How to View TV Through S-Video on a Laptop
For individuals who want to watch TV from their laptop through their regular TV, an S-Cable is the most inexpensive and simple route to take. This is becoming increasingly more popular as a means of watching and recording TV as a makeshift DVR (without having to pay for expensive satellite TV). S-Video cables are very inexpensive and most newer TVs have an S-Video port.
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Things You'll Need
- 4-pin or 7-pin S-Video Cable (depending on your laptop's port)
- Laptop
- TV
- Coax barrel connector
- Headset wire with male ends
Instructions
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1
Locate the S-Video cable port on your laptop in order to determine which pin count the cable port has -- most laptops take a 7-pin cable. Check the cable you have to make sure it has the correct number of pins by counting the pins.
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2
While the laptop is off, connect the S-Video cable to the out port on the laptop. Connect the other end of the cable to the "video in" port on the TV (yellow RCA jack). Boot up the laptop. Click the "Start" menu and choose "Display" and then "Settings" (if running Windows XP). Move the "screen resolution" bar toward "less" until the setting reads "800 x 600." Click "Apply."
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3
Simultaneously, press the FN key, which is typically located next to the "Windows" key on the laptop and the corresponding F key, which may be F5. Repeat, if necessary until you get the TV-Out setting; on some laptops, this can take as many as four taps. Begin playing the movie on the laptop. Use the remote control to check the AUX settings on the TV if the movie playing on the laptop does not show up on the TV.
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Connect a headset wire with male/male end (the longer the better) into the headphone jack on the laptop and the other end into a headphone to a coax barrel connector. Connect the coax barrel connector directly into the sound input on one of the free video slots on the TV. Turn the sound off on the laptop; this will ensure that the sound plays through the TV instead of the laptop.
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References
- Photo Credit ULTRA.F/Photodisc/Getty Images
