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Macbook to Television
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rbfenzlaff
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I’ve seen articles about hooking up a mac mini to a HD television. I have a 13 inch macbook laying around (upgraded to macbook pro) Is it possible to use a macbook with a tv to run Front row? I suppose one issue is the lid to the laptop has to remain open unless there is a way to prevent it from falling to sleep?
Thanks….
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Yes I have hooked up my MacBook in the past to a HD TV. How you do this is dependent on the connections on the back of your TV but Apple sell several converters from the Mini DVI port on the MacBook. I have a 15pin VGA input on my TV so I used the adapter that I already had for running my macbook on an external monitor. It might be worth noting that my MacBook was the original white one as I think they might have changed to a slightly different video out port on newer models, either way apple sell loads of different adapters. You can use your MacBook with the lid closed (clamshell mode). I have read that it requires main power for this to work, I can not remember if this is true as I always used to just put mine on a griffin elevator stand, lid closed and plug in a bunch of cables for my “docked” desk setup including power.
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David Nelson
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Regarding adapters:
- 13” white MacBooks, including the latest version, have a mini-DVI port.
- 13” “unibody” (metal) MacBooks have mini-DisplayPort.Regarding running laptops closed:
[ Edited: 24 September 2009 01:08 PM by David Nelson ]
- PowerBook G4s, MacBooks and MacBook Pros can all run closed.
- iBooks will not run closed because they would not vent properly.
- For machines that will run closed, a power adapter must be connected.
- To get started, connect the power and display, close the computer, then wake it with an external mouse or keyboard.
- You can use a Bluetooth mouse/keyboard if you configure your Mac to allow Bluetooth devices to wake it. -
Paul Dorman
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My roommate just bought an HD TV, and we both have white MacBooks. To hook it up, he bought a mini-DVI to HDMI adapter, which runs the TV as an external monitor. However, since DVI is video only, you have to hook up the sound separately.
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David Nelson
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I think you’ll really enjoy it once you have it all set up! At home I have a Mac mini connected to a 42” HDTV with Bluetooth keyboard and mouse. (And I’ve done the same with a MacBook before—works equally well.)
It’s a pleasure to display photos on and use for email and web browsing, in addition to the usual media center tasks. It’s like having all the functionality of a real computer with the convenience of an AppleTV rolled into one. We don’t have even an antenna plugged into the TV—all media comes through the computer.
You should also check out Boxee, which is a great media center app similar to Front Row, but it integrates support for external music and video sources including Pandora, Netflux, Hulu, and much more, using your Apple Remote or the arrow keys on a keyboard.
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rbfenzlaff
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thanks for the replies, I was hoping it would work. Just have to order some cables.
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I have a macbook 13” and am trying to hook up to televison via mini dvi to hdmi. Problem all that shows up on my television screen is my desktop…........Thanks in advance to u problem solvers.
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rbfenzlaff
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I had the same issue with my 13 inch white macbook. Saw an icon of a monitor on the top bar near my wifi and bluetooth symbols and turned mirroring on. That worked for me. Not sure if you have the same issue.
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You can control the set up for dual display in the system preferences / display settings section. It sound like you have got yours set to expand desktop but you could choose to mirror the display so both Macbook and TV show the same. If you want to continue with expand desktop mode you can drag the representation of the two displays in the system preference around so that the cursor leaves one screen and enters the other in a logical way depending on their physical positions to each other. You can also drag the dock from on screen representation to another.
Or at least it is something like that, I am working from memory as I am using an iMac at the moment with no external display.
You can also select to show display on the menu bar from the preference pane to speed up changing preferences in the future.
[ Edited: 04 October 2009 03:46 PM by gregriley ] -
Can’t find the icon…...
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Can’t find the icon…...
I have mac os 10.4 does that make a difference…..My displays don’t have those options…thanks again
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When I first used my MacBook with an external display I was running 10.4 so I think it should work pretty much the same. Have you tried the detect displays option?
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When I first used my MacBook with an external display I was running 10.4 so I think it should work pretty much the same. Have you tried the detect displays option?
Will hook up and try again thanks.
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I think you should have and “arrangement” tab in the tiger display options section, what you need should be in there.
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I think you should have and “arrangement” tab in the tiger display options section, what you need should be in there.
Thank u so much ......hit the detect displays and the arrangement button came up…problem solved. Give yourself a pat on the back for me….........u guys are good…..!
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Sorry to bother u again ...How do u get the macbook to work with the lid closed, looked up clamshell no results?
