Dear friends, today you will learn how to connect a MacBook to a TV. There is probably no need to explain what functions a TV can perform, but we will still look at this component in this block. Then we will talk about connection methods, and in the next block we will look at them in detail. So, what will such a connection give us?
As you can see, there are a lot of advantages that connecting a MacBook to a TV can provide. Of course, these are not all the possibilities provided. That is, the above is generalized information, which, in turn, can be shared. For example, screen mirroring will allow you to also play games on the main monitor while your favorite show is on or music is playing on another one. Now let's look at three ways to connect Mac laptops to your TV.
Here you can immediately decide on the type of connection: if you have a TV set-top box from the Apple company, then go straight to the second method in the next block. If you have a Smart TV and you only need to display some data (for example, YouTube videos), then move on to the third method. If you don’t have any of the above, but you still want to do this, then the cheapest option would be to purchase an HDMI cable. Be sure to check at home how long the cord you will need so that you don’t have to worry about it in the store.
So, how to connect your MacBook to your TV via Wi-Fi? That's what AirPlay is for. This feature is only available to owners of an Apple TV set-top box, therefore, if you do not have it, the service will automatically become unavailable to you. AirPlay lets you do the following:
All you have to do is turn on your Apple TV, then select your TV from the AirPlay status menu in the menu bar. This function is disabled there. As you can see, there is nothing complicated. Just press a few keys and all the necessary content is transferred to the big screen. Please note that to use AirPlay comfortably, you need access to high-speed Internet.
iPhone users probably know (and if they don’t know, they’ll find out now) that when watching a video, for example, on YouTube, an icon for broadcasting the video appears. This icon appears when both your Smart TV and Apple device are connected to the same Wi-Fi network. Then you press it, select TV and the video is transferred to the big screen. In the same way, you can try to watch videos from the Internet from a Macbook.
Dear readers, now you know how to connect a Macbook to a TV in several ways. We hope that everything worked out for you, and that working on your laptop has become even more comfortable. Please note that some features may not be available on certain Mac computer models, so please check Apple's official website for more information. Don't forget to share your opinion, impressions and experiences in the comments! How do you use two monitors and how did you connect your TV to your Apple laptop?
Synchronizing your laptop and TV will allow you to view content on the big screen. Connecting a regular laptop running Windows OS to a TV is not difficult. However, we are talking about a device from Apple. Therefore, the synchronization process will be significantly different. Few users know how to connect a MacBook to a TV.
Now let’s analyze the specifics of connecting Apple laptops to TV. The proposed options are suitable for MacBook Air and devices of other models. Follow the instructions carefully to ensure the image appears on a large screen. Many users encounter certain problems - we will analyze them and also offer effective solutions.
Conventionally, all existing methods can be divided into two groups - wireless and wired. The necessary cords and adapters are not included in the basic package of TVs and laptops. Therefore, they will have to be purchased separately. How to connect Mac to TV? The user must make his own decision. Much depends on how exactly and in what mode the TV will be used.
Note that the TV model is not of fundamental importance. Connecting a MacBook to a Samsung or Sony TV will be absolutely no different. All available options allow you to use your TV as a large monitor. This means that the laptop acts as a projector.
MacBooks are designed to synchronize with other Apple technology. Therefore, if you do not plan to use devices from other manufacturers, then you will need to perform a few additional steps to avoid compatibility issues. Let's get down to business. First, let's look at how to connect a MacBook to a TV via an HDMI interface.
Absolutely all modern TV models are equipped with an HDMI interface. Therefore, this method of synchronizing equipment can be called a priority. Creating a connection will not pose any particular difficulties. Since the whole process comes down to connecting the cable plugs to the appropriate connectors.
If you have never connected any devices to your laptop before, then start by looking at the video signal ports. Interface layout may vary depending on your MacBook model. To set up your iMac with HDMI, plug the cable into the connector on the back of the device. The video output on the MacBook Pro is on the left, and on the MacBook Air on the right. The Mini-Display port, into which the HDMI adapter is inserted, looks slightly different.
When all the necessary cables and adapters are prepared, it’s time to move on to connecting the MacBook to the TV. To do this, follow these simple step-by-step instructions:
The laptop will automatically detect the new connection. The desktop will be configured to display high definition. If the picture does not appear on the big screen, it means that the user inserted the cable into the wrong connectors. It is possible that the signal source was selected incorrectly.
Modern TV models are equipped with 5-6 HDMI interfaces. Analyze them. Select the port that allows you to transmit audio and video signals. Synchronization will be considered complete when the laptop desktop appears on the big screen. Now you know how to connect your MacBook to your TV.
If you are satisfied with the default settings, then you can proceed to play the content. However, keep in mind that at this stage the TV is used as an external display. To view content through applications, you need to perform a few additional steps. As a result, the functionality of the device will increase significantly.
