What's the best way to play video files on a TV?

QuadyTheTurnipQuadyTheTurnip Icrontian
edited June 2010 in Hardware
So, I used to just hook up my laptop to the TV when I wanted to play stuff on it (via an S-Video + Headphone to RCA cable) which worked excellently. Sadly, my laptop is dead and gone, so that doesn't work anymore.

What options do I have? I have a desktop now, but I largely do the video file to tv hookups when I'm visiting my family, and I don't want to have to haul my desktop half-way across the country just for this (plus, it doesn't have S-video).

My family's TV just has RCA inputs, and their DVD player doesn't have any fancy USB inputs or anything like that. The do have a Wii, and I also have an external hard drive.

I suppose I could always just burn stuff to DVD, but that's time consuming and annoying, so I'm hoping there's some other way to do this. Any help? I'm trying to do this as cheaply as possible, so most of the hard drive-TV boxes are out (as they cost around $200 as far as I can tell). I'm trying to see if I can do this for less than $50 if possible.

Thanks!

Comments

  • BlackHawkBlackHawk Bible music connoisseur There's no place like 127.0.0.1 Icrontian
    edited June 2010
    Can their DVD player play DivX/XviD?
  • NullenVoydNullenVoyd Orlandish Icrontian
    edited June 2010
    There is a way you can put videos on whatever flash mem card the Wii takes and play them on there, but I think it has to be some oddball format or someshiz.

    Otherwise, these are just up from your budget but might be a great way to get what you want. Someone got me this thing - http://www.mvixusa.com/product/mv-2500u - for xmas last year and while it's a bit odd to work with, it's nice for loading up some of my old favorite viddy things what are unavail or cumbersome to bring on traditional medias, and bringing along for traveling to play on hotel screens and family's televisions.

    A few I found, never used them, but you can take the idea and search from here:

    http://www.amazon.com/Micca-Portable-Digital-Player-2-5-Inch/dp/B002XVBAKI/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1275802911&sr=8-2

    http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882438002R

    http://www.axiontech.com/prdt.php?item=89807
  • SnarkasmSnarkasm Madison, WI Icrontian
    edited June 2010
    Get one of these type of bad boys - just bring a little box, plug a flash drive or external HDD into it, and hook it up to the TV. Comes with remote and plays damn near any format you throw at it.
  • QuadyTheTurnipQuadyTheTurnip Icrontian
    edited June 2010
    I'd use the Wii one, but it aparently has a video length limit of 30 minutes.

    Those boxes are all pretty much exactly what I was looking for! Thanks!
  • kryystkryyst Ontario, Canada
    edited June 2010
    Sign up at orb.com and then you can stream video from your computer to your wii.
  • ThraxThrax 🐌 Austin, TX Icrontian
    edited June 2010
    Just be aware that none of the media streamers (like the Western Digital) can upscale, except for the Boxee Box, which is not yet released.
  • drasnordrasnor Starship Operator Hawthorne, CA Icrontian
    edited June 2010
    Since it's an NTSC-only TV, I don't think upscaling is going to be an issue. If you have a video-enabled personal media player you might want to consider getting the video-out cable for it (e.g. PSP, several flavors of iPod, most P&S cameras, most MP3 players with a color screen, etc.)
  • ThraxThrax 🐌 Austin, TX Icrontian
    edited June 2010
    A good upscaler does wonders for those, uh, personal archival copies.
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