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Connect your Macbook to HDTV for under $30

April 30th, 2009 | 2 Comments »

The Macbook’s 13″ glossy screen is awesome but there are times when one wishes that the screen was bigger especially when watching movies. So, I decided to do a little bit of poking around to find out about connecting the Macbook to my 32″ Sony Bravia HDTV. Here’s how I did it:

Step 1: Knowing the essentials

  1. Find out the display adapter that you will need for your Macbook.
  2. Check if your HDTV supports HDMI connectivity. Refer user manual or physically examine the back of your TV and look for  HDMI input.

Step 2: Getting the stuff

  1. I would recommend buying the Macbook Mini-DVI to DVI display adapter from Apple Store ($19).
  2. Get a DVI (Male) to HDMI (Male) cable for hooking up the output of Macbook to your TV ($7).
  3. Buy a Stereo to 2 RCA cable (as HDMI cable produces only video output). In case you don’t buy the RCA cable, you will hear audio from your Macbook instead of your HDTV ($1.6)
  4. I got the stuff from Lamington road but its also available on eBay. Check out the links above for product listing.

Step 3: Putting it all together

  1. Connect your Mini-DVI to DVI adapter to your Mini-DVI port on Macbook.
  2. Insert the DVI end of the DVI to HDMI cable into the DVI output of the display adapter.
  3. Connect the HDMI end of the cable into the HDMI input of your HDTV.
  4. Hook up the Stereo input of the cable in the headphone jack of Macbook and the 2 RCA outputs to the audio inputs present under HDMI video input (on Sony Bravia).
  5. Set your Display preferences under Settings to Mirror displays.
  6. You can also configure your HDTV’s resolution under the same preference pane.

Note: I am using an early 2008 White Macbook and it has a Mini-DVI port. The tutorial considers this case. If you are using the Late 2008 Macbook models, it has the newer Mini-Display port. For more information check out the KB articles HT1562 & HT3388.

Bigger is better! Definitely!

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2 Comments on “Connect your Macbook to HDTV for under $30”

  1. 1 Vishal SHah said at 6:05 pm on May 4th, 2009:

    Dude – this is crazy. I just bought a DVI to HDMI cable last night and hooked up the MBP directly to my Samsung LCD TV in the new apartment. Still tweaking the settings, but otherwise, LOOKS AWESOME. I did not use the Mini DVI to DVI. I just use the DVI to HDMI. Works great.

  2. 2 admin said at 3:50 am on May 5th, 2009:

    @Vishal: Dat’s cool, man. Unfortunately, Macbook does not have a DVI port like MBP. It has a mini-DVI port only and using an adapter is mandatory.