Board logo

Playing videos from P.C to TV
chris68 - 18/1/15 at 09:58 AM

Hi all you computer experts out there!

I have an old laptop running VISTA (works for my non-tech brain!) on which I have several videos from various car shows, holiday etc and I want to be able to just run a lead from the laptop to my TV and play them on that. I know I can download them onto CD but have loads of spare disc space so don't need to. Can this be done and if so how? Please keep it simple!

Looking on the laptop there are several spare USB ports and a VGA socket. On the TV there is also a USB and a VGA socket. Is it as simple as just running a male to male VGA lead between the P.C. and TV so the TV becomes the screen? Or is there some techno stuff to do on the PC before it will work?

Any suggestions welcome.

Many thanks,

Chris

loggyboy - 18/1/15 at 10:06 AM

Just a monitor lead to the vga sockets, although sound will come from pc unless you add a cable to suit that too.

[Edited on 18-1-15 by loggyboy]

chesney321 - 18/1/15 at 10:09 AM

I download all the time on my computer and then watch it on the bigger screen of my tv.i used an hdmi cable on mine but it should be the same set up using the vga cable.just plug them both together and go into the display settings on your lap top and choose the screen setting choose the multiple screen setting and set up the tv as your second screen it will then play anything you have on lap top to your tv

gremlin1234 - 18/1/15 at 10:41 AM

yes a vga lead should do
one other alternative it to write them to a memory stick, and play from that on the tv.

Andi - 18/1/15 at 12:10 PM

I use a usb stick/external hard drive but found the tv only plays the odd format. Hardly any downloadable films like xvid etc.
So I use this with a 64gb usb stick (though it has enough internal memory to store a couple of movies without the stick)
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/like/221547348186?limghlpsr=true&hlpv=2&ops=true&viphx=1&hlpht=true&lpid=108&chn=ps&device=c& ;adtype=pla&crdt=0&ff3=1&ff11=ICEP3.0.0-L&ff12=67&ff13=80&ff14=108&ff19=0

Andi

[Edited on 18/1/15 by Andi]

chris68 - 18/1/15 at 01:32 PM

Thanks for the replies. I will go the VGA route to start with and see if that works.

Slimy38 - 18/1/15 at 01:37 PM

quote:
Originally posted by Andi
I use a usb stick/external hard drive but found the tv only plays the odd format. Hardly any downloadable films like xvid etc.


I've had a few USB capable TV's, and I agree there is no consistency with format. I tell a lie, there is one consistency, none are able to play MKV!

I have a DLNA capable blu ray player now, it was really easy to set up a Windows Media server and then it was a case of switching things on and pressing play.

19sac65 - 18/1/15 at 02:14 PM

I used vga lead and a mini jack to phonos for sound for a while and it was fine off my laptop - no problems with different formats
Now ive got a smart tv i juat drop everything onto a Hdd and plug that in , using the tvs media player