[iraz]

I haven't been able to get a decent answer to this question, so maybe you can help. With the advent of the various services online for downloading movies and in the case of Netflix, watching movies instantly on your PC, what is the best way to watch these films on your TV? I’ve seen ads for hardware and software products that claim the ability to do just that, but I am very wary to just purchase something without understanding my options. Is there any product that indeed will let the viewer watch a movie from Netflix or other movie web sites on their TV???

[AuroraDizon]

First of all, remember that illegal activity cannot be discussed on this forum.



To answer your question your best bet would be to get a S-video out card. Newer tvs have ports, if not you can always pick up a converter for 10 - 20 bucks to hook the S-video up to the tv. You can use your tv as a second monitor and run the movie from that screen.

[iraz]

I'm not trying to do anything illegal, just watch films on my larger TV screen. I am a Netflix customer, they do allow the ability to watch certain films from their website. I do not want copies or anything like that, just the ability to watch on a larger screen. Netflix has future plans to transfer their "watch instantly" films to a monitor made, I think, by LG....

[jpelser]

S-Video is a good solution but the quality is really low. The problem that you are going to run in to is that unless you have a new TV this is never really going to look very good. Most of the newer video cards have an S-Video out, it's important to note that S-Video does not do sound so you will have to use your PC's speakers or at least send that audio signal to your TV or sound system from your sound card. Really what you want to do it get a new TV that you can just pug in your VGA or DVI connection. I know that it's kind of the most expensive solution but it really is the best. You can find 32" LCD TV's out now for under $500 and that is really the best way to go. For all intensive purposes an LCD or Plasma TV is a monitor. Now if you just can muster buying a new TV there are some other things you can do. If your video card does not have S-Video e.g. it only has VGA or DVI you will need to send the signal some other way. This also apply's if by some chance your TV does not have S-Video in. Ok so you can get a WinTV card, click here this link is to Google Product Search. These things are really cool and a lot less than a TV. Basically this will perform two functions. It will make sending Video signals to your TV form your computer and let you watch your cable or satellite on your PC. Make sure you get the kind of connection you need like, RCA, Coax, Coax-S, etc. The nice thing is if you don't have Tivo or DVR you can record your cable or satellite signal directly to your computer. Another solution is getting a DVD player with USB in and a flash drive to save files to. It is important to own anything that you rip to your PC. DO NOT STEAL MOVES or any other media for that matter, it makes it cost more for the rest of us and we hate that. There are models of DVD player out there that will take a USB flash drive and also play almost any format stored on a DVD or even CD. Meaning you don't have to convert files anymore you can just play your MPG or AVI right in your DVD player. You can store a whole season of TV shows on one DVD, there really grate. There are other things out there but I think that's enough for one post. Like I said though what you really want is an LCD or Plasma TV it really is the best solution. I hope this helps if you want more details on how to set up any of this stuff or none of this is the answer you are looking for let me know and I will do my best to help, cheers.

[iraz]

Thanks for the info, it was very helpful. Since I'm on a fixed income, buying a new TV is on hold. I do notice many products advertised, like in Tiger Direct, that sells hardware that is supposed to transfer the image to your TV. I am suspicious of these devices, do you know anything ablut them???



Again, thanks for your help!!!

[jpelser]

Yes, I have personally used products from Hauppauge, makers of WinTV, Pinnacle (nice stuff) and one other capture card that I don't remember who made it. The products do work and believe it or not watching a move is going to look a lot better than using the computer on your TV. So for instance if you are looking for files to open and watch on your TV I would recomend having a monitor still plugged in to the system so you can use that to start the move or whatever. Did you check your video card to see if it has an S-Video out put on it? Cuz that would be a nice way for you to get a feel for the quality you are going to get. (capture cards do look better than S-Video) It's round and black, looks sort of like a PS2 connector (like for a mouse or keyboard) hope that helps.

[rgreen4]

One of the core questions is what type of TV do you have?

If you have TV with S-Video in, then you need to get to that connections. If you have a tube type of TV or even one of the larger rear projection TV's, it is likely that is the type of connection.

There are currently 5 common types of video connections to TV's -

1. Composite - this is the oldest and has the lowest resolution. It is an RCA type of plug and the connection is identical to the audio connections. The audio is red and white (red for left and white for right) while the composite is yellow.

2. S-Video - about 20 years old, it is a small round black connections with a number of holes. It is about the size of the PS/2 Mouse connection but had a totally different pin configuration and the two have different pin/hole arrangements.

3. Component - generally available about 15 years, this again uses the RCA type of plug, but separates the three video colors of Red, Blue and Green. The connections are color coded Red, Blue and Green.

4. DVI - this was at one time going to be the High Definition standard, but number 5 edged it out. DVI is found on high end monitors as it supports resolutions higher than those supported by VGA. The shell connector on the monitor and video card is rectangular with rounded corners and a white inside. Most cables have a white ends.

