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View Full Version : Hdmi from pc to flat screen.



cumbriakevin
25-05-2014, 01:14 PM
I use an ipad and have an ages old dell laptop. Having read around what people are using here I've decided I need to learn photoshop elements and use that. I stopped watching tv a bit ago and have a flat screen in the cupboard with hdmi on it. I've just bought a used pc tower off ebay http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/AMD-Athlon-64-X2-Dual-Core-CPU-PC-Tower-Unit-/281340011126?pt=UK_Computing_DesktopPCs&hash=item41812be276
i'm hoping I can use the pc straight to the tv with hdmi. Does anyone else do this, is there anything to look out for? If it doesn't work no big thing, I'll just buy a cheap second hand monitor. The guy who had the pc ran auto cad off it so I would hope it would be more than enough for my needs.

ArtyGamer
25-05-2014, 03:07 PM
Depends on the GPU, really. If the card has an HDMI out then it'll just be a case of plugging it directly into the TV, and most modern cards do come with the HDMI option available as well as one of the DVI formats. Looking at the auction though, there's no info about what the GPU is. It says that there's Nvidia on-board as well as an ASUS add-on card, but no mention of what actual model it is other than it has 512MB memory which isn't too bad so if you're lucky it'll have HDMI on it. If it doesn't, it'll either have VGA, DVI, or both. What you'd then need an adapter to plug your regular HDMI cable into so that it'll fit in the card.. so if it's VGA then it'll be really straight forward. If, on the other hand, it's DVI then you'll need to look closely at the DVI port to see which type it is as they all vary and aren't interchangeable.

This image will help you to determine which type of DVI connection you need:
http://i57.tinypic.com/1zow5cx.gif

Hope this helps

galerion
25-05-2014, 03:15 PM
I have a tv hooked up to my pc but I use it to watch streamed video off the net or if I want 2 screens for a video game. If I were you i'd see how I get on with it and if you find its giving you heads ache's or anthing then get a monitor. Montors will out class tv becauses they support higher resolutions, tv don't tend to go beyound 1080p unless you get one of the new 4k ones.

cumbriakevin
25-05-2014, 04:28 PM
Thanks, that's really helpful, especially the diagram. I'll try it and see how I get on. I'm just keen to keep costs down on this where I can, by using what I already have, and leave more money for sublimation kit.
AG - it says on the auction it has hdmi. I thought on a PC hdmi did in and out on the same cable? Apologies if I'm being thick.