Using your tv as a second display screen m17x

Please can someone help me? I think the settings are not correct on my m17x to use an HDMI cable or vga cable to connect to the TV, as a second display screen Please help I'm running Windows 7 can someone walk me through it

 

I have a m17x R3, so sensibly different setting than yours, but the procedure was the exact same one (with vista and win7 64bit) with my Qosmio x305 (>2 years old). Simply plug the HDMI cable to your laptop HDMI out port. ("out", not "in" if you have one)

Then you press "FN + F6" or whatever the button is on yours (was FN + F5 on Qosmio, but the F"x" is easily identified with 2 screens on the key). You need to press FN + F6 (or whatever F key you need to press) several time, you should see in the middle of the screen a window poping showing you different settings (Only the laptop and a second screen crossed out, "duplicate" with both screens blue, both screen blue "extend", only the second screen with laptop's screen crossed out.) You need to pick Extend, as duplicate will only show the same thing on both screens.

Lastly, but not least, you need that TV's source to be set for the proper HDMI source (check the number where you plug your HDMI cable, Mine has HDMI 1 and 2).

 

If you put some of your system details in you post it would help us help you. Since you just said M17X I'm gonna assume you have what is commonly called an R1 which is the original Dell Alienware M17X. It will have an integrated graphics processor (IGP) on the motherboard and one (or two "discrete") graphics cards. The problem is that with the R1, if you are using only the IGP the system will not see the a second display whether it is physically connected or not!

First roll your mouse over the Nvidia icon in your task tray. It's the one with two green semicircular flashes in it and when you roll over it a popup window with either BOOST PERFORMANCE or SAVE POWER in it will appear. If SAVE POWER is displayed...then right click on it select BOOST PERFORMANCE mode....a restart may be required. Once you are in BOOST PERFORMANCE mode plug in your external display to the VGA port or (better choice) the HDMI port. Both are on the left side of the compy. As soon as the display is connected you should here the "beep up" sound and both displays should have the windows desktop on them. Use hotkey FN+F6 to toggle between displays or right click on an open part of the desktop to and select Nvidia Control Panel for lots more options about how you want your displays to behave. And oh yeah Stampy is right....the TV SOURCE in the menu on your TV must be set to the hdmi or vga input you are plugged into on the TV.

 

Yeah what you said is true. But if Knm303 have a ATI, then I'm sure the procedure would be similar but using the ati control panel (I seem to remember that they had one from on of my old computer 3 or 4 years ago.)

 

While connected to my 46" or 27" tv and monitors the hdmi sound seems to cut out and I can no longer see it in play back devices. Anyone know whats up with that?

I have checked and I have the most up to date sound drivers from dell.

 

@Stelio...Wish I did. I have HDMI sound to flakey at best. I actually use a Creative sound card in the ExpressCard slot...then use it's optical out to feed my 7.1 CH sound system thereby skipping the problem altogether!

@Stampy...TruDat! I know there was an R1 option for 4870's but I've seen very few with them.

@knm303....If you have the ATI 4870's my previous post will not apply!

 

In playback devices, right click in the rectangle within which all devices are shown, then make sure it is set to show disabled and disconnected devices. I would personnally only unable the devices from the computer, as it is connected to my logitech speakers & subwoofer .

Also... I had a problem with the computer's sound at first when I would plug those said speakers the first days when I received it. When someone would talk to me (through non-vocal chatting) on skype and I didn't had the window selected, while the notification sound from skype would be running, all other sounds from windows would just turn off during those 3-4 seconds.
I had to go to playback devices and disable one of the 2 which were being used. (Disabled communication headphones).

Hope this helps