There are many great video streaming websites, apps, and services available these days. Whether you're watching Netflix, YouTube videos, Hulu, or another video service, there's always something new and fun to watch. Unfortunately, it can get annoying watching movies, tv shows, and other videos on a small computer screen.
If your TV is supported, watching CBS All Access on it is as simple as downloading the app on your device's app store. Follow the instructions – which should resemble those outlined above.
- Watch live TV or recorded episodes online from each channel's website or mobile app right from your computer or phone. Take your entertainment on the go With TV Everywhere, you can watch your favorite TV shows on network websites and mobile apps, even when you're not at home.
- The easiest way to watch TV on a personal computer-and the one that's most popular now-is to view programming over the Web. The major networks, a number of cable channels, and general sites such.
- Hulu Plus, Netflix, and other subscription streaming services are perhaps the easiest way to get TV on your PC-but not live TV. Such services feature only previously aired episodes of TV shows.
- To connect your computer to your TV with an HDMI cable, plug one end of the cable into your computer's HDMI port and the other into your TV. You can find the HDMI port on the side of your computer, and on the side or back of your television.
If your TV doesn't have the ability to stream these services on its own, you may be looking for a way to connect your computer to your TV screen to watch your favorite videos. Luckily, there are a few ways you can go about this and we're going to tell you about them. We'll also give you some helpful tips for connecting your computer to your television, in case you find yourself facing any problems. Let's get into some of the ways that you can do this!
4 ways to connect your computer to your TV
1. Connect using an HDMI cable
This method of connecting your computer and television is one of the easiest. HDMI stands for High Definition Multimedia Interface. It requires only a single cable to stream high quality video and audio from your computer to your TV. Best of all, HDMI cables are the same on both ends, so it doesn't matter which end goes into which device's HDMI input.
To connect your computer to your TV with an HDMI cable, plug one end of the cable into your computer's HDMI port and the other into your TV. You can find the HDMI port on the side of your computer, and on the side or back of your television.
HDMI cables range in price from under $10 to over $20, depending on the brand and quality you decide to go with. Check out these ones on Amazon if you're looking to purchase one.
2. Connect wirelessly with Bluetooth
Another way to stream video from your computer on your TV is through a Bluetooth connection. Some televisions have Bluetooth capability built in, and almost all computers have a Bluetooth function. This method allows you to wirelessly connect your TV screen to your computer.
The specifics of connecting your computer and TV using Bluetooth will vary depending on the devices you have. Not all computers and TVs will have the same settings. However, here are some general instructions for this method:
To connect your computer to your TV using Bluetooth, make sure Bluetooth is enabled and active on both devices. Ensure your computer is a 'discoverable' Bluetooth device so your TV will be able to pick up the signal from your computer. Using your TV's Bluetooth settings, pair your computer to your TV.
Check out BestBuy's awesome selection of Smart TVs here.
3. Connect with a VGA cable
The third method you can use to stream video on your TV from your computer is using a VGA (Video Graphics Array) cable. If you have an older computer and/or TV, this can be used as an alternative to an HDMI connection. VGA cables will allow you to use your television screen as a larger screen for your computer. If you also want to stream audio through your TV, you'll need an auxiliary audio cable in addition to a VGA to send audio signal from your computer to your TV.
To connect your computer to your TV using a VGA cable, plug one end of your VGA cable into your computer, and the other end into your TV. Using an auxiliary audio cable, plug one end into your computer's headphone jack, and the other end into your TV or speaker system. Set your TV to the appropriate source.
4. Use a game console or Internet TV box.
The last way we'd recommend streaming shows and movies from the Internet to your TV is by using another device like a game console or Internet TV box. If your TV doesn't have Wi-Fi capability, you can use one of these devices to sort of transform your TV into a smart TV. This way, you don't necessarily need to connect your computer to your television at all.
Some examples of devices like this are Xbox, Playstation, Wii, or Roku boxes.
To stream videos on your television using a game console or Internet TV box, plug the provided cables into your device, and the other end of the cables into the back of your television set. Depending on the device you have, the types of cables can vary – it may use old school A/V cables, or HDMI.
Now that we've talked about four ways you can connect your computer to your television to stream videos, we're going to provide you with a few tips you may find helpful when going through the process.
Tips for connecting your computer to your TV
1. Make sure you have the correct cables.
Depending on the input/output ports that your computer and television have available, the type of connecting cables you can use will vary. Before purchasing any of these cables, have a look at the plugins on both devices to see what options are available to you. Ensure you're purchasing the correct kind of cable for the connection method you'd like to use. Your TV will most likely label each input it has, so look for this before purchasing a cable.
2. Play around with your TV's source/input settings.
Once you've connected your computer to your television – whether using a cord or wirelessly – you'll likely need to change the input source on your TV in order to see what's on your computer on your television screen. Click the source button on your TV or its remote to change the input source. Play around with these settings until you find the right one.
3. Be patient when trying to connect your computer to a TV.
Getting your computer connected to your television and making sure the settings are set up properly can take a while to complete. The process may be a little long and frustrating, but try your best to stick it out and be patient. You'll be all set to watch shows and movies soon enough!
