OT: Used laptop to view Internet on TV

[Higgs Boson]

I have cancelled cable because too expensive and too few (about 10) channels out of about 500 that interest me.

At first I tried an indoor antenna, but the stations it received were the pits.

Then I tried to mimic an HDMI connection from my computer (doesn't have HDMI)to TV, but ended up with about $100 worth of cables required for a suggested iffy VGA result in a different room from computer, so didn't get them.

Now looking at low-end laptop/tablet/whatever that does have a direct HDMI connection with my HDMI capable TV.

Was told that HDMI-capable laptops only came in about 4 years ago. T/F? If true, I might be able to score a used laptop/tablet that will do the job. Figured some people can always afford the latest and greatest, so might be selling their laptop/tablet/whatever.

Anybody tried used laptop/tablet with HDMI capability to watch TV?

Your input appreciated.

HB

[Tony Hwang]

Hi, I hooked up Lenovo Thinkpad SL500 laptop to home theater system. It has HDMI and HD audio(digital 5.1 channel). My wife stream many soap operas, TV show, movie, etc. from our old country web sites. Works just fine. If your internet cable can sustain >5mbps steady you can watch video or whatever without any problem. Our cable hook up for Internet is 50/3. You just hook up the HDMI cabel from laptop to TV and activate dual monitor set up making laptop primary, TV set cloning what is displayed on laptop, it is done. So HDMI plus you better look for one with good video card which will give more than HD compatible resolution. Higher the better.

[gfretwell]

If you have a decent video card in your PC it will get you all your TV can reproduce right out of the 15 pin connector. (without the HDMI censorship)

[Moe DeLoughan]

The simplest and cheapest approach to try first is Google Chromecast. It's a $35 android device about the size of a flash drive. Plug it into the HDMI port of your television, power it up, and link to it with your pc. At that point you can 'cast' pretty much anything you can play in your web browser to your television, including most streaming content such as from YouTube, Netflix, Hulu, etc.

Google has just opened it up for developers to create apps that will enable users to stream videos stored on their home network to their televisions. Once those apps are in place, you'll be able to play most videos and music you have in your personal digital collection.

For the price, it's worth trying out to see if it will fit your needs. If it doesn't work out, you're only out $35.

Another easy-to-use option for streaming digital content to the television is Roku. That runs about $90-$100, but again - integrates with your home wifi network, easy to use for online content.

If you are primarily interested in viewing digital video files from your personal collection, then a laptop would be the first and simplest choice. But for streaming internet content, the Chromecast and the Roku are simpler and much cheaper.

[(PeteCresswell)]

Per Moe DeLoughan:

OTOH, perhaps the most expensive and complex approach is running a media app on a PC and watching recorded shows/movies via any device that does WiFi and/or any TV that you have hooked up to a little black box ("Media Extender").

Only shortcoming with WiFi is that it can't support 720 and above. 480 is fine... more exceeds the bandwidth.

A big advantage to me is the ability to skip commercials conveniently. I have not seen an entire commercial in over 5 years.

[Tony Hwang]

Hi, WiFi can stream full 1080P w/o any problem. I can do that sort of thing with my NAS which can even transcoding at reasonable speed.

[Arnie Goetchius]

I'm using a Dell Inspiron N5050 with Win7 and an HDMI connector. I have connected the laptop to the HDMI of the TV with a 15 ft cable with great success. Have now added Chromecast to eliminate the cable. I see N5050 on ebay for $250-$350

[(PeteCresswell)]

Per Tony Hwang:

Can you do it without transcoding?

If so, what WiFi standard? N?

I just got an 802.11ac WAP and can stream to my laptop no problem, but I'm still trying to get my Samsung P600 (which claims to do AC) to play

1080i without stuttering.

[G. Morgan]

Just buy a Roku player for $50. It will outperform the laptop (especially an old underpowered one) for streaming. Add Hulu+ for $8/month and join Amazon Prime and you'll have all the TV/movies/music you can digest. ' The TV needs a HDMI in for hi-def. Your wireless network should have a router with "802.11 N" capabilities for fastest transfer, 802.11 "G" will work, but "N" is preferred.

[G. Morgan]

It's not censorship, it's DRM. You can Google "HDCP" for the specs.

