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    Do I need HDMI-out to watch 720p? or will VGA work? (Dell Latitude E6400)

    Discussion in 'Hardware Components and Aftermarket Upgrades' started by tracerit, May 10, 2009.

  1. tracerit

    tracerit Notebook Consultant

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    I have a bunch of 720p blu-ray rips on my hard drive and i would like to put them onto a laptop so i can bring it to my friends place to watch on a LCD TV. This whole time, I've been looking for a laptop with HDMI but will VGA out work also? I like the look and quality of the Dell Latitude E6400 but it doesn't have HDMI out, but if VGA will work I'll take it.
     
    tracerit, May 10, 2009
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  2. Dreamer

    Dreamer The Bad Boy

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    Dreamer, May 10, 2009
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  3. jackluo923

    jackluo923 Notebook Virtuoso

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    VGA will definetly work just as well as HDMI/DVI/Displayport. Normal users with a non-substandard vga cable will not notice any difference between their VGA signal vs HDMI/DVI. VGA will even offer highier resolution and bandwidth than HDMI and DVI if you choose to output highier resolution than 1080P.
     
    jackluo923, May 10, 2009
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  4. Mastershroom

    Mastershroom wat

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    720p is not an HDMI-exclusive resolution; it will display on any monitor that can render at 1280x720 or above, whether it's via VGA, DVI, or HDMI.
     
    Mastershroom, May 10, 2009
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  5. tracerit

    tracerit Notebook Consultant

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    tracerit, May 10, 2009
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  6. jackluo923

    jackluo923 Notebook Virtuoso

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    Not necessarily. Some cheaper "720P" lcd TVs are actually 1024x768 resolution. LOL
     
    jackluo923, May 10, 2009
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  7. tracerit

    tracerit Notebook Consultant

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    cool so if VGA will work also, I can just get a VGA -> HDMI cable and be able to watch the 720p movies on my 1080p-capable LCD TV?

    As for outputting the audio, do I just use the headphone jack and getting a cable that splits to the red and white plugs?
     
    tracerit, May 10, 2009
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  8. jackluo923

    jackluo923 Notebook Virtuoso

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    Why do you need an adapter to convert VGA to HDMI? Just connect the VGA signal to the TV and get a 3.5mm audio jack-> RCA stereo cable to connect the audio. If you don't have a vga port on your TV, get a displayport-> hdmi adapter from dell. Then connect it to the HDTV via HDMI. VGA and HDMI aren't interchangable because VGA is analogue signal and HDMI/DVI/Displayport is digital.
     
    jackluo923, May 10, 2009
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  9. Dreamer

    Dreamer The Bad Boy

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    No, you can't convert analog to digital signal just with a cable.

    Read my post above, the DisplayPort on the E6400 carries both video and audio with a DisplayPort-to-HDMI adapter/cable.
     
    Dreamer, May 10, 2009
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  10. Mastershroom

    Mastershroom wat

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    1024x768 is a 4:3 computer resolution. Even the most technologically challenged people could tell the difference between a widescreen 16:9 720p display, and a standard 4:3 1024x768. For the record, you're thinking of 1366x768. :p

    Either way, it's not a problem for VGA, HDMI, or DVI. VGA will easily work up to 1920x1200 resolution, which is larger than 1080p, and sometimes more if you have a good cable/display. DVI can do up to 2560x1600, and HDMI will do full 1080p, aka 1920x1080.
     
    Mastershroom, May 10, 2009
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  11. tracerit

    tracerit Notebook Consultant

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    cool. i think i'll go with the DP/HDMI cable then since it'll take care of the audio also.

    now i'm going to hold out on a few coupons for Dell. seeing how i originally wanted to spend $600 but now i"m seeing it's going to set me back at least $1000
     
    tracerit, May 10, 2009
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  12. Phil

    Phil Retired

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    The big question is does your friend's LCD TV have a VGA input?

    If so just get a VGA cable (cheaper).

    If it only has HDMI do the DP thing.

