Tech Tip: How to connect a smartphone to an HDTV

Description: Most smartphones made within the past few years have the capability to connect to external monitors and/or HDTVs. This is extremely useful if you travel a lot and want to watch movies on something bigger than your smartphone's screen. So how do you know if this feature applies to you?

Some smartphones have the HDMI port on the device itself.

The example below is from a Droid RAZR. It includes your typical microUSB port (left), in addition to a dedicated HDMI port (right). In this case, the HDMI port is a special type known as microHDMI, which needs an adapter to bring it to a full-size HDMI. In general, if a smartphone has a HDMI port built on, it will be in the form of microHDMI.


Droid RAZR has micro USB and HDMI ports



The iPhone needs a proprietary adapter to get to HDMI. For the iPhone 4/4s, you need an adapter to take the 30pin connector out to HDMI (left). The iPhone 5 introduced the lightning connector and also needs a similar adapter (right) to get to HDMI. For video output on the 3G/3Gs, you only have the option of using an analog video output (yellow RCA or red/green/blue RCA connections).

So what if your phone looks like this?

 
A Samsung Galaxy S2

The Galaxy S2 only has a microUSB port and nothing else. So how does this connect to a HDTV? Many new smartphones use a technology referred to as MHL (Mobile High-Definition Link).
 
A Mobile High-Definition Link adapter

In a nutshell, this means you can repurpose the microUSB port to send video to a TV with a compatible MHL adapter. It's as easy as plugging in the adapter to your phone and plugging in a HDMI cable to the other side. These adapters also offer a charging port on the side so you can watch video continuously without the need to recharge. Please note that some of these adapters require your phone charger to operate properly.

I bought a MHL adapter and it didn't work!

If the standard MHL adapter doesn't work for you, then you fall into one of three categories:

1. Your phone is too old and doesn't support MHL.
2. You are the proud owner of a Samsung Galaxy S3 or Galaxy Note 2.
3. You are the proud owner of Google's Nexus 4.

If number 1 refers to you, you can double check your phone's specifications on a website like http://www.phonearena.com to see if your phone truly supports MHL.

If you fall under point number 2, fear not! The standard MHL adapter doesn't work for you, because Samsung customized these phones. Standard MHL uses a 5 pin adapter, whereas Samsung's version is 11 pins. The simple solution is that you need a MHL adapter supplied by Samsung.

If point number 3 applies to you, then your phone doesn't use MHL at all. Google has opted to use a technology called Slimport. The Nexus 4 is the very first smartphone to use Slimport, so the adapters are not too common yet. The adapter looks identical to a MHL adapter, but the difference lies in the technology used to drive the signal. As of this writing (05/2013), the only place to find this adapter for purchase is online.


Once you have the correct adapter, you can use your phone as a powerful media center. Whether it is to play games, watch Netflix, or to write emails on a bigger screen, the possibilities are endless!

For more assistance contact Technical Support here.

Why won't my 3-D TV work?

Selecting an HDMI cable

 

If you're the proud new owner of a 3-D TV, Blu-ray player, or other high-end devices that use HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface) cables you may have the wrong cable.


                   

There are 5 types of HDMI cables (one is for use in the automobile industry, so we'll skip that one in this discussion).

There are 2 speeds of cable - Standard and High Speed. The difference is that only the High Speed cable will support 1080p, 3-D, a higher resolution called "4K", and a colorspace called "Deep Color". So if your devices are working fine in 2-D and at 1080i or below, but fail when you try something that requires more bandwidth, the cable is the problem.

Each of those two speeds also come in versions with or without an Ethernet channel. Trying to get connected from the Internet through your Blu-ray player onto you TV and it's just not working? Check the cable's packaging for the phrase "Ethernet Channel".

One feature that both Standard and High Speed cables have in common is called "Audio Return Channel", abbreviated "ARC" on some devices. This allows you to use one HDMI cable to send audio to your Home Theater sound system for playback.

Keep it simple --- to insure that all of your high end video, audio, gaming, and internet devices will work together with the equipment you have now and anything you may add in the future, go with the one HDMI cable that provides all of the capabilities you will need: High Speed HDMI Cable with Ethernet.



All of the current HDMI features are supported with a High Speed HDMI with Ethernet cable.

For more assistance contact Technical Support here.

How to Buy the Right Graphics Card

If you have upgraded your display recently, you may have noticed that your graphics aren’t as clear as they should be. This may be due to the legacy video card in your computer. With a minor upgrade to your video card and a little time, you could improve your system’s video output dramatically. Before buying a new graphics card, here are some recommendations to follow when shopping for the right card:

System Specs
The first step is to evaluate the type of motherboard that you have in your current system.  You could either remove the case and physically look at what slots on your motherboard or check the system’s user manual or manufacturer’s website for specifications.  As outlined on our previous blog post on Graphics Cards, there are three basic types of video interfaces available: PCI, AGP or PCI-express. From this chart provided by Diamond Multimedia, you can see the difference in the configuration for each card type.

Illustration provided by Diamond Multimedia

Be sure to check what version of AGP or PCI-Express is compatible with your system.

Purpose
What will be the primary use of your display? Watching movies, gaming, photo editing? Depending on the function, you may need a higher-end graphics card to accommodate the demands on your computer’s video. If you are a gamer, you will need a performance video card that supports 3D rendering and HD. For photography or graphic arts, a video card with high resolution and better image quality is more important. The amount of video memory is also crucial to providing the best graphics output.

Connections
Video cards are built with a variety of ports to connect to your display. First, check the available ports on the back of your display. Does it have VGA, S-Video, DVI or HDMI? For high quality video, it is better to use DVI or HDMI, because they provide higher quality digital output. VGA and S-Video are older, analog interfaces that have lower resolution capabilities.  If you have an older PCI card with only DVI, but a display with an HDMI connection, there are adapters available to connect a HDMI cable to a DVI port.

Diamond Multimedia provides an excellent video on installing a graphics card.




Reference:
Diamond Multimedia. How to Buy a Video Card/Graphics Card.
http://bit.ly/gApxBE

Diamond Multimedia. Installing a Graphics Card, Part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1HH4_yn1Q_U