This may have been addressed somewhere but I haven't been able to find anything. I'm thinking of using my MBP connected to an HD projector to watch movies on a large screen. Is that a realistic option for a good quality viewing experience? Any info on image quality, ease of connection, Apple Remote usability or any other experiences would be a great help!
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MBP+HD Projector to watch DVDS?
- Thread starter swdesignr
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well, im guessing the projector has a DVI plug on it, so that will be a simple connection, as far as the remote goes, as long as you can point it at the front of the laptop it will work fine, front row should look really good on a HD projector, im jealous
How HD is your projector? If it is 1080P then OS X and movie watching and the like will look quite nice on there. If it is 1080P, then you will probably need a DVI-HDMI cable for the Video, and then a Toslink cable for the Audio.
The remote can be used... but is relatively limited. The thing does in fact only have 6 buttons.
Ae-900
I've got a 720P Panasonic projector, and every now and then I connect my MBP to it using a DVI to HDMI cable. The OS instantly recognizes it, and switches to the correct resolution (720P). DVD's look nice, and iTunes visualizers are awesome for parties. It's got optical audio out, so with the correct cable it connects to my audio system for great sound. Front Row is great too with the remote, but I miss 10.4's version. It's even fun using OS X and all of my apps on the big screen-- crisp, clear, and ginormous.
I've got a 720P Panasonic projector, and every now and then I connect my MBP to it using a DVI to HDMI cable. The OS instantly recognizes it, and switches to the correct resolution (720P). DVD's look nice, and iTunes visualizers are awesome for parties. It's got optical audio out, so with the correct cable it connects to my audio system for great sound. Front Row is great too with the remote, but I miss 10.4's version. It's even fun using OS X and all of my apps on the big screen-- crisp, clear, and ginormous.
Thanks for the replies!
The projectors I'm looking at are 720p, but I may spring for a 1080p if I can afford to. My original plan was to have the projector and MBP set up in a higher cabinet behind me -- using the remote could be a bit tricky!
Is there any way to incorporate my AirPort Extreme into all of this? (I've read AppleTV isn't a great option right now.) It would be more flexible to be able to separate and move the components using wireless, but I imagine the transfer rate isn't fast enough?
I also used an external drive attached to an Airport Extreme where I stored my ripped dvd's. I then created aliases of each movie and placed the aliases in the Movie folder on my MBP. In each movie folder, I found a movie poster and named it preview.jpg. Then, in FrontRow my ripped DVD's show up in the Movies section, along with their movie poster. They stream perfectly over wireless; fast forward works, but is a little choppy.
Edit: And, my MBP only has 802.11G, so fast forward may not be a problem on N.
I'm interested in buying a projector, but it would have to be 1080p. I have a 1366x768 TV and I hook up my MacBook Pro to it all the time. It's awesome using Front Row! It looks sweet! I keep all my movies on my external hard drive in another room and stream it using my Airport Extreme.
I can even stream 1080p content using the Airport Extreme and VLC (1920x1080 and 1440x1080, 1280x720, etc) Some people are having problems with the Airport Extreme.
I say do it, do it, once you use Front Row to watch your DVD's, you'll throw away your DVD player and never go back... until you get a Blu-ray player.
I can even stream 1080p content using the Airport Extreme and VLC (1920x1080 and 1440x1080, 1280x720, etc) Some people are having problems with the Airport Extreme.
I say do it, do it, once you use Front Row to watch your DVD's, you'll throw away your DVD player and never go back... until you get a Blu-ray player.