Cheap bit of HD or wishful thinking?

[admin_exported]

I have a new HDTV (Panasonic 32LXD700) and, as yet, no HD source. It’s occurred to me that I do have a laptop and an internet connection and I know that HD content is available on-line. The telly has a PC connection and I’m thinking to myself, surely if I download, say, an HD movie trailer from Apple and connect the laptop to the telly I can watch the trailer in HD on the big screen? Just to check out some HD on the new telly. Or is the VGA monitor connection not up to the quality of HDMI?

 

[Andrew Everard]

Do you mean the TX-32LXD700? If so, yes it should work, provided your laptop can output at a suitable resolution. Check in the display settings, and off you go...

 

[Anonymous]

Yes I did mean the 32LXD700. (Sorry about that - bit of finger trouble - have corrected). Thanks for the reply - I'll give it a go.....

 

[Anonymous]

Not tried the above yet but I will do as soon as I can get a lead.

However, I've had another thought. If I were to invest in a freeview USB receiver like the August DVBT201 which says it can receive the new BBC HD channel does that mean I can view BBC HD on my TV via the PC connection?

 

[Andy Clough]

Well you may be able to do so in the future, but at the moment the BBC isn't actually broadcasting its HD service on Freeview, only on satellite and cable. However, there are plans afoot to introduce HD on Freeview from 2009, as you can read here.

 

[Andrew Everard]

And with past experience of the August, which very frustratingly refused to let me watch the finale of Life on Mars while I was away at a conference earlier this year, I'd say only buy it if you're planning to hook it up to an outdoor aerial. Or live under your local TV transmitter.

 

[Anonymous]

[quote user="Andy Clough"]

Well you may be able to do so in the future, but at the moment the BBC isn't actually broadcasting its HD service on Freeview, only on satellite and cable. However, there are plans afoot to introduce HD on Freeview from 2009, as you can read here.

[/quote]

Rats! What about the trial broadcast though? Or has that stopped broadcasting?

 

[Andrew Everard]

The Freeview DTT HD trial stopped some time ago, as far as I know.