Connecting MacBook Pro (mini displayport) to TV?

ajmasajmas
Posted:
in Current Mac Hardware edited January 2014
I am wanting to connect my MacBook Pro, which has a mni displayport, to my TV. My TV is still of the CRT variety, but supports component video (R, G, B RCA connectors). Has anyone has any luck doing this?



I have found mini DisplayPort to DVI-I adaptors and DVI-I to component video adaptors. Will connecting the two between my Mac and my TV provide me with a working solution?

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 10
    jpenningtonjpennington Posts: 476member
    I've never done this with component but I do it with HDMI all the time. I would think you would be able to use an adapter like this and go from mini display port to DVI to component to TV without much trouble. The only thing I would be concerned with would be the ability to see the proper resolution, but I am fairly confident it would work.
  • Reply 2 of 10
    addaboxaddabox Posts: 12,665member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by ajmas View Post


    I am wanting to connect my MacBook Pro, which has a mni displayport, to my TV. My TV is still of the CRT variety, but supports component video (R, G, B RCA connectors). Has anyone has any luck doing this?



    I have found mini DisplayPort to DVI-I adaptors and DVI-I to component video adaptors. Will connecting the two between my Mac and my TV provide me with a working solution?



    The DVI-I spec includes both analogue and video signaling (the "I" stands for "Integrated).



    The mini displayport does not. So matter how many adapters you through on there, there's never going to be an analogue signal for your CRT unless you get a converter box that changes the digital signal to analogue-- and those are sufficiently expensive (if you want one that doesn't look like crap) that you really might be better off just getting a new TV.
  • Reply 3 of 10
    ajmasajmas Posts: 601member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by addabox View Post


    The DVI-I spec includes both analogue and video signaling (the "I" stands for "Integrated).



    The mini displayport does not. So matter how many adapters you through on there, there's never going to be an analogue signal for your CRT unless you get a converter box that changes the digital signal to analogue-- and those are sufficiently expensive (if you want one that doesn't look like crap) that you really might be better off just getting a new TV.



    I thought the same thing, then realised that can't be right, otherwise there would be no way for Apple to be providing the mini-displayport to VGA adapter. Either that or the adapter has D/A converter in it, which would surprise me. An explanation from someone in the know would be useful. BTW I am not sure what to make of this, then?
  • Reply 4 of 10
    hudson1hudson1 Posts: 800member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by ajmas View Post


    I am wanting to connect my MacBook Pro, which has a mni displayport, to my TV. My TV is still of the CRT variety, but supports component video (R, G, B RCA connectors). Has anyone has any luck doing this?



    I have found mini DisplayPort to DVI-I adaptors and DVI-I to component video adaptors. Will connecting the two between my Mac and my TV provide me with a working solution?



    The short answer is "probably not". I'm a little bit out of my league on this but VGA is a real "red, green, blue" signal that uses various types of syncing of the signals.



    "Component video" is different as it's a YPbPr signal that happens to use red, green, and blue colored input ports on a TV.



    The mini that's based on the NVIDIA 9400M platform has VGA but not YPbPr. As I believe another poster has mentioned, you'd need an actual converter box to generate the signal that your TV would need.



    For more info, see this thread on MacInTouch:



    http://www.macintouch.com/readerrepo...tml#d16apr2009
  • Reply 5 of 10
    addaboxaddabox Posts: 12,665member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by ajmas View Post


    I thought the same thing, then realised that can't be right, otherwise there would be no way for Apple to be providing the mini-displayport to VGA adapter. Either that or the adapter has D/A converter in it, which would surprise me. An explanation from someone in the know would be useful. BTW I am not sure what to make of this, then?



    Hmmmm....... apparently I'm wrong. It seems to be hard to find any info, but I've seen a few references to Apple including analog video on the Mini DisplayPort spec-- unlike the standard Displayport, which does not, and which is where my reasoning went awry. I just assumed that Mini DisplayPort was a miniaturize version of the full size spec, but apparently not. As you note, the fact that Apple makes a Mini DisplayPort to VGA adapter means the analog has to be in there somewhere (although if you read the reviews at the Apple Store there seems to be some problems, so the implementation might be flakey).