We should also talk about sound reproduction. By default, the audio signal is not transmitted to the TV. Therefore, the sound is played through the laptop speakers. It is very uncomfortable. Therefore, it is better to carry out an in-depth setup so that the sound is played through more powerful TV speakers.
As noted earlier, the MacBook initially uses the TV as an external display. The laptop desktop is displayed on a large screen. This is a good option for those users who need a large external monitor. However, if you want to watch TV shows, various videos and movies, or play video games, then it makes sense to think about setting up mirroring.
Instructions for setting up mirroring:
This setting is ideal if you are using a TV designed to play 720p content. To watch video in high definition format (1080p.), you need to reduce the resolution or use an external screen as the main one. Otherwise, the symmetry of the picture will be broken.
Instructions for changing the main display parameters:
This is how the TV turns into the main screen.
The configuration system proposed above will significantly modify the device configuration. The computer screen will be used as a desktop. The TV will become the main desktop on which menus and all kinds of applications are displayed.
We've sorted out the video setup. It's time to talk about sound. If a powerful audio system or speakers with excellent sound are not connected to the laptop, then it is better for the audio signal to be played on the TV. The built-in speakers in the MacBook are not capable of providing clear and natural sound.
If the TV and laptop are synchronized via HDMI, then the sound must be adjusted manually. When the cable is inserted into the appropriate connectors, and the laptop desktop is displayed on the large screen, you need to do the following:
The output tab mainly always displays the number and series of the TV model. Not every user knows exactly what the technology they use is called. Therefore, it is wiser to focus specifically on the “HDMI” inscription, and not on a little-known combination of Latin letters and numbers.
Once the user switches the audio output, he will lose the ability to change volume settings through the laptop operating system services. To increase or decrease the volume, you need to use the TV remote control.
With a wireless connection between a TV and laptop, everything is much more complicated. To display an image on a TV via Wi-Fi, in the “Screen Mirroring” mode, you need to use a branded Apple TV set-top box. Instructions:
Connecting a TV via Apple TV will allow you to stream video from the Safari browser and Quick Time player. You can also use the TV as a monitor, as is the case with an HDMI connection. Please note that to perform wireless synchronization, the laptop must be updated to MacOS 10.8 or higher.
What to do if there is no Apple console? There are alternative synchronization methods using special software. The idea is to create a DLNA server for subsequent wireless transmission of content from a laptop to a large TV screen.
There are many different programs. Users who do not want to get confused in a large number of parameters, but simply want to broadcast photos and videos to the TV screen, should download the PS3 Media Server utility. Instructions for creating a DLNA server:
The DLNA server will stop working as soon as the laptop goes into sleep mode. Open a command prompt and then type "pmset noidle". This command will prevent the laptop from going into sleep mode.
There is nothing complicated about this setup. You just need to follow the instructions.
What should I do if the output image is too small or there are black bars? The best option is to scale the screen. Not all content stretches to fill the entire screen automatically. Therefore, after setting up the connection, the user will be faced with the fact that a black frame appears on the sides.
Similar problems appear during the streaming of various movies and TV series. The image quality will also be unsatisfactory. This is due to the low resolution. If you use VLC or Quick Time players, then everything can be solved by playing content in 1.5x or 2x resolution. Therefore, you can do without screen scaling, if such functions are available to you.
First, you should activate the screen scaling option, if you have not done so first:
Be sure to check the box next to “Smooth image”. This allows you to reduce pixelation parameters during upscaling. However, this may cause the picture to become excessively blurry. Therefore, it is also better to avoid significant scaling. Otherwise, the image will lose its naturalness.
To start playing content, launch the player. Move the mouse cursor to the center of the video. You can now use the zoom feature to minimize the black bars on the sides, as well as the top and bottom. This work can also be done with gestures. Swipe the “Control” key, and then change the picture by lifting two fingers up or down – zoom in and out, respectively.
For many years now, TV manufacturers have been offering their customers more and more new ways to transfer screen images from phones, tablets, computers, and other devices to a large TV screen. It's worth taking just the technology Wi-Fi Direct, or Miracast, or a number of other technologies, but all of them do not allow comfortable viewing Full HD films without lags and delays, which are very annoying when watching an interesting movie.
Recording a 10 GB movie each time onto a flash drive or portable hard drive, then connecting it to the TV and searching for the desired movie through the TV explorer is quite tedious, especially when it comes to watching TV series whose episodes are released weekly. In fact, one wonderful company has released a special application that allows you to bypass almost all restrictions.
It's about the application SofaPlay For Mac, which allows you to simply select the desired movie on your computer from Apple, and it will automatically start playing on the big screen TV. The app works with TVs from a variety of companies, including Sony, LG And Samsung. To use the application you must connect your TV and computer Mac from one WiFi network, and make sure that the TV supports Smart TV.
