Playing avi files on TV

Forums › Home Theatre (including HTPC and EPG Collector) › Playing avi files on TV

RAE1

52 posts

Master Geek

#30469 9-Feb-2009 21:06

I would like to watch avi files on my tv and not sure how I go about this. At the moment I watch them on my computer but the office is like an oven whereas the lounge is a lot cooler. Unfortunately my tv is old and only has a connection for the aerial. Please help?

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507 posts

Ultimate Geek

#194992 9-Feb-2009 21:56

well......you could go down the home theatre route, but its a serious outlay.

What i did was buy my parents and sister a el cheapo dvd player from Norman Ross that plays divx, xvid and mpeg via USB stick and a 4gb USB stick.

They just come over and chuck the files to the memory stick and away they go!

Pretty sure there are a whole host of dvd players that play via USB now, from cheap to high quality.

One question i had, was that if I had a blu ray player that could play via USB stick and i had um, bluray quality files to put on the said USB stick.....would it play in hi def????

The force is strong with this one!

JMatt94

225 posts

Master Geek

#195000 9-Feb-2009 22:15

Yea, you can buy a divx/avi capable dvd player for about $50, that's what I paid about 6 months ago, maybe they're even cheaper now..Just stick the file on a blank CD/DVD or via USB stick if the dvd player has a usb port and you're watching avi!
Edit: Just re-read and noticed you only have an aerial connection, are you sure there are no red, white, yellow? If not, sorry you're out of luck!

RAE1

52 posts

Master Geek

#195025 10-Feb-2009 00:58

Thank you for your replies. I looked on DSE website and found a Toshiba SD-690KY which looks like a divx/avi capable dvd player.

Downloaded the manual and it says "If your TV only has a single Antenna In jack (or labelled as 75 ohm or RF In), you will need an RF modulator in order to view the DVD playback on the TV.

Is that something I will need? I couldn't find it on DSE. Help? My video recorder has red and white but no yellow. TV definitely has only the aerial plug. The RF modulator looks like this ...

8d52797c436

264 posts

Ultimate Geek
Inactive user

#195067 10-Feb-2009 09:03

You can buy an RF modulator to be able to convert the dvd's RCA signal into a standard aerial signel, but they are pretty expensive. From memory they cost about $90-$100, and when you use them the quality of the picture drops down quite drastically.

RAE1

52 posts

Master Geek

#195091 10-Feb-2009 12:37

Hmmm ... I might look on Trademe for a tv with those red, white and yellow thingies. Thanks all

llamma

26 posts

Geek

#195162 10-Feb-2009 18:29

you could also use a VCR as a modulator, however this will also lower the picture quality,

lchiu7

6470 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#195240 11-Feb-2009 06:59

rossmnz: ..

One question i had, was that if I had a blu ray player that could play via USB stick and i had um, bluray quality files to put on the said USB stick.....would it play in hi def????

Possible if your BluRay player (like the PS3) supports AVCHD content via a USB stick. Then you just author your content in AVCHD format (a few freeware tools for that) and copy the BDMV directory to the USB stick and play it.

Staying in Wellington. Check out my AirBnB in the Wellington CBD. https://www.airbnb.co.nz/h/wellycbd PM me and mention GZ to get a 15% discount and no AirBnB charges.

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vexxxboy

4243 posts

Uber Geek

#195257 11-Feb-2009 09:21

ok if you want a cheaper way you could just convert the avi files to dvd, i use cucusoft , and then burn it to a cd i play mine on a teac dvd player which cost me $70

Common sense is not as common as you think.

lchiu7

6470 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#195262 11-Feb-2009 09:33

That doesn't solve the problem of having no AV inputs on his TV

Staying in Wellington. Check out my AirBnB in the Wellington CBD. https://www.airbnb.co.nz/h/wellycbd PM me and mention GZ to get a 15% discount and no AirBnB charges.

rossmnz

507 posts

Ultimate Geek

#195267 11-Feb-2009 10:04

i vote harvey norman 24 months interest free 42" HD ready TV.

You KNOW you want to!!

The force is strong with this one!

RAE1

52 posts

Master Geek

#195275 11-Feb-2009 10:34

24 months interest free? Very tempting. That can be Plan B.

RAE1

52 posts

Master Geek

#195276 11-Feb-2009 10:38

I noticed someone called me a "his" so I thought I better put a pink dress on. Are there no boy/girl settings on these profiles?

rossmnz

507 posts

Ultimate Geek

#195288 11-Feb-2009 11:39

inject some flavour into your avatar and put a pic of yourself on there.

Naked is optional but not necessarily recommended.

As for the int. free deal....shop around all the big stores are offering cheap deals at the moment. Smiths city, noel leemings, harvey normans etc all have interest free for 18 months plus right now.

Id suggest taking a dvd with you, so you can compare all TVs you look at with the same dvd.

The force is strong with this one!

richms

28168 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#195430 11-Feb-2009 23:30

Jaycar sell modulators for pretty cheap - but if your tv is old enough that it has no AV's on it I would be looking around at replacing it with something cheap - try asking on your local freecycle list for one, otherwise they tend to go out on inorganic collection.

Also check you dont have a scart plug, there are loads of TVs that were really aimed at the euro market that have just a scart in addition to the antenna. - adapters are cheap - one came with every old xbox so ask around and you may find one gratis

Richard rich.ms

Jaxson

8041 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#195468 12-Feb-2009 09:39

Slight variation about avi files, anyone had any issues playing downloaded TV episodes on PS3? I got given 5 files last night: first greys, first lost, first 3 L word of latest series, so a good mix of files. All standard download .mpg or .avi, I can't remember which.

Played on computer no problems using win media player but PS3 either said they were corrupted or didn't even find/offer them when on a usb stick. found music on the usb stick, but no go with video, so in end none played via ps3. Will play on my philips hdd recorder when on blank cd/dvd.

How are others getting on with this?
Cheers.

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