cable help

[ih]

Not being tech savvy need help to identify what cable (preferable multi connection one) do I need to
connect my Panasonic TV th42px80ba to USB or hard disc.FYI the TV does have HDMI and VGA connection
but no USB port. will be thankfully for eBay link or item number.thanking in advance.

 

[Lucid]

I don't think the answer is just just a cable. The PX80 doesn't have the facility to use an external drive. It doesn't matter what cable you buy it just isn't going to work.

Describe WHY you want to connect a drive to the TV and maybe we can offer some alternative solutions.

 

[ih]

Hi thanks for the reply my son is keen to watch his videos from his USB stick . since the TV has PC connection
I assumed that there was possibility to connect USB some how ! perhaps there is another you can recommend
thanks..

 

[Lucid]

The PC connections will allow you to use the TV as a monitor on to a laptop or desktop computer. These are a different form of video conection, but they're still just connections for video picture. There's no communication or file reading ability in VGA or DVI.

If plugging in the laptop directly to the TV isn't practical then you'll need some intermediary device to do the file reading and conversion out to HDMI or DVI + analogue audio (3.5mm jack or stereo phono red & white). Depending on the file formats being used then there are Blu-ray players that include playback from USB. The alternative would be a media player. I use an Android MX TV box (available from around £50). It has multiple USB inputs and will take USB memory stick or a USB hard drive. It has the apps already built in to play a lot of different file formats. But it is also possible to add different media player apps/software too. I use software called Kodi. It was previously known as XMBC. This is currently a free download and is a lovely interface with some nice library management features.

Android boxes also have internet connections for both wired and wireless. You can use this to connect to your home router and any PCs in the house if they allow file sharing. The boxes will also stream from the web.

 

[ih]

Thanking you very much !Lucid appreciate your help and pointing in the right direction. i have now Googled and improved my knowledge a liitle.
i have looked at two options on ebay but yet again am confused on technical terms (diff formats etc) perhaps you will be kind enough to look at
both and advise which one i should get (the one which will support most files).kindly note his hard disk is 1TB. thanks again
1. ebay item 311194643552
2.ebay item 271628956565
3.eBay item 251544464916
if you recommend no 3 kindly advise how is the upgrade done you are welcome
to recommend one another within his budget .thanks again

 

[Lucid]

They all look to be very similar, and at less than the price of a a fish supper for 4 then they're all cheaper than chips too. My old MX box is nowhere near the spec of this newer gear and it copes with HD rips and DVD rips to a hard drive and via my home network.

I am not sure what you mean by upgrades. Upgrading what to what exactly?

 

[ih]

just wanted to know if frequent software update is required &how it is done! no worry's thanks
again.

 

[Lucid]

Ah right, okay that makes more sense now. Some updates are automatically downloaded for things such as the operating system and core apps so long as the box is connected to the net. Other updates can be downloaded as self-installing files. They can be applied either from a USB stick or copied to the device's internal memory and then applied from there.