How to Get the Best Picture From a Laptop to a Projector

Connect a laptop to a digital projector.

If you are looking at making a presentation (or if you just want a larger viewing area for daily computing), it is possible to hook up a laptop to a digital projector. This projector increases the size of the viewing screen to fit the projector screen. In order to obtain the best picture quality for the image, there are one or two built-in cable connections that run directly from the laptop to the projector.

Things You'll Need

• DVI/VGA cable

Instructions

1. Check for either a VGA or DVI cable connection port on the laptop. At least one of these is available on all laptop computers. A VGA connection port is slightly larger than an inch and is made of 9 pin connectors. A DVI connection is about the same size, only it is made up by square connectors. Although DVI is the best quality connection, either are better than the other alternative connections (such as s-video or RCA).

2. Attach either the DVI or VGA cable onto the connection port of the laptop computer. Hand tighten the screws along the side of the cable to secure the connection.

3. Plug the opposite end of the DVI or VGA cable into the connection port on the projector. Hand tighten the screws on this side of the cable to secure the cable to the projector.

4. Power on the projector and press the "Menu" button. Choose "Input" from the list of options and select "DVI" or "VGA." The image from the laptop now appears on the projected surface.

References

• Tweak Headz: Everything you were afraid to ask about cables