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Seanwoodward33

Hi Guys,

Wondered if anyone could help. Bot my laptop nearly 2 years ago and finally got round to purchasing the correct lead to connect it to my TV.

I asked the guys in the Sony shop which cabe I needed and £12.99 later I have returned home with the right cable. The only problem is that my laptop doesn't recognise it.

I plug it in the back and press "Fn+F7" as I am told to in my manual to select TV mode and nothing happens. When I first got my lapop, and being an inquisitive person, I have pressed the "Fn+F7" combination before. What used to happen was I could chose between LCD, LCD/TV and TV only options on my screen. This is what should come up on my screen now when connecting my lead, but I can no longer make this selection, either with or without the lead pluged in.

Can anyone please shed any light on the situation as I quite like the idea of watching films etc off my laptop on my TV

Thanks in advance

Sean

Blencogo

Hi Sean,

Are you using an Audio/Video lead (Yellow/Red/White plugs) or are you trying to use the VGA Monitor (1 plug & 15 pins) connection?

You may find that the VGA will not work with many televisions and you will probably be better off with the AV cable.

What inputs does your TV have?

Seanwoodward33

Hi,

Thanks for your quick response . Im using an Audio/Video lead. On the back of my laptop there is a 3.5 mm socket that is coloured yellow. The lead I have purchased is a 3.5mm plug to the three (Red/White/Yellow) phono plugs.

My TV has the standard scart socket and a seperate 3 phono socket.

I hope this helps and you can help me!

Thanks again

Sean

rich912

Hi Sean,

It sounds as though you have the correct cable Sean, and assuming that you have the corresponding connections on your TV then, in theory, all should be ok.

The fact that the Fn+F7 is not working may be related to some Sony Utilities. Are all other FN keys working? If not then certain Sony Utilities need to be re-installed – we can give further guidance if necessary.

You can activate the TV display via Display Properties > Settings > Advanced > Displays tab (assuming that you have an ATI adaptor – but other adaptors should be similar).

Go n-éirí an bóthar leat

Seanwoodward33

Hi Rich,

My other function keys seem to be working fine. If you could though please tell me how to reinstall them that would be great as I dont seem to be able to activate the TV output from display settings (I've got an Nvidea card and there are no settings linked to the video output, despite searching every tab!)

Thanks in advance

Sean

rich912

Hi Sean,

I am not familiar with the extended settings for the Nvidea card, maybe someone else can throw some light on this.

As the other Fn keys are working I am not sure whether re-installing the utilities will have any effect but is possibly worth a try.

To re-install the utilities for the Fn keys first download the pre-installed utilities for your model from Vaio-Link and then run the Utils.exe file (you may already have this – located at c:\Utils)

Go n-éirí an bóthar leat

Blencogo

Hi Sean,

Have a look at this to configure your nVIDIA GeForce FX Go5600 for TV.

PCG-GRT800/900 Series - TV Out

Seanwoodward33

Hi Guys,

Sorry for the delayed reply, work and internet problems got in the way.

I tried reinstalling the Utilities as Rich suggested but this didnt have any result 😞

I followed the link that Blencogo suggested. It was all going well until the very last.I can follow it all the way through until step 7. Where it says to click "nView Display Mode" I run into difficulties. I dont have this option to click on. I have "Flat Panel Display" and "Colour Correction" instead. Am i missing a vital update? From what I can see in the picture on the web page my settings are the same, with even the bios the same. My drivers are as up to date as they can be, (taken from the Vaio update page, (last updated in 2004) as the drivers from the nVidea site don't appear to recognise my card) so have i in accidentally turned off the required setting?

Any more assistance you can give would be excellent and thanks ever so much with your help so far

Sean

Seanwoodward33

Has anyone got any more suggestions?

Im really struggling on this one and would be really greatful for any help people can give.

Thanks in advance

Sean

Blencogo

Sorry Sean - can't think of anything else.

Except (grasping at straws) - I'm sure you have tried tuning the TV to the AV Channel to see if you get a picture. The TV out socket could be live by default.

I know you have done this, but it may be worth downloading ALL the preinstalled utilities from Vaio-Link and reinstalling the lot as you say that the F7/F8 keys used to work. You have to install these in order and sometines more than once!