Internet to tv

[moonlight]

First... Hi I'm new.
Second... down to business.

I want to be rid of my cable tv and watch programs off the internet. I'd LIKE to be able to use a computer strictly dedicated for that purpose. Thing is I don't want to watch off a monitor at this point (might in the future). Anyway I can send from CPU/internet to TV screen?

[Supreme2k]

Two ways:
1. Your video card already has a composite out, which can feed to your television's input.
2. You need to get an add-on television output device


Possible 3rd way (but rare): Your tv has 15-pin monitor input (or your card outputs to hdmi and your tv accepts it).

[rumplestiltskin]

If you have the appropriate video "out" on your PC that would connect to your TV, no problem.

Most wide-screen LCD TVs today will have at least one of the following inputs:

- Composite (which would probably be limited to 640x480).
- Component (full-res of your TV; 720p, maybe 1080i. Audio is separate.)
- HDMI (same as above but includes the audio)

So the video card you have will determine how it all connects. Basically, the TV has become your PC's monitor.

My TV also has a VGA connector but, as this is analog, the quality isn't as good as HDMI (but might be fine for your use). Audio is separate, of course.

The other thing to consider is what resolution are the videos streaming over the Internet (or downloadable to your PC)? A 640 x 480 "full-screen" video might not look very good on a 720p screen (1368 x 768 or something close; I don't remember the exact size).

Also a question: Quality of the video (irrespective of the frame size). If the video is comng to you at 256K, nothing is going to make it look good. So if it's bumped up to 1Mb+ (or more) to maximize quality, will your connection to the Internet support that bandwidth?

Finally: You'll want to have some decent user interface to tie it all together.

...or you could just buy an AppleTV and convert anything you legitimately acquire into MP4/H264 and drop it into your AppleTV (all the things that are not already available through iTunes like TV shows, movies, podcasts, etc.).

No, I don't work for Apple (well, not since 2001). Yes, I do own an AppleTV and it's connected via HDMI to my TV...and I love it.

[Video Head]

Hi moonlight and welcome.

What you may want to research is an HTPC or "Home Theatre Personal Computer". There is a forum on this board dedicated to them. You can click on "forum" to the left to see the entire list of forums.

An HTPC is a computer connected to a TV, projector or large screen display and most often a surround sound system. It is used primarily for viewing movies, TV, photos and listening to music. It can organize your movie, TV show, music and photo collection into a database. It can record live TV or timeshift (much like a VCR). Being a computer it is upgradable and the things that it can be used for are only limited by the software/hardware available. If your HTPC is connected to the internet you can surf from the comfort of your couch using a wireless mouse, keyboard and remote control, all on your TV.

The quality of the connection between the computer and the TV makes a world of difference. HDMI/DVI/VGA are the prefered interface. Next would be component HD, s-video and composite. S-video and composite are low quality and will not offer a high-quality experience. The interface will depend upon your TV's inputs and your computers video output options.

[RabidDog]

Media streamer/Player like the netgear eva8000 is just the ticket for you young man.

[yoda313]

My TV also has a VGA connector but, as this is analog, the quality isn't as good as HDMI (but might be fine for your use). Audio is separate, of course.

Actually that might not necessarily be the case. I use the VGA adapter for my xbox 360. I don't have a hdmi model xbox 360 and the component cables for the 360 were ok but definetly flat at 720p. This way with the VGA cables I get to use 1360x768 which is ALMOST my resolution on my 32" westinghouse (1366x768). I just use the fill feature on the tv and it looks perfect. Much sharper than the component.

The same thing happened with my pc. I was using a breakout component adapter on my nvidia card to the hdtv which was ok at 720p. However now I use a dvi-hdmi cable and I get the full 1366x768 resolution so everything fits the screen perfectly.

The point I guess I'm trying to make is to experiment with what you have.