5. HDMI - this standard replaced DVI on TV's as it combines the HD resolution of DVI with the audio signals so that there is only one cable needed. DVD to HDMI conversion cables are available, but then a separate audio is needed. (Note: some TV's disable the red/white audio inputs if the HDMI cable is used - my Hitachi Plasma is one).

For the computer end all of the above can be found on video cards and onboard video plus the still current VGA monitor output. Composite output has been found on some older video cards and onboard video connections, but has just about totally disappeared. What may look like an S-Video connection on some high end video cards is actually a HD connection to which you plug in a break out box which has the component and S-Video connections. Many current high end cards use the DVI connection. Some cards have a DVI to HDMI adapter, but there is no sound. See warning in above paragraph.

If your TV and PC are more that 3 years old, then your best bet would be to connect with S-Video. If you have a cable box, DVD player or VCR the connection is very similar. Sound can be connected by purchasing a mini-stereo plug to two (Red/White) RCA plug cable. I have one that is about 6 feet long.

If you have a standard definition TV, the sound conversion cable and S-Video cable should do fine. The limiting factor will be the standard definition TV, not the S-Video cable. You will find also that some High Definition cables can be very expensive.

[smax013]

rgreen4 said:

One of the core questions is what type of TV do you have?

If you have TV with S-Video in, then you need to get to that connections. If you have a tube type of TV or even one of the larger rear projection TV's, it is likely that is the type of connection.

There are currently 5 common types of video connections to TV's -

1. Composite - this is the oldest and has the lowest resolution. It is an RCA type of plug and the connection is identical to the audio connections. The audio is red and white (red for left and white for right) while the composite is yellow.

2. S-Video - about 20 years old, it is a small round black connections with a number of holes. It is about the size of the PS/2 Mouse connection but had a totally different pin configuration and the two have different pin/hole arrangements.

3. Component - generally available about 15 years, this again uses the RCA type of plug, but separates the three video colors of Red, Blue and Green. The connections are color coded Red, Blue and Green.

4. DVI - this was at one time going to be the High Definition standard, but number 5 edged it out. DVI is found on high end monitors as it supports resolutions higher than those supported by VGA. The shell connector on the monitor and video card is rectangular with rounded corners and a white inside. Most cables have a white ends.

5. HDMI - this standard replaced DVI on TV's as it combines the HD resolution of DVI with the audio signals so that there is only one cable needed. DVD to HDMI conversion cables are available, but then a separate audio is needed. (Note: some TV's disable the red/white audio inputs if the HDMI cable is used - my Hitachi Plasma is one).

For the computer end all of the above can be found on video cards and onboard video plus the still current VGA monitor output. Composite output has been found on some older video cards and onboard video connections, but has just about totally disappeared. What may look like an S-Video connection on some high end video cards is actually a HD connection to which you plug in a break out box which has the component and S-Video connections. Many current high end cards use the DVI connection. Some cards have a DVI to HDMI adapter, but there is no sound. See warning in above paragraph.

If your TV and PC are more that 3 years old, then your best bet would be to connect with S-Video. If you have a cable box, DVD player or VCR the connection is very similar. Sound can be connected by purchasing a mini-stereo plug to two (Red/White) RCA plug cable. I have one that is about 6 feet long.

If you have a standard definition TV, the sound conversion cable and S-Video cable should do fine. The limiting factor will be the standard definition TV, not the S-Video cable. You will find also that some High Definition cables can be very expensive.

Very good and detailed explanation...but I will add one more connection option...

While not common, you can get TVs with standard VGA connections on them. Such ports are provided so that a computer can be hooked up and used with a TV such that the TV becomes the computer monitor. A TV that I helped a buddy purchase (40" Samsung LCD HDTV) was one such TV.

[smax013]

iraz said:

I haven't been able to get a decent answer to this question, so maybe you can help. With the advent of the various services online for downloading movies and in the case of Netflix, watching movies instantly on your PC, what is the best way to watch these films on your TV? I’ve seen ads for hardware and software products that claim the ability to do just that, but I am very wary to just purchase something without understanding my options. Is there any product that indeed will let the viewer watch a movie from Netflix or other movie web sites on their TV???

Depending on the site, they might have some hardware that is designed to be attached to the TV that can directly download movies and other video content (and maybe other content such as music or pictures or YouTube videos).

Some examples are a newer TiVo unit will allow you to get and use Amazon Unbox content (http://www.tivo.com/mytivo/domore/movieandtvdownloads/freepilots.html?WT.mcid=hmpgebbdownloadtvmovies&WT.ac=hmpgebbdownloadtv_movies). An AppleTV will allow you to buy and rent movies from the iTunes store, as well as music and TV shows...and you can snyc content from your computer to the AppleTV.

I am pretty sure that NetFlix is working on a similar such device for use with their stuff. I vaguely recall reading some articles discussing such things. Here is one such article: http://arstechnica.c...et-top-box.html

[rgreen4]

That's a new on me. I have never seen a VGA input on a TV, only on projectors.

[smax013]

rgreen4 said:

That's a new on me. I have never seen a VGA input on a TV, only on projectors.

Well, here is one...this is the picture of the back connection panel: