How To Set Up Your Computer To Your Tv

If you're getting bored or annoyed with your laptop'southward tiny screen, maybe yous should effort using your large TV every bit a monitor instead in the new year's day. It'southward peachy being able to sit down dorsum on your sofa and surf the web, play PC games or stream video from apps not available on your Tv set. Or maybe you only want a bigger view for video chatting.

Using your Television set as a monitor has downsides too. Text might be likewise small to run across, input lag might ruin your gaming scores, and while the couch may seem comfy, it may plough into a neck ache when put into service every bit an role chair. And then there's the mouse, trackpad and keyboard to worry nearly. But going PC-to-Goggle box works well in many situations, and the best function is that it's cheap (or free) depending on what gear you already have.

Mirroring vs. extending

Mirroring means putting the same content on both your laptop'due south screen and the TV. Information technology'southward more than common and mostly easier than screen extending -- where you see different content on both, making the Television set an extension of your laptop'due south screen. Extending is useful for things like having a YouTube video running on the Television set while y'all're working on a spreadsheet on your laptop. It's a chip more involved but still possible depending on your equipment. Generally nosotros'll exist talking well-nigh mirroring in this article.

Read more than:Best TVs and laptops for 2022

The easiest way: Wired HDMI

The most basic PC-to-TV connection consists of running a wire from your figurer to the HDMI input on your TV. If you accept an older Goggle box and an older laptop, there are options like VGA, but that'due south basically the Dark Ages at this point.

Laptops and PCs have a bunch of different connections, so which wire or adapter you'll need to run depends on what computer you lot have. If you're not sure, check the manual or Google the model to determine its specs. Here's the rundown.

Read more:How to cast and mirror an Android phone screen to a Idiot box

hdmi-displayport-and-mini-displayport-connectors — From top to bottom: HDMI, DisplayPort and Mini DisplayPort connectors.
Sarah Tew/CNET

Total-sized HDMI: If yous're lucky, your laptop has a full-sized HDMI output, so yous tin can use a standard HDMI cablevision to run to your TV.

Mini- or micro-HDMI: These smaller versions of HDMI simply need an adapter, or a cablevision that has a regular HDMI at the other finish, to connect straight to your Goggle box.

Thunderbolt, DisplayPort or Mini DisplayPort:All of these usually work with HDMI as well. Thunderbolt is establish on many laptops. The first two versions of the connector were the same as Mini DisplayPort, then Mini DisplayPort-to-HDMI cables or adapters should piece of work. Newer versions use the same connectors as USB-C (run into the next section). Full-sized DisplayPort is common to Windows PCs. Again, you'll need an adapter or cable with this type of connection on one end and HDMI on the other.

USB-C port: Many modernistic laptops have but this kind of connexion. Usually you'll just need an adapter (USB-C to HDMI) and information technology will work fine, but sometimes information technology might not work at all. MacBooks from the concluding few years should piece of work, as will Microsoft Surface laptops and many others. Notation that USB-C uses the same physical connectedness as Apple tree'sThunderbolt three. Check your computer's specs to double-cheque what connector/adapter you might need.

More wired tips: There are and so many varieties of laptops out there, nosotros can't make a coating statement that a detail adapter will piece of work for your PC. If you're not certain, Google your brand and model before you purchase any kind of adapter.

Also, in some cases the quality might be macerated. You lot also won't probable get HDR or 4K resolution, for instance, so if you want the best image quality for videos, you should use a different method to get the videos to your TV, like a Roku or Blu-ray player.

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Wireless connections

In that location are a few options to skip the wires completely. Again, it depends on what calculator you have, as well as the capabilities of your TV (or the streaming device connected to your Idiot box).

If you have an Apple figurer: The easiest manner is to useAirPlay. Just you lot'll need a device that supports information technology, namely:

Apple Tv
Apple Tv set 4K
A TV that'southward Air Play ii uniform, namely a 2019 TV from Samsung, Sony, LG or Vizio.

