs to be done in order to make this work.

EDITOR'S NOTE: You probably need to switch the TV to the correct Input.

since my old set recently blew up I'm on the verge of purchasing a new hdtv. I also have a computer that uses 1900 by 1200 for some applications. how much worse would the picture be if I went with a 720 p set and is it even a good idea? I'm not sure how much more horsepower running such a big set would take or would it make any difference? I wish the stores would put these new sets on display as monitors to give us some idea if it's even worth the extra cash. otherwise I don't see the benefits of 1080P.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Remember that HD is 1920x1080. I've always assumed that the 720p sets were lower quality and will not be around much longer...

Dear Bob, Please tell me how can I use more than one monitor(or T.V. as monitor) to share the tasks between them. Many thanks in advance.

EDITOR'S NOTE: See http://askbobrankin.com/dual_monitors.html

Bob, I have a 1080p 37" Sharp Aquos that has HDMI(obviously) and S-Video. My Computer has DVI and S-Video. which would be the better hookup? going DVI to HDMI or going S-Video?

I dont need to worry about sound because both the TV and my computer have optical audio and that is what i am going to use. My question is which will give me a better picture and will my video card support a 1920x1080 resolution? It's an ATI Radeon Pro X1600 512mb and I'm not sure how to find out. I don't want to hook up my computer and realize the whole picture is stretched. Thank You for the Help Bob

EDITOR'S NOTE: The picture quality will probably be the same either way. If you have an S-video cable, use it. A DVI-HDMI adapter cost me $20 at Radio Shack. Check the ATI website for specs on your card.

Dear Bob, My TREO records videos in real player format. How do I convert them into windows media player format?

EDITOR'S NOTE: Search for "convert RM to wmv" and you'll find quite a few options.

i have an rca tv that is a 26in lcd model-l26wd12 and when hook my computer up to the tv it comes up to the loading vista part and then goes black after that is there a specific setting i should use to hook my computer up to it. I am hooking it up with a regular monitor/vga cable.

Useful article there, Bob. Many Thanks. My TV=Hitachi HDTV: ...no DVI invput available......HDMI=Yes. S-video=yes.

Dell Computer: 2 DVI outputs.....S-video output=Yes.......RCA video output=no

Looks like I may be able to produce an HD signal on the Hitachi (from the Dell) via the S-video route, or perhaps I can skin this cat using a DVI to HDMI cable and use the audio output (on dell) to audio input (on Hitachi). Pretty new at this.....at the base of the learning curve.

I have a similar problem to th e post above. I was just given a 30" Philips HDTV, Model# 30PW8520. I noticed the VGA port on the back and immediately thought of using it for a computer monitor.

When I plug it in and turn it on, the DELL splash page and Windows XP loading page pop up, but then the television starts showing flickering lines and bars in all different colors.

Thanks for any advice.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Sounds like you may need a software driver for this TV/monitor. Check at the Philips website first.

I have a Dell Laptop And a 56 inch HDTV. I bought the VGA Cable hooked it up. See everything from Laptop on my television. But can't get the sound to come from the tv. How do I do this? without installing anything to the laptop.

EDITOR'S NOTE: The VGA cable carries only a video signal. You'll need to connect your PC sound card to the audio inputs of the TV.