How to connect your laptop to a TV

The major advancements in technology recently has made wireless streaming become incredibly inexpensive and increasingly convenient. To make your life easier, this quick and easy guide will help you connect your laptop to your TV, whether you want to go wireless or wired.

Wireless Connection

Chromecast

Since its wildly popular release in July 2013, Chromecast has risen to become the unofficial king of affordable wireless content streaming. For those unfamiliar, the HDMI-connected dongle uses a variety of third-party apps accessed from your Mac, PC, iOS, or Android device to stream content to your TV. In this way, it eliminates many of the reasons you might need to connect your laptop to your TV in the first place. But Chromecast also allows you to mirror anything playing through a Chrome browser on a Mac or PC. Users have complained that this method can be a bit dodgy, but it’s still a useful way to send just about any online content to the big screen on the cheap.


Airtame

 An Indiegogo superstar, this little device is an extremely cool and efficient way to get things from any PC -  be it Windows, Mac, or Linux based – onto any HDMI-equipped screen. The device works by downloading the Airtame software to your preferred machine, connecting the dongle to the screen of choice, and then selecting said dongle from the app’s menu for streaming.  One of the coolest features about Airtame is its ability to stream to multiple devices from the same machine – all you need is more dongles. Free from the burden of third-party app selection, Airtame  is a great solution for those with mighty computers who want to watch their media on mighty TVs.


Plair 2 HDMI

Plair 2 answers almost all of your streaming needs – as long as those needs are based solely on the Google Play app store, that is. But hang on, Mac faithful – there’s something here for you, too. Instead of using your Android device to access apps directly, the device employs a sort of hybrid method of streaming, allowing you to connect to a wide variety of Google Play apps on your TV through the Plair app itself. And perhaps most impressively, the app can be downloaded for Mac, PC, Android, and iOS devices.
The system works by first connecting the Plair 2 Dongle to your TV’s HDMI input. You then download the Plair app to your desired device, and pair the dongle to your home Wi-Fi network in the app’s settings. Once connected, you use your desired device as a remote for the Plair 2 dongle, which throws the content on the big screen.
From the Plair home screen, you get access to a default selection of streaming apps like Netflix and Hulu Plus, as well as the theoretical ability to download basically any app from the Google Play store. The bad news? We’ve heard some horror stories about usability, buffering, and even crashing. This may be why Chromecast is a celebrity, and Plair 2 is definitely not.

Wired Connection

So you want to go old-school and just run a cable from your laptop to your TV? That’s cool with us, so long as you and your housemates aren’t prone to tripping. Here’s a quick guide on picking the right cable for your laptop and getting all the settings right.

Step 1: Compare Ports on Your TV and Laptop

Ideally, your laptop and TV will have at least one type of display port in common. If you have newer equipment, you’re far more likely to have ports that match – but even if you don’t, you’re fine. There are dozens of crossover cables that can make it happen. Here’s what you’re looking for:

Step 2: Get the Right Cord(s)

Once you’ve scoped out your ports, the next step is finding a cord that will connect your devices. Below we’ve listed the various cords you can use, but it should be noted that all kinds of crossover cords and adapters are available (HDMI to DVI, Mini Display Port to VGA, etc.)

Audio: Since HDMI is the only connection that carries video AND audio, you’ll generally need to get an additional cord to transmit sound if you’re using any other type of connection. In most cases, the easiest, most effective, and affordable option is a two-channel RCA to headphone jack cable - otherwise known as the two-prong red and white thingamabob. Plug the black end into your headphone (audio output) jack, cram the other two into the back of your TV, and if everything goes well, your laptop’s audio should be channeled through your TV’s speakers.

Step 3: Hook Up and Watch

The last step might seem like a no-brainer, but getting what’s on your computer screen to show up on your TV isn’t always as simple as plugging in a cord. In most cases, you’ll need to adjust your laptop’s display settings to ensure that the video ends up on the correct screen. Depending on what operating system your laptop is running, this will require different steps.

Windows

1. Connect your laptop to your display
2. Open Screen Resolution by clicking the Start button , clicking Control Panel, and then, under Appearance and Personalization, clicking Adjust screen resolution.
3. Click the drop-down list next to Multiple displays
4. Choose either Extend these displays or Duplicate these displays. The former will create a second display adjacent to your main one, whereas the latter will mirror what’s shown on your desktop.

*Note: Windows 7 and 8 users can quickly access these display settings by using the keyboard shortcut +P


Mac OS X

1. Make sure your additional display is properly connected and powered on.
2. From the Apple () menu, choose System Preferences.
3. From the View menu, choose Displays.
4. Click the Arrangement tab.
5. Enable (check) “Mirror Displays” in the bottom-left corner, or simply leave it unchecked to “Extend Displays”

URL Resource:

Prindle, D. (2014, February 19). How To Connect Your Laptop To A TV [Web log post]. Retrieved April 7, 2014, from http://www.digitaltrends.com.