Projectors (resolution) and Apple TV

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Projectors (resolution) and Apple TV

I need some help in clarifying two things here.

1. What projector resolutions are going to work with apple TV (the new little black box)? I have a projector that is XGA (1024 X 768). Can it support apple TV? I am also looking at other projectors... WXGA (1200 X 800) and HD projectors (1920 X 1080) (1080p). Can a WXGA projector support apple TV? I imagine the HD projectors can.

2. If my XGA progector can support apple TV, has anyone found a device that works with converting HDMI to VGA? http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=101&cp_id=10114&cs_id=1011410 &p_id=8126&seq=1&format=2&res=1 Has anyone tried this device and has it worked?

Thanks a bunch!

Cheers,

Josh

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 9:47 AM

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Answer 1

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Alley_Cat

Level 7

20,548 points

Nov 14, 2011 9:52 AM in response to Josh Lazzari

Can of worms this.

Ideally you need an HDMI equipped device that accepts 720p input.

If it won't accept 720p in you may have an issue.

As for converters you must have HDCP supported, though officially I didn't think they were allowed to convert HDCP portected digital to analogue. There will be devices out there that may work but you really need a good user recommendation.

AppleTV is very finicky about HDMI and swicthes/amps/converters in particular.

AC

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Answer 2

Josh Lazzari Author

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Nov 14, 2011 10:44 AM in response to Alley_Cat

Ok, I have checked the specs on my Toshiba TDP-T9U projector. http://www.projectorcentral.com/Toshiba-TDP-T9U.htm says, "

Compatibility:
HDTV:	720p, 1080i, 576i 576p
EDTV/480p:	Yes
SDTV/480i:	Yes
Component Video:	Yes
Video:	Yes
Digital Input:	No
Computers:	Yes

and the converter at http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=101&cp_id=10114&cs_id=1011410 &p_id=8126&seq=1&format=2&res=1says, "The converter supports HDCP 1.2, so handshaking and copy protection will not be an issue. The 10-bit DAC (digital-to-analog converter) can convert signals up to 1080p with 165 MHz/1.65 Gbps per channel bandwidth. "

So, I am assuming those 2 issues are taken care of, right?! Perhaps I'll buy the converter when it comes off back order and I'll repost indicating if it works or not. I'm sure there are many people in the same boat as me.

Thank you for clarifying those 2 issues.

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Answer 3

Nov 14, 2011 11:12 AM in response to Josh Lazzari

Contrary to what it says, if it supports the HDCP standards, then protected content will be a problem.

In order to comply with HDCP it cannot let a protected signal past unless it receives confirmation from the connected device that it can't be used to record the signal, such a confirmation can only be sent over HDMI/DVI.

I suspect the device is non compliant and will therefore strip out the protection in order to let the signal pass, the manufacturer is likely dressing things up the way they are to avoid alerting the customer to the fact that manufacture and distribution of such devices is illegal.

I appreciate you are not intending to record the signal and whether you are actually doing anything wrong yourself is a bit of a grey area.

If the device does what it says it will do, all you need to worry about is whether your projector supports 720p and is widescreen. (from your specifications it appears to support 720p)

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Answer 4

Josh Lazzari Author

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Nov 22, 2011 1:33 PM in response to Josh Lazzari

So, I checked if my projector supports 720p and 1080p (and many others) and it does. I received my HDMI to VGA adapter (my projector doesn't have HDMI input), tried it, and it works. I've hooked it up to Apple TV and it looks as good... even better than the S-cable coming off my HD DVD player. A $40 adapter from the link above has delayed me from buying a new projector.

Thank you for your help Alley Cat and Winston! I hope this feed helps others with the same problem I had.

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