Can I output video to my TV using a MacBook Pro?

Question

How can I do this? I have the 13" model.

Answer 1

Yes. You just need the right video and audio adapters.

Apple sells two adapters to connect your MacBook's Mini DisplayPort to DVI or VGA. Neither of those will include audio, so you'll also need to get audio cables. Your TV likely includes either optical or composite (RCA) jacks for one or more of your DVI or VGA connections.

For HDMI, you'll need a third-party adapter like this one. Note that this one does not carry audio either. The most recent 13" MBP does put audio out over that port, but I'm not aware of any adapters that can use the audio yet. That same site also sells third-party VGA and DVI adapters that are much cheaper than Apple's.

I can't vouch for the quality of the third-party adapters, but I buy most of my cables there, and I've always had good results.

Answer 2

Does your TV really only have HDMI audio input? No RCA or Toslink?

The blog post Playing Hulu from my Mac to my TV might give you some ideas for other methods you could try.

Answer 3

I asked a similar answer on SuperUser (http://superuser.com/questions/126520/macbook-pro-with-dvi-to-hdmi-including-audio-possible).

I was going from DVI to HDMI so you'll have one more step but I ended up getting this:

DVI & S/PDIF Digital Coax/Optical Toslink Audio to HDMI Converter

http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=101&cp_id=10114&cs_id=1011405&p_id=5369&seq=1&format=2 and it works great.

Answer 4

I just bought a 13" Macbook Air (January 2011). It DOES output audio via the mini display port, so I bought this mini display port to HDMI adapter, which specifically supports audio. It works perfectly. The only "catch" is that you have to go into System Preferences -> Sound, and select "output to HDMI" every time you connect.

Moshi MiniDisplay Port to HDMI Adapter with Audio

However, if your Macbook Pro model does NOT support audio out via the display port, then you will need an additional adapter to get sound:

• a headphone jack to RCA (red+white) plug. Cheapest, easiest, but only 2 channel sound. Also, you will likely need to dig deep into your TV's settings to tell it to combine the RCA audio input with the HDMI video. If you have an external audio amplifier then this is not a problem.
• toslink + dvi to hdmi adapter, mentioned by Jason. Supports multi-channel sound.
• USB + display port to HDMI adapter. This option only makes sense if your TV truly forbids RCA audio input with HDMI. There is one on Monoprice.com, but it only supports 2 channel sound. (I can't provide the link due to lack of reputation points.)

Answer 5

As far as I know, you’re only able to output HDMI (with audio) with any of the following models:

MacBook Pro (17-inch, Mid 2010), MacBook Pro (13-inch, Mid 2010), MacBook Pro (15-inch, Mid 2010), iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2009), iMac (27-inch, Late 2009), Mac mini (Mid 2010), MacBook (13-inch, Mid 2010).

iMac (Late 2009), MacBook Pro (Mid 2010), MacBook (Mid 2010), and Mac mini (Mid 2010) supply multichannel audio (up to 8 channels) and video signals over Mini DisplayPort. To connect your television or other HDMI devices to your Mac, use select third-party Mini DisplayPort to HDMI adapters that conform to the VESA v1.1a DisplayPort Interoperability Guidelines.

Source.