LCD HDTV for monitor?

[Soteria]

Hi all,

I just purchased a 40" Polaroid LCD HDTV, I'm wondering if I can use that as a monitor for my laptop. Can anyone tell me what I need to do that? Any particular cables?

Thanks!

 

[Soteria]

anyone?

 

[Crashman]

Particular cables? If both have a 15-pin VGA connector, buy a 15-pin VGA cable. These are common as beans when buying a monitor, but extremely uncommon separately. Extension cables (male to female) are far more common than the male-male cable you need, so expect to pay $15-20 rather than $7-14 for it.

 

[Soteria]

Hi folks,

Thanks for the help!

Actually, my laptop has a DVI-out port. I was doing some research, but I'm still not sure how this all works. Please let me know if this is correct:

My understanding is that I can connect my laptop to the HDTV via a DVI-HDMI cable. Will I then be able to watch, say Star Wars III in HD format? Also, how will the graphics look if I play games on the TV? The resolution is 1366 x 768 and the aspect ratio is 16:9.

Thanks again for the help!

 

[Crashman]

You could watch an HD movie in theory, but it would have to be one that didn't have HDCP, since it's unlikely your lappy has HDCP. And you'd need an HD-DVD or BRD player, not just a DVD player.