After this, just launch the application SofaPlay on the computer Mac, and then after a few seconds your TV should appear in the application (it must be turned on first). In our case this is a TV Sony Bravia which is connected to WiFi router via a regular wired Internet cable, and the computer Mac connected to wireless WiFi network of this router.
You just need to drag the movie or TV series file you need into the application window, and after just a few seconds the movie will start broadcasting on your TV automatically (depending on the TV). Directly from your computer Mac You can turn the sound on and off, pause the movie, and even rewind it. Film in Full HD format works very quickly, so in this regard there are no complaints about the application.
Program SofaPlay works on the principle DLNA server, but it has a number of features that distinguish it from the same well-known application Plex. In fact, Plex offers similar functionality, but for it to work you will have to bother with sharing certain folders on the computer, searching for a media server on the TV and manually launching all media files.
The only negative SofaPlay You can only name unexpected application crashes. This happens extremely rarely (once every 1-3 hours), but in any case, departures take place, at least for OS X Yosemite. When developers completely solve this problem, their application will have no flaws.
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Connecting your MacBook to Apple's Thunderbolt Display doesn't have to be difficult, you just need to get the appropriate cable. What to do if you decide to connect your Mac and TV? In this tip we will tell you about this.
One of the options, and the simplest, is to use a special Apple TV set-top box. But there are other connection methods that have certain advantages.
We are talking about an HDMI cable. This is the best tool for displaying your MacBook, iMac or even Mac mini display on your TV screen. This method is quite cheap and can also provide high quality transmitted images, while AirPlay is completely dependent on your Internet connection.
Many Apple computers are equipped with an HDMI port, so connecting a device is no more difficult than via Thunderbolt. But the same MacBook Air or older models of Apple laptops do not have this port on board, so we will tell you several alternative methods.
For this we need:
Mac computer with a Mini-Display, Mini-DVI, or Thunderbolt port
. Mini-DisplayPort/Thunderbolt to HDMI adapter with audio support
. HDMI cable
. TV with HDMI port
This is what an adapter from Thunderbolt to HDMI looks like:
After we have all the equipment listed above in stock, it’s time to move directly to connecting the computer to the TV. There is a certain sequence of actions here that is highly recommended not to be violated.
Connecting a Thunderbolt to HDMI adapter to your Mac
. Then we connect the HDMI cable to it, and connect the other side to the TV
. Turn on the computer
. Turn on the TV and select HDMI as the image transmission interface (usually using the button on the remote control)
Your Mac will become friends with the TV, and after all the above operations it will look something like this:
By default, your Mac detects your TV as an external display, so it streams to both screens. But if you, for example, watch movies or play games, you simply don’t need a second screen (on a computer). To do this, you need to go to system settings, select the “Monitors” tab and disable video mirroring.
To configure audio output via HDMI, you need to select the “Sound” section in system settings and go to the “Output” tab.
OS X provides hotkeys for zooming in on the screen. This list is very useful when watching movies, and you can study it in the “Universal Access” section of the system settings.
Be sure to get a good video player, especially for watching Blu-ray movies. Not every application is able to cope with a file whose size exceeds 50 gigabytes.
The conditions for participation are simple:
Many of us have at least one TV with “the makings of a mind” in our apartment. In the line of every serious electronics manufacturer, such models already prevail over simple panels.
The benefits of a smart TV are not as many as advertising promises: the browser is antediluvian, there are few applications, the interface is buggy and often slows down.
Even the latest models do not want to be used for viewing websites, YouTube, or even the weather. Do all this much faster on a smartphone or tablet.
Set-top boxes provide a completely different level of convenience. Apple TV, Chromecast, Xiaomi Mi Box and other similar gadgets allow you to display images from mobile gadgets on the TV screen, use third-party applications and view subscription content.
Not everyone knows that there is an intermediate solution that can cover most of our needs.
On the Mac App Store you can find a whole range of applications from the developer AirBeamTV B.V.. This team already has five programs in its arsenal for displaying images from a Mac on the screens of smart TVs.
Each application is designed for all smart models of a specific manufacturer (Samsung, LG, Sony, Philips and Panasonic).
The installed application will appear in the Mac menu bar. When you start it for the first time, you will need to install an audio driver to transmit sound. To do this, select the item "Learn to enable audio" in the application menu and download another application.
After this, the program menu will display any smart TV of a suitable model that is connected to the same network as the Mac. One click and the picture from the monitor will be mirrored on the TV screen.
No additional options or capabilities have been provided yet, however, this is enough to stream movies, TV series, music or photos.
All you need to do is take a wireless mouse and use it as a remote control.
Unfortunately, the application is still under active development. Not all TV models are supported correctly. Sometimes there are delays in image output or the image freezes.
To avoid wasting money, download the demo version of the program from the developer’s website before purchasing.
This solution has a right to exist and for many can replace an expensive set-top box.
Thanks to re:Store for the useful and interesting information.
