Connecting Your Laptop to TV using VGA

Whilst editing your movie, wouldn’t it be great to connect your laptop to your TV for real time preview – well, you easily can if you have a laptop with a VGA output port.

What do I need to look for?

Almost all laptops, desktops and netbooks will have the VGA port, which can be identified as the ‘blue socket with 15 holes in it’, as shown below. Your TV will also require this socket for this method to work.

If your laptop/desktop and TV has this socket, it is relatively easy connecting your laptop to your TV, as long as you have the right lead of course.

What lead do I need to connect my laptop to my TV?

We all know how to connect a monitor to our computer, and this is basically the same principle.  We will use the TV as an additional monitor for our Video Editing Set up.

Connecting your laptop to your TV requires the use of a VGA to VGA.  This is basically a lead which has two monitor ends the same.

If you need a VGA to VGA lead, you can purchase a VGA LEAD from our partner supplier.

Connecting Laptop to TV

Once you have the relevant connections and leads for connecting you laptop to your TV, the next step is to simply connect everything together. Simply plug any end of the VGA lead in to the Laptop/Desktop and the other end into your TV’s VGA port – thats it!

Setting up the Computer

Once everything is connected, the next step is to make some adjustments on your PC to tell the computer to use the additional monitor, which will be the TV.

Access your computers display settings.

In Vista – right click your computers desktop > Personalise > display settings

In XP – right click on your desktop > properties > settings tab

You should now see something as below.

Your computer will probably only have monitor 1 and monitor 2, so please ingnore 3 and 4 on mine!

Choose monitor 2 by clicking on to it with your mouse.

Check the button which says ‘Extend the desktop onto this monitor’

Change the resolution slider to high

Click OK.

Thats all we need to do on your computer for now.

Setting up Your TV

Your computer is now sending signals to your TV’s VGA port, so we need to view those signals.

On your TV, change the source mode to VGA.  Usually there is an option to do this in the menu system of your TV.

Once the source has been changed to VGA on your TV, you should see your computer monitor extend to the TV.

With this complete, you can now use your TV to view your Video footage as you are editing.

Happy movie making!!