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    Best thing to connect inspiron 1420 to tv

    Discussion in 'Hardware Components and Aftermarket Upgrades' started by adeelgodil, Jan 28, 2008.

  1. adeelgodil

    adeelgodil Notebook Enthusiast

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    Hey,

    So I purchased an inspiron 1420. I am also about to purchase an lcd tv. I want to know what is the best way to connect the laptop to the tv. I know that inspiron doesnt have dvi capabilities. I was thinking perhaps vga to vga then?

    In any case, is monoprice the best place to buy the cables i would need?
     
    adeelgodil, Jan 28, 2008
    #1
  2. Lithus

    Lithus NBR Janitor

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    VGA - VGA. Almost all new LCDs have a VGA input.
     
    Lithus, Jan 28, 2008
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  3. adeelgodil

    adeelgodil Notebook Enthusiast

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    hmm, they have vga - composite cables too. Those arent as good as vga-vga right?
     
    adeelgodil, Jan 28, 2008
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  4. goofball

    goofball Notebook Deity

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    Go vga to vga, don't even compare s-video/composite quality to vga with an LCD TV.
     
    goofball, Jan 29, 2008
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  5. adeelgodil

    adeelgodil Notebook Enthusiast

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    Thanks for the info. What cables will I need for the audio?
     
    adeelgodil, Jan 29, 2008
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  6. goofball

    goofball Notebook Deity

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    depends on what your tv has. I normally just use a regular PC audio cable (1/8" stereo jack to 1/8" stereo jack) since that is what my TV accepts.
     
    goofball, Jan 29, 2008
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  7. adeelgodil

    adeelgodil Notebook Enthusiast

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    Darn the tv has L and R mono sounds inputs (2 holes). Dont understand why an hdtv would have mono sound inputs
     
    adeelgodil, Jan 30, 2008
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  8. antic

    antic Notebook Consultant

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    uh, mono left + mono right = stereo. :)

    You have a couple of options. Buy a cable which converts from your headphone output to 2xRCA (for the 2 holes for left and right). They're called "RCA" sockets.

    The other option, which I've done myself, is buy an external USB sound card which has good quality audio line-out. "Line-out" is much better than headphone-out for sound quality. If you're lucky, the external sound box will have RCA outputs (2 holes again, one for left, one for right) so you can use a standard RCA cable to go from the box into your TV (or preferably your HiFi).

    A TV isn't going to have 5.1 sound. You'd be better off using your HiFi for sound output. Lots of external sound cards nowadays have an optical output, which can run straight into a Dolby Digital HiFi.
     
    antic, Jan 30, 2008
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  9. allan_huang

    allan_huang Notebook Deity

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    If your 1420 doesn't have an HDMI, then VGA would be the best way, S-video won't be as good as VGA.
     
    allan_huang, Jan 31, 2008
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