    I'm actually a little surprised Apple went this route, since they don't usually worry to much about backward compatibility when it comes to connectors.



    At any rate, you're still on the hook for a converter box, since VGA video handles RGB and timing functions as separate entities, whereas composite and S video are looking for those things combined. And no, it doesn't work to just stick all the wires together inside an adapter shell, it has to be done electronically.



    EDIT: I just saw that your TV supports component in. Depending on the video card and the display device, just a simple VGA to RGB on RCA cable might work. You can get a six footer from Monoprice for like $6, so it might be worth it to give it a shot.



    Failing that, you'll have to spend upwards of a hundred bucks to get something like this.
  • Reply 6 of 10
    metallionmetallion Posts: 1member
    Hi people.

    Wanna revive this topic... i recently bought the new iMAC 27' i5 2.8, wich have now

    input and output of Mini Displayport.

    What our mate wanted a few months ago, thats exacly what i am wanting now, but in reverse,

    i want to connect my nintendo wii with component cable to this adapter:

    http://www.tvcables.co.uk/cgi-bin/tv...o-adapter.html

    (wich is dvi-i, meaning that it transports digital and analog) and then, that adapter to this one:

    http://www.atlona.com/Atlona-Mini-Di...r-for-Mac.html

    for what i see from the pins of those connectors, both transport digital and analog... AND since, the new iMAC says it receives mini Displayport .... im thinking this is a solution.

    Like someone said earlier, APPLE have been using, until now, their mini displayport to output DIGITAL ( mini displayport to hdmi + mini displayport to dvi) and EVEN TO ANALOG ( mini displayort to VGA) ....so, someone have more news and experience about this?

    Thanks in advance!
  • Reply 7 of 10
    ajmasajmas Posts: 601member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Metallion View Post


    Hi people.

    Wanna revive this topic... i recently bought the new iMAC 27' i5 2.8, wich have now

    input and output of Mini Displayport.

    What our mate wanted a few months ago, thats exacly what i am wanting now, but in reverse,

    i want to connect my nintendo wii with component cable to this adapter:

    http://www.tvcables.co.uk/cgi-bin/tv...o-adapter.html

    (wich is dvi-i, meaning that it transports digital and analog) and then, that adapter to this one:

    http://www.atlona.com/Atlona-Mini-Di...r-for-Mac.html

    for what i see from the pins of those connectors, both transport digital and analog... AND since, the new iMAC says it receives mini Displayport .... im thinking this is a solution.

    Like someone said earlier, APPLE have been using, until now, their mini displayport to output DIGITAL ( mini displayport to hdmi + mini displayport to dvi) and EVEN TO ANALOG ( mini displayort to VGA) ....so, someone have more news and experience about this?

    Thanks in advance!



    Looking on eBay I see there are component to HDMI adaptors. Maybe with this and a HDMI to Displayport adaptor you will get the solution you need. I have never tried this, so I can't say if it will work.
  • Reply 8 of 10
    rajamadhavanrajamadhavan Posts: 1member
    The most probable way to get it working is Macbook Pro --> Mini Displayport to VGA ($19) ---> PC to TV convertor box ($15 $17 )--> Analog TV...



    -Raja
  • Reply 9 of 10
    ajmasajmas Posts: 601member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by rajamadhavan View Post


    The most probable way to get it working is Macbook Pro --> Mini Displayport to VGA ($19) ---> PC to TV convertor box ($15 $17 )--> Analog TV...



    -Raja



    This is pretty much what I ended up doing. Everything I needed was bought off eBay. It worked well in general. Since then I have made the move to an HD TV since the prices dropped so much.
  • Reply 10 of 10
    sakesake Posts: 1member
    And if you search a Min DisplayPort to video converter, there is this all-in-one converter :

    http://vixid.com/store/lang-en/conve...composite.html



    C you
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