[narukthul]

Hi I have a scarlet ~40" LG lcdtv 1080p and I want to display what I'm doing on my lenovo T61 laptop on my tv. I have been able to do this with a regular old VGA cable however the highest resolution I can display it in is 1280x1024 because my laptop cannot itself display 1920x1080, which is the next higher up resolution accepted by my tv.

From my research I have found items such as the Mega-Cool: Review: XCM 1080p Mega Cool VGA Box - DCEmu Forums:: The Homebrew & Gaming Network :: and the VGA to hdtv component video converter:http://www.allaboutadapters.com/pcvgtohdcovi.html :: that say they can convert your laptop resolution output to a 1080p input displayed on your tv. First, does this work hooking a laptop up to a tv display. Second, does the input resolution matter (will it be lower quality output on the tv if I use a lower input resolution on my laptop)? Third, does the quality of the VGA cable hookups for it or other types of cables have an impact on the quality of the output display (what is the ideal cable to use)? Fourth, is the converter necessary at all? When I googled VGA cables some were called 1080p VGA cables. Does that mean they convert the signal to 1080 automatically or that that is the best possible output that the cable can provide?

Here is a picture of the back panel hookups for my tv:



I see that there are additional hookups besides VGA. would any of these others be compatible with my laptop and its hookups (like a splitter cable with vga one end and component on the other...etc.)?

Here is a picture of the side panel hookups for my tv:



Here is a picture of the hookups for my Lenovo T61 XP laptop:





So in summary:

• Is the Mega-Cool or the VGA to hdtv component video converter what I need to display my laptop output on my tv and convert the input signal to 1080p?
• What cables do I need (do i have the right hookups on my laptop and tv [and what is the best and most reasonable cable in terms of quality and price])?
  
  Thank You in advance for you help. Any and all input is appreciated. Sorry for the lengthy post I just wanted to make sure I put in all the needed info.

P.S. I'm not trying to force my laptop to display 1080p on my laptop screen I know that isn't possible. I'm trying to convert the output resolution signal to a 1080p input resolution signal when it is displayed on my tv!

[dustyjay]

You are not going to get 1080P out to your TV from your laptop, unless your laptop has an HDMI port on it. VGA does not transmit sound, but yuo can connect the sound out from your laptop with a separate cable to your TV to the Audio Jack where it says AUDIO above and RGB/DVI below in picture number 1. You are not goig to be able to upgrade your Laptop so that it supports HDMI with out buying a new laptop that has an HDMI output already installed.

[narukthul]

but won't the mega-cool converter box or the vga to hdtv component video converter convert my laptop's resolution to 1080i/p(err not my laptop's resolution but convert the signal to 1080p as it passes into my tv)? I could be wrong but the description of the vga/hdtv component converter leads me to believe that.

[dustyjay]

Well from what I read is it will take 1080p input but output it to VGA so from what I can read in the links you posted is No it won't give you 1080p to your TV from your VGA output on your laptop.

[dustyjay]

I do not see anywhere in the ad pages where it says it has a VGA Input on that Mega Cool box. Only that it can output to VGA. So you might want to have a look at one in person before purchasing such a thing at the prices I saw in the ads. It would be a bad thing to buy one to find out it is not going to work for you, only then to find out that you will not be able to return it for a refund.

[narukthul]

Originally Posted by dustyjay

I do not see anywhere in the ad pages where it says it has a VGA Input on that Mega Cool box. Only that it can output to VGA. So you might want to have a look at one in person before purchasing such a thing at the prices I saw in the ads. It would be a bad thing to buy one to find out it is not going to work for you, only then to find out that you will not be able to return it for a refund.

you are right it doesn't say it in there but there is a vid on youtube of it and the guy connects his pc via a vga and has a vga out to his tv monitor. I don't know if you read the part about the vga to hdtv component video converter but It seemed like that one had good prospects in terms of getting it to do what i want http://www.allaboutadapters.com/pcvgtohdcovi.html. the reason I want 1920x1080 is so i can display the whole picture or video that i want to view so i don't have to scale it/change zoom % and distort it, because 1920x1080 has more pixels and would have more display room right (overall pic would look smaller but it wouldn't actually be scaled/shrunk)?

[dustyjay]

The picture would be displayed at the size it was taken (pixel wise), but it would display larger. I still don't see how it could change a VGA input to 1080p and output that through a VGA port. Also you would still have to connect your sound as this still won't carry an audio signal. That is an easy fix though as I stated before. Get an Audio Cable such as this http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16812816088

[dustyjay]

The second unit you linked to doesnt convert to 1080p, but does convert to 1080i, there is also better information listed than the other one. THe price is a bit higher also. If you can get either with a money back return policy, I would think that if it didn't work the way you wanted, all you wuold be out is the cost of shipping.

[narukthul]

on several other forums people are saying that the tv auto converts it to 1080 negating the need for a converter box. Is that right? Even if it does convert it to 1920x1080 automatically it still seems to have the same image quality and proportions as the 1280x1024 resolution on my laptop (meaning I don't get any added space to display content, the content is just bigger). I'm at a loss as to what to do

[narukthul]

I found a way to convert my tv input signal to 1080 via my video cards Nvidia control panel. Hurrah! More real estate. Thank you for all your help guys.