So here's a quick walk-through of all the methods that I know (if you know any more, please comment) to connect a
laptop or PC to your TV:
1.
S-Video - This is probably the most common method
out there currently because an S-Video cable is cheap as heck and just
about every TV under the sun has a S-Video port. You'll have to make
sure you laptop is equipped with this port. Remember, there are two
types of S-Video cables:
4-pin and 7-pin. Most laptops
and PC's are equipped with a 7-pin port, so if your TV only has a 4-pin
S-Video port, then this method will not work.
2.
VGA - If you have a HDTV, then you will be better off connecting using a
VGA cable.
It gives much better quality than S-Video and as with S-Video, the
cable is very cheap. You usually won't find a VGA port on regular TV's
though, so this option is if you have an HDTV.
3.
DVI - DVI stands for
Digital Visual Interface
with "digital" being the key word there. The digital signal will give a
higher quality picture than either S-Video or VGA. Of course, your
computer will need to have a DVI connection and your TV will need to be
an HDTV. This cord is definitely not cheap, it ranges anywhere from $40
to $80.
4.
HDMI - Using HDMI will give you the best quality
by far. No computers that I know of yet have HDMI ports, but you can get
a DVI to HDMI cable to connect it to your HDTV. HDMI is compatible with
DVI.
5.
Scan Converter Box - This is the last method that
I could think of and it involves using a scan converter box, which
takes a VGA signal and converts it into S-Video or component video.
Here's a graphic I created with some pictures of the various cables:
Hope this helps someone! If you have any other ideas or suggestions, please feel free to comment!!! Thanks!
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