Those are our tips for how to connect a computer to a TV. Check out the Entertainment section of our website for courses on popular video streaming services like Netflix and Hulu, and see what else you can learn!
More Great Related Articles
Most of us have a television at home with limited free channels to watch unless you subscribe to satellite or cable TV that provides a wider ranger of channels. If you didn't know, it is possible to get free access to thousands of TV channels online from your computer by just installing a software without a TV card or any other hardware other than your computer, web browser and an Internet connection. These software are not sophisticated as it only provides a working TV channel listings and also searching or filtering capabilities. You will however need media player software such as Windows Media Player or RealPlayer to stream the video to your computer.
If you search on the Internet, you can easily find a lot of software that claims to allow you to watch thousands of TV channels from your computer. After testing more than a dozen of such software, we end up getting non working channels on half of the software while the working ones are mostly shareware that requires a paid license. We've tested and compiled a working list of 5 software which you can watch TV from your computer for free.
1. JLC's Internet TVThis is one of our favorite. Although it is not actively being updated but there are quite a lot of channels that still works. It is free and most importantly clean from any sneaky adware installation during setup. After installation, starting JLC's Internet TV the first time will prompt you to download the latest channel list. There were a whopping 2697 channels when we tested it and the useful information such as ratings, language, bitrate, category, channel name and country on the channel list is very useful for sorting purposes. The filtering and search function makes it even easier to retrieve the channels that you are interested in.
The only small problem we experienced was the setup is an older version 1.1.0. You will have to run the update twice from Help > Check for updates in order to get updated to the latest version 1.2.1 that has a better channel listings and bug fixes.
Download JLC's Internet TV
2. Readon TV Movie Radio Player
Readon TV Player is another of our favorite because not only it has its own channel listings including live sports, it also support 3rd party TV/Radio services such as SopCast, ShoutCast TV, TVU Player, YouTube and PPStream. This saves you the trouble of installing multiple full TV player software when it only requires a plugin to stream which can also be easily installed from the Plugins menu. The channels can be filtered by country, genre or favorites and it has a search function as well. Runs only on Windows.
Download Readon TV Movie Radio Player
3. SopCast
SopCast uses a unique P2P technology to stream the channels. There are not a lot of channels but some of the rare ones such as HBO and Disney Junior are included in the list. To use SopCast, run the program and you can either login as anonymous or your account. Go to Live Channels tab and double click on the channels that you want to stream. SopCast is also capable of broadcasting video or audio but it requires you to login to your account which can be created for free. How do you play five nights at freddys. How to transfer files between phones. Supports Windows, Linux, Mac and Android devices.
During installation, the Ask Toolbar will be prompted to install by default. Make sure you select Custom Installation and uncheck both of the checkboxes before clicking the Install button.
How to play with friends on minecraft pc. Download SopCast
4. TVUPlayer
TVUPlayer by TVU Networks has been providing free TV since 2005. You can sort the channels from the category, languages, and also searching using a keyword. A very useful piece of information shown when hovering your mouse cursor over the channels is the bandwidth and signal strength meter so you have a higher chance of choosing a video channel that will stream without requiring to buffer all the time. TVUPlayer works on Windows and Mac.
Download TVUPlayer
5. Online TV Player
There are 2 versions of Online TV Player which is the free and PRO. The paid version contains more channels but from what we see in the channel list, the free version already contains more than a hundred channels. The channels are sorted in a tree view according to country and you can filter based on bandwidth connection, libraries or country. There is also a search function where you can find the name of the channel that you want to watch. The bitrate is also displayed where higher bitrate means better quality but requires a faster connection to stream.
The graphical user interface seems to be a bit outdated but rest assured that the given channels are still working.
Free Tv On My Computer
Download Online TV Player
You might also like:
Recommended to Update IE8 to Internet Explorer 9Multithreading Free Web Proxy Checker Software10 Free Online and Offline Screen Recording Software5 Free Standalone Subtitle Players10 Ad-Free Programs to Share Wireless Internet Connection in WindowsIs this legal to watch in Germany?
All these apps …
ReplyFree TV software, updated daily. 100% Clean
tvexe.com
I'm asking on how to have Sopcast defaults to open in browser other than IE
ReplyCool stuff. been using Kodi and Readon TV Movie bout a year now for me and for my kids too. and i came across with Mobdro its a great app too. it runs on smart tv, mobile and pc…
ReplyJLC's Internet TV I like this process
ReplyHalf the download links are out of date … but for the retards here complaining about sites being up for sale by GoDaddy etc … there is a tool called GOOGLE … use it and you will find alternate download locations. DUH!
ReplyLooks like OnLine TV Player has stopped working – the 'name' is available on GoDaddy
How To Watch Tv On Pc With Hdmi
ReplyJLC' s internet TV software is not available anymore due to health problems the developer has.
ReplyThanks for sharing this to all of us…. It's pretty cool.
ReplyThanks! I've been looking for another software like this one!
Reply