Watching tv shows from a hard drive
 

A friend of mine downloaded several ‘60s tv shows on to a external hard drive for me. Does anyone know of a way that I can plug the external hard drive in to my laptop and then somehow go from the laptop to the rf connector on the back of my tv?

If you are using a moden computer and a modern hard drive with SATA connector, the cheapest way to get the content on your computer is via a SATA to USB 3.0 connector.

There are various ways to play it through your set. I use a cheap RCA set top box that plays video via a USB stick. Other ways include converting the DVI, HDMI or Display Port connectors (plus audio) to video. Below is a link to an HDMI to NTSC video convertor.

There are all sorts of solutions on Amazon.

https://www.amazon.com/BENFEI-Drive-...zcF9hdGY&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/Converter-Com...%2C165&sr=8-20

Once you connect your friends drive you should be able to play any file on it with VLC media player. Some older laptops have an S-video output on the back that'll go straight to an RF modulator (you'll need to grab audio from the headphone jack too), if not HDMI and Display Port are based on the DVI standard and there are simple dumb cables that can convert any of those to HDMI (DVI usually lacks digital audio so you'll have to grab from the headphone output, but most laptops I've seen feed digital audio over HDMI and Display Port). If all you have for a second monitor output is VGA they make VGA to composite adapters too. You'll probably need to right click on your PC desktop and go into adjust screen resolution and detect monitors and play with a few settings to make it work (some laptops have Fn buttons for rapidly connecting a external monitor for presentations).
Once you have composite video a good RF modulator and your where you want to be.

I basically do this for much of the stuff I watch.

It would be easier if your friend burned the shows on a
DVD, then simply connect the RCA A/V outs on the DVD player to your TV. Or…

Connect the external hard drive to the USB port on the laptop, then get an HDMI converter to RF or A/V for your TV.

WARNING! WARNING!

Those HDMI to RCA Converters have a very bad reputation for poor / no color, especially with vintage televisions, I have seen this first hand, having tried 2 of them, they are JUNK!

I have changed to “convert to DVD” method, long ago, as bulk DVD blanks are very cheap, and the conversion software is easy to find if you look in the right places.

That is a good point. I bought one of the convertors and was disappointed at the fixed 16x9 aspect ratio amongst other things. It may be easier to just burn a dvd.

+1 for the poor quality of these things.
The 16:9 fixed is a disrespect with history.
BTW, even if you watch a modern content being 4:3 (like a Simpson cartoon in the streams), is in reality 16:9 with side bars. Then you want to reproduce it with a 4:3 monitor or TV, and it have side AND horizontal bars :mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad: almost like a PIP in the center :rolleyes:
Unless you download a extension to force reproduction to cut permanent black areas, like I use with my notebooks connected to old TV's.

Lol. How is it a disrespect for history? I have a respect for the history more than most people!

The unit does not include a format rescaler. For the price you would not necessarily expect it to. Eg you do not have the facility to letter box or center cut on a 4:3 display using the inexpensive box. There are other ways to better handle this.

The ones who disrespect history are the ones who format 4x3 content as 16x9 with no side bars!

Ah... well noted. Perhaps a little of language issue (for sure, my English are not sooo good), but I believe I hasten too much to write and oversimplified...

For sure, el-cheapo devices will never have these facilities. But anyway, I saw some only accepting wide resolution settings... go figure.

My concern is not about commentaries from you and our friends here; is about the following:
In general, I regret the lack of options for the legacy monitors. It can't be too difficult for programmers, ie. I don't understand the impossibility to zoom an originally 4:3 video on a... 4:3 monitor (results like I said, everyone can try, using every stream or newer Youtube videos). Since it are coded with 720x480 with side bars, and not 640x480 (for older ones). It will have bars at all dimensions, with reduced dimensions, unless one download a plugin to cut the bars and displays as a 640x480 video.
For the 16:9 monitors, are a blessing that displays the content with correct aspect ratio, ie, with side bars.

I concur 100% about the displaying these content in newer wide screens:
I watch old things like eg. Simpsons with side bars when using modern wide screens, preserving the original A/R.

EDITED*

Thanks for the input. I think I will buy a bulk package of blank dvds and convert the shows on the hard drive. There are some good shows on the hard drive. Batman, Man from Uncle, Star Trek, Time Tunnel, Wild Wild West, Mod Squad, Mannix, Canon, Get Smart, Combat, F-Troop, Bewitched, I Spy, Lost In Space,
I Dream of Jeannie, The Avengers, The Invaders, The Monkees, The Outer Limits,
Voyage To The Bottom Of The Sea, The F.BI. and several more. Good for watching on a ‘65 Color set. Every episode of each show.

There's a few different types of HDMI to AV converters out there. Some are better than others (I've even seen ones with a Zoom button).
You can sometimes on a PC playing videos in VLC get around stretch squish on the converter by playing with the aspect ratio "A" and or crop "C" keys.

If aspect ratio issues especially annoy you I made a video on a couple of solutions out there: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=hKjt3x4WtWU

Anyone try this one?

https://www.ebay.ca/itm/166705627634...mis&media=COPY

It even has a zoom button and some positive reviews.
It appears to be available on Amazon and Ebay, but I'm not entirely sure how well it works on US TV sets

These tend to have poor color signal. A YouTuber disliked the quality of the RF from these enough to modify his to provide composite AV output for a better modulator....Also along the way he learned that between the HDMI to AV chip and the RF modulator chip inside those units that the factory mis-terminates the line impedance such that it reduces the quality of the video signal an undid that design error.

Interesting, thanks. I saved it for all situations that's apply.

BTW, more troublesome are some dedicated app containing video, like Tidal, where most tricks don't works (and here have a lot of old clips, folowing the playlists).

Well, I too, bought one of those ultra cheap HDMI -> Composite adapters on Amazon. Like this one: https://www.amazon.com/Okubox-Compos...dp/B08J3ZN6Z2/

I had no problems whatsoever with the picture quality, the color was vivid, despite seeming ever so slightly off, that's probably down to colorspace conversion.
The only complaint I have is that the audio DAC you get is absolute garbage but at least you can use the sound card on your computer instead.