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How to connect ibook to hdmi plasma tv?
- Thread starter silring
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According to MacTracker, you have a mini-VGA port on your iBook. So you need to get a mini-VGA to HDMI adapter/cable. If that doesn't exist, you need a mini-VGA to ???, then a ??? to HDMI. What that middle step is depends on what you can find. Try monoprice.com.
Keep in mind, that's only for video. You'll need to string a cord from the headphone jack of the iBook to the audio in on the TV to get the sound.
Keep in mind, that's only for video. You'll need to string a cord from the headphone jack of the iBook to the audio in on the TV to get the sound.
Every iBook G4 has a mini-VGA port, doesn't it? And that's the only output. Connectors can be bought to output VGA, composite, and S-Video from this port.
Now here's the problem.
HDMI is a digital standard -- you can convert DVI to HDMI, but only the digital signal of DVI. Although you can convert VGA to DVI, this uses the analog signal of DVI. You cannot convert VGA to HDMI.
The short answer is that there is really no good way to get a high resolution display of your iBook on the plasma TV unless it has a VGA port... you can do adaptations to HDMI or component, but as far as I know this will cost you about $100 in adapters. (here's an example)
Now here's the problem.
HDMI is a digital standard -- you can convert DVI to HDMI, but only the digital signal of DVI. Although you can convert VGA to DVI, this uses the analog signal of DVI. You cannot convert VGA to HDMI.
The short answer is that there is really no good way to get a high resolution display of your iBook on the plasma TV unless it has a VGA port... you can do adaptations to HDMI or component, but as far as I know this will cost you about $100 in adapters. (here's an example)
Actually, you cannot convert VGA to DVI without a hardware device such as the one in you link. DVI does not have an anolog signal. DVI and HDMI are both digital signals. HDMI also carries digital audio in the same cable.
Most plasma TVs have a "PC" connection. Some have a DVI, most have VGA. I suggest going that route and sending your sound in another direction. You could hook it to your tv as well or an audio system or just let it play. But you can get HD resolutions from VGA if the computer allows for it. mini-VGA to VGA to TV. If you have a VGA connection on the TV. I just use DVI, theres no real reason to use HDMI because both DVI and VGA just output video signals and not audio. So you wouldn't get audio through the HDMI, and you can get the same resolutions from other connections.
This isn't quite right. The DVI interface standard has both analog and digital information streams. The digital stream is called DVI-D and the analog DVI-A. When a device is able to use both, the output or input is called DVI-I (for integrated). You can see a reference here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_Visual_Interface#Connector
This is exactly why people get confused about this. One can purchase a $3 adapter that converts from a VGA plug to a DVI plug. But that only gives one DVI-A and it is useless for a device that only accepts a digital signal on the DVI port (or conversion to HDMI, which, as you say, only accepts a digital signal also). So then, people purchase a VGA -> DVI adapter or a VGA -> DVI adapter and a DVI -> HDMI adapter and they don't understand why nothing comes up on the screen. There are many threads about this on Macrumors -- it's a pretty reasonable mistake for a person to make. The plugs fit -- why shouldn't it work?
But in any event, it is possible (and done not infrequently) to transmit an analog signal on a DVI port. The DVI output on most video cards has an analog signal on it. This is why one can get a DVI-VGA adapter and use one's DVI laptop with one's VGA projector, for instance. Were this not true, as you suggest, then one could also not do that.
Dunno if it's the same, but my PB 12" came with an s-video out dongle. it isn't HD but I dunno what HD content you would be pumping out of an ibook anyhow.