    Many 16:9 plasma TV's have 1024*768 resolution. My Panasonic 42PV80 does.
     
    Phil, May 10, 2009
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  13. jackluo923

    jackluo923 Notebook Virtuoso

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    NO..
    1024x768 is a 4:3 resolution, but it doesn't mean a "720P" 16:9 tv cannot have that resolution.
    E.g: http://www.made-in-china.com/showro...68-Pixels-and-16-9-Aspect-Ratio-PP-42SG-.html
    http://www.bizrate.com/tv/magnavox-17mf200v-17-in-flat-panel-lcd-tv--pid314623234/
    http://www.saverstore.com/product/2...768-Res-30-000-1DCR-1500cdm2-Brig-PS50A457P1D

    Yes.. even the most technological challenged people will know 1024x768 is a 4:3 resolution, but only the (most) technological people (without the word challenged) will know 1024x768 resolution can be any aspect of ratio. The aspect of ratio is determined by the resolution and the pixle ratio. :D
    That's why when I say cheap 720P HDTVs, i put quotation marks on "720P".
     
    jackluo923, May 10, 2009
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  14. Mastershroom

    Mastershroom wat

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    Semantics. :p

    Sure, you can alter the physical dimensions of displays however you like, but the truth is, if each individual pixel has the same height as it does width, then 1024x768 will have a physical aspect ratio of 4:3. Forcing it into 16:9 means each pixel is stretched horizontally, and it's not a "true" 720p display. True 720p is 1280x720, which has perfectly square pixels, and a 16:9 aspect ratio. 1366x768, the most common substitute for 720p in cheaper displays, is slightly larger, but still maintains the 16:9 aspect ratio without stretching pixels in either direction.
     
    Mastershroom, May 10, 2009
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  15. ajreynol

    ajreynol Notebook Virtuoso

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    funny, how corporate America even has computer people talking in dumbed-down marketing phraseology like "720p" and "1080p", as if those ***computer resolutions*** haven't been around for 15 years.
     
    ajreynol, May 10, 2009
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  16. jackluo923

    jackluo923 Notebook Virtuoso

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    Again.. I already put quotation around the "720P" saying that it's not truely 720P.

    Actually when playing 1366/1360 by 768 display is playing 720P contents, the video is stretched in all directions.
    1366x768 with square pixle = 1.77865 AOP
    1360x768 with square pixle = 1.77083 AOP
    1280x720 with square pixle = 1.77778 AOP
     
    jackluo923, May 10, 2009
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  17. tracerit

    tracerit Notebook Consultant

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    tracerit, May 10, 2009
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  18. jackluo923

    jackluo923 Notebook Virtuoso

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    jackluo923, May 10, 2009
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  19. tracerit

    tracerit Notebook Consultant

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    the link works, but once i click on "check availability" it'll reload the page. so you're able to actually check the availability of E6400s in stock?
     
    tracerit, May 10, 2009
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  20. jackluo923

    jackluo923 Notebook Virtuoso

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    Yup.............
     
    jackluo923, May 10, 2009
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  21. tracerit

    tracerit Notebook Consultant

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    damn... this is weird, it just reloads the page when i check use firefox, IE, and the Opera browser on my phone :(
     
    tracerit, May 10, 2009
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  22. Pman

    Pman Company Representative

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    I use a VGA Cable for 1920x1200 on my 28" 1080p TV/monitor

    no problems :)
     
    Pman, May 10, 2009
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  23. davepermen

    davepermen Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    and who says they are square pixels? why do plasma screen pixels have to be square? does a tv need that?
    big simple answer word: NO

    and thus, all your points are mood. plasma pixels can be more wide than high, and quite some are (for smaller plasmas). result: nonsquare pixels, funny resolutions for the aspect ratio.

    and if you say that can't be, i can say that's exactly what is in my dads living room. a 1024x720 screen. you can feed him 1280x720 so the pc pic doesn't look stretched, but you can read it in specs, and see it at the font rendering, it doesn't have 1280 pixels in width.
     
    davepermen, May 10, 2009
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