New TV for Christmas, need help hooking to MBP!

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I just received a new 40" Sony Bravia television for Christmas & I would like assistance in determining which cables would be required to make it compatible with my Macbook Pro (Late 2008 model).


In the TV manual, it states "For some Apple Macintosh computers, it may be necessary to use an adapter (not supplied). If this is the case, connect the adapter to the computer before connecting the HD15-HD15 cable."


The link to the specific TV is Sony Bravia KDL-40S4100 Flat-panel TV reviews - CNET Reviews

Any help in choosing which method would work is greatly appreciated.'

Thanks to all in advance and Merry Christmas
 
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Looks like that TV has a VGA connector, so all you need is a mini Display Port to VGA adapter and you should be set.
 
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hmm yeah. I looked at that but its got a 3 star review and apparently that adapter isn't compatible with TV's over 30" from the comments I've read. Kinda confused which methods would work.
 
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The TV also has an HDMI input. You can purchase a DVI to HDMI cable. That should work.
 
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HDMI will also allow to use higher res outputs to the TV usually, most tv's have limited resolutions that they will take through VGA.
 
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So i bought on of these Apple DVI to Video Adapter - Apple Store (U.S.) a while back but the output from the MacBook Pro to the TV was only in black and white. I figured that this was the case due to the oldness of the TV. But i just got a new HDTV and it still comes out in black and white.
Should I get the HDMI cables? or is there some sort of display function that i need to change on my comp and/or the TV?
 
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hrm did you connect from the adaptop to the TV using composite or s-video?
there may be a setting in the display settings of the MBP to select the right type of output, as S-video and composite are different signals.

If your new TV has HDMI then yes, buy yourself a DVI-HDMI lead and use that instead, youll get a much better image on the TV.
 
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hmm yeah. I looked at that but its got a 3 star review and apparently that adapter isn't compatible with TV's over 30" from the comments I've read. Kinda confused which methods would work.

Most user comments about these sort of things is rather useless as more often than not the problem resides with the user and not the adapter.

That TV is capable of a 1920x1080 resolution. VGA is more than capable of handling such a resolution. As for screen size, I've hooked up my Macbook with a VGA cable to a 50" plasma and a 37" LCD TV, both times working perfectly. My friend hooks up his new aluminum Macbook to his 52" plasma, and his too works great. It should pretty much be plug and play, no fiddling around necessary unless you wish to mirror the main screen, in which case a single setting is all that needs to be changed.

If you're still worried about using a VGA cable, then you could try Eric559's method of a mini Display Port to DVI and either a DVI to HDMI adapter or a DVI to HDMI cable. However, I should warn you that people have experienced issues using this method, resulting in more troubleshooting than the setup is worth. If you wait a while, Apple announced that it was releasing a mini Display Port to HDMI cable, which would ultimately be the ideal connector.
 

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