If you lot have a Windows PC: There'southward something called Miracast, though information technology's not as widespread as "all recent Apple products" like AirPlay. Your Windows laptop should have the tech born. On the Boob tube side, devices that back up Miracast include:

Roku streamers
A handful of TVs (hither's a listing)
Wireless brandish adapters that plug into your TV

microsoft-wireless-display-adapter — The Microsoft Wireless Brandish Adapter looks like simply a cablevision, but has the wireless receiver inside, powered by your Idiot box'southward USB port.
Microsoft

If yous have a Chromebook: Computers that run Google's Chrome Bone tin can ship content to a Television wirelessly too. To use it you'll demand:

Chromecast
Chromecast Ultra
Smart TVs with "Chromecast built-in," mainly Vizio but also some other brands.
Nvidia Shield
Sony TVs that run Android Boob tube

Casting from a Chrome browser: If you don't have a Goggle box device with AirPlay or Miracast compatibility you can nevertheless mirror your screen from the Chrome browser on any laptop. It works with any of the devices from the Chromebook list to a higher place. But content on the browser will be visible, and sure websites won't work.

You tin can also "cast" content from a multifariousness of mobile apps, like Netflix or YouTube, to most smart TVs. This isn't screen mirroring, but if y'all're simply looking to get some content from your phone to a bigger screen, this is an like shooting fish in a barrel way to do information technology.

006-chromecast-2018 — Google Chromecast lets you mirror your Chrome browser page on any TV for $35.
Sarah Tew/CNET

If your intention is to play games, the lag from a wireless connection is probably going to prohibit any fun with games that crave fast and accurate clicking, like with first-person shooters and racing games.

Accessories

If you desire to upwardly your game a bit, consider a few optional accessories. A wireless keyboard or mouse can become a long way toward making your PC-on-TV feel easier. Here's a couple cheap options.

Wireless keyboard

Logitech K380

Sarah Tew/CNET

Put your laptop someplace to charge, and just keep a small-scale, calorie-free keyboard on your lap. We like the Bluetooth Logitech K380 not least for its long battery life, but also its ability to toggle between devices, like from your laptop to your tablet.

Wireless mouse

Logitech M590 Multi-device Silent

Logitech

At that place are a lot of wireless mouse options, simply I similar this one because it'due south comfortable, and more than importantly, tranquility. Instead of click-click-click, it sounds more like a low-cal tapping on a table.

Settings tips

Your TV and your laptop'southward screen are probably unlike resolutions. In theory this won't be an issue, but if you lot're finding text hard to read, or overall the image looks poor, make sure the laptop'southward output matches your TV'southward resolution.

It's easy to do on both Windows and Mac. If you're likewise trying to send audio, that might need to be switched on likewise, either past clicking the speaker button in the lower right on Windows, or in System Preferences on Mac.

On the TV side, make sure y'all disable your TV'south overscan. It might exist disabled automatically, but if the edges of your desktop are cutoff, dig deep into your Tv set's menus for something like "size" or "zoom." If you're gaming, also run into if your Telly has a game mode. This should help reduce input lag, the filibuster between you lot pressing a push button and that action showing up on screen. It'south also a practiced idea to lower the sharpness control. I mean, in general this is a good idea, just hither specifically it should assistance y'all make out fine details better, like text.

A TV's sharpness control usually just increases bogus border enhancement, masking fine details and adding noise. Note the "halo" effectually the objects in the version on the right.
Geoffrey Morrison/CNET

Speaking of text, if you're trying to work from your couch it'due south likely that despite the actress screen size, text is withal too small. If that'southward the case, yous can arrange text size on Windows and Mac. You tin can also use the zoom controls in sure apps, like Chrome browsers.

If you're not getting an image on screen at all, try unplugging the HDMI and plugging it back in (with the Television receiver on), and if that doesn't work, leave it all plugged in simply turn the Boob tube off then on. This is trite communication for a reason: information technology solves so many bug.

Good luck, and if you lot have any favorite PC-to-TV tips, permit usa know in the comments.

Got a question for Geoff? Start, cheque out all the other articles he's written on topics such as why you shouldn't buy expensive HDMI cables, TV resolutions explained, how HDR works and more.

Still accept a question? Tweet at him @TechWriterGeoff, then cheque out his travel adventures as a digital nomad on Instagram and YouTube. He as well thinks y'all should check out his best-selling sci-fi novel about urban center-sized submarines and its sequel.