This will break it:

Cable Matters DVI and Coaxial/Toslink Audio to HDMI Converter

So will this:

AVerMedia C985 Live Gamer HD 1080p Capture Card

[Metspitzer]

I haven't tried Roku. This is what I use:

It does Youtube and Hulu, but what I use it for is for playing movies directly off my hard drive.

Anyone compared the two?

[gfretwell]

Why bother with all of that if you have a decent video card in your PC? Just use the 15 pin connector and it will give you all the TV can reproduce and certainly all they are sending on a stream from Netflix, Amazon or Hulu.

GIGO.

It also does not take much PC to keep up with these streams. Just about anything that will run XP will do. I have been carrying a laptop on vacation for years to bypass all of those "rent a movies" in hotels and their WiFi seems to work fine. The only problem is when they have a LodgeNet TV that does not enable any ports other than the RF.

[Higgs Boson]

****GETTING LOST IN THIS IS WHAT I REALLY NEED: To get live programs on TV like I used to with cable.****

I can still play media etc. on my TV via DVD player, so that's not the problem.

Appreciate all the help.

HB

[Bill]

I use a set of "rabbit ears" that costs about $10.99 in Best Buy. I live near Indianapolis so I get about 25 stations, many in HD. The only station I miss is CNBC for the financial news. From what I have seen, none of the "services" offer "live news" (like it sounds like you want). Try the rabbit ears and see how that goes!

[G. Morgan]

Do you live in an area served by this company?

It works very well!

[trader4]

I was wondering that too, ie what exactly it is that the OP wants to receive. But presumably he's figured out that whatever it is, he can watch it on a PC now and he just wants to extend that to his TV. And he did say he used an indoor antenna, but the stations that it received were the pits. I took that to mean the content, not the signal quality, but who knows.

[Jax]

G. Morgan wrote in news: [e-mail]:

Do you watch a lot of TV Graham? Just wondering! :)

[gfretwell]

Of course it is censorship. Right now they are selling it as protecting millionaire content providers from pirates but it is hardware that depends on encrypted tags and they can make those tags respond to anything they want.

A less benevolent government might decide anything they did not approve, was pirated material.

The first implementation I saw was a Comcast cable box that detected an HDMI splitter and shut it down with a nasty message that splitting the signal was not allowed.

Fortunately it did not care if you used the HDMI and the A/V out at the same time.

[Higgs Boson]

) channels out of about 500 that interest me.

on TV like I used to with cable.****

You're correct; it WAS the content. Beyond description! and women sit the re all day in curlers and WATCH this stuff? (Snarky sexist stereotyping... )

About extending PC reception to TV: If that's the only way I can go, it me ans not watching LIVE. Like I just caught Jon Stewart's show of last night on PC today. Means I have to sit in front of PC.

However, the people on this thread who recommended the little "computer" th at plugs right into the TV's HDMI, are right up my alley, because that gadg et -- what was the name again? -- would enable receiving programs LIVE.

Bottom line: I want to receive LIVE programming on my TV w/o cables runnin g from PC one room to TV in another. All the cables and other shit would a dd up to quite a bit, so I will explore the options suggested that (a) plug into TV or (b) can direct TV in same room.

EVERYBODY HAS BEEN SUPER COOL ABOUT HELPING!

HB

[gfretwell]

PCs are so cheap that you can usually get on for free if you don't have an old one laying around. Put a PC under your TV and just use it for entertainment (streamed content, music etc) Mine is on the network so I can send pictures from my digital camera to the TV or anything else I have on any of my PCs.. That is the slide show of the 21st century. Once you get a PC connected, you will be amazed what you can do with it. Get a blue tooth mouse and keyboard and you can run the PC from your easy chair, up to 30 feet away. We have already burned through just about all of House of Cards season

2 but there are still a lot of things out there we can watch. Even if you loaded up Amazon, Netflix, Hulu premium and a few other streaming services, it is still cheaper than cable/sattellite. I am just waiting for the other "cable" networks like Discovery and A&E to start streaming services or just having content producers going off on their own.

The big hole seems to be news channels like CNN but you can get 99% of their content from their web site. You just need to watch it like reading a magazine, selecting what you want to watch, instead of turning it on and letting it run, like TV.