Asus UL20a as a media tank

I'm looking to buy a small notebook which can be used (but not exclusively) for playing movies and connecting it to a HDTV for watching HD movies.

I played a Bluray movie on the Asus ul20a and it seemed to run fine without any jerks/interruptions and Intel confirms that the 4500MHD can support full HD content.
I suppose this means when I connect the UL20a to my TV, I can get 1920x1080 resolution (my TV supports this resolution).

The UL20a does not come with a HDMI port. Would connecting through a VGA port make any difference to the video quality when viewing content on a HD TV (say on a 40" screen TV)?

Thanks for any comments/answers to my question.

 

Nope, not unless you are using a super long cable and get some interference.

My HTPC is connected through 1 TV by HDMA and the other by VGA and there is no difference I can see.

 

You probably won't be able to tell the difference in video quality between VGA and HDMI with the naked eye, but one thing to note is that VGA does not transmit audio like HDMI does. You'll be able to view images and video from your laptop to your HDTV, but audio will still be produced from your laptop. If your HDTV has an 9.5mm audio input jack or you plan on connecting your audio to external speakers, then that would help your multimedia experience significantly.

 

I plan to connect the audio to external speakers anyway, so I don't think that should be a problem.

My basic concern was with regard to the video quality.

I really like the design of the UL20A and wanted to buy one, but since there is no HDMI port, I was not too sure.

Also, there's the UL20AT on the horizon as well, but its not clear if it will have an HDMI port. And theres also an option of the Acer Aspire Timeline 1830T, but theres no word on its release date or price.

But going through the responses, it looks like the UL20A might be sufficient for my needs.

 

or if you dont mind an inch larger the UL30A

 

Why not get a UL30A instead?

Edit: damn owned by crazycanuk =/

 

Have you considered the UL30 series instead? It's only slightly larger than the UL20 but it does come with an HDMI port as well as VGA. Though from experience, I can confidently say that you won't find any difference in video quality between the 2 video ports.

Don't feel bad. I got owned by both of you

 

I already have a 17" laptop (but its pretty old and can't handle HD content). The new one is mainly going to be for carrying along while travelling, so I wanted it to be as small as possible.
I did read about the UL30A, it might sound a bit crazy, but for me the extra 1" makes it look big.

 

I'd recommend the UL30A with the HDMI. I've got multiple computers and setups at the moment and really notice when I switch from an HDMI connection to a VGA connection. It is especially apparent when hooking up to larger screens, such as an LCD TV.

The difference isn't a deal breaker, it is just that because I notice the difference, it bugs me a little. Looking at other peoples posts though, maybe I just need some better VGA cables?

 

What would "better" VGA cables mean?
Is there a particular kind of VGA cables that are better than others?
I see that the length shouldn't be too long. I suppose 5 meters isn't too long.

 

Don't bother... the UL30A is not that much bigger and the weight savings is not worth it. Not to mention less battery life and no HDMI on the UL20A.

I highly doubt there is a "better" VGA cable, since it's an analog signal it's not gonna get any better by much. There is a noticeable (and significant) difference on my 23" 1080p monitor with a VGA cable and a DVI/HDMI cable.

 

You guys must be extremely picky!

 

I second this, as I have experienced both VGA and HDMI connection. For movies you might not be able to tell, but for reading text on the LCD TV screen thats bigger than 42in, its the difference of clear txt to slight blurry text. So getting a computer with an HDMI connection will be more helpful with what you are doing.

 

hmm...the only text I'm gonna be reading is probably subtitles of movies. But still thats valuable advice.
I tried checking the Asus website, but the UL20A is not there anymore...maybe the UL20AT is slated for a release sometime soon. I really hope it has a HDMI port then.
I'll go to the shops to see if I can convince myself that the UL30A is not that big until then!