HDMI on hotel TVs

[maj_a_hole]

In most US hotel chains, the HDMI port on TVs are disabled or not accessible to mortal humans. (Or I'm not smart enough to get them working.) I would like to connect a chromecast, or my laptop via an HDMI cable to the hotel TV so I can stream Netflix or movies saved on my laptop during downtime.

 

Does anyone know if TVs (and remote controls) at Areca Lodge and China Garden will accommodate a third party HDMI connection?

 

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[maj_a_hole]

Holy duplicates, batman!  Can someone lock or delete the fucking dupes?

[SirL]

Have you thought of contacting reception and asking them?

[maj_a_hole]

Where is the fun in that?

 

Email was sent, but I would also like to get feedback from folks who have tried it, if possible. Not all hotel employees will be tech savvy.

[jimpty]

I cant imagine china garden doing any kind of modifications to their tv sets (not slagging them off or anything i love the place), i would assume they are straight out of the box and onto the wall mounts

[Short]

I couldn't get netflix to work outside of the US.   Netflix was blocking foreign IP addresses.

 

Get an HDMI L connector in case the only connections are on the back of the TV close to the wall.

[dirkdeee]

If you drop the Kodi program on your laptop you don't need to worry about blocked IP addresses and you're not limited to just Netflix choices.  The bigger issue is getting strong enough wifi to enable streaming of any type.

As for the Areca the last time I was there they still had CRT TV's, I hope to god they've replaced those by now!

[devee8]

Ours Do, we have HDMI outlets on our TVs

[maj_a_hole]

Have you thought of contacting reception and asking them?

I received the following response from China Garden. Looks like I'll be ok, at least for 7 out of 10 days:

 

Hi

All our TV's have HDMI input, but as I am no expert in these sort of things you'd have to set it yourself

Cheers

 

----

No response yet from Areca Lodge.

 

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[maj_a_hole]

If you drop the Kodi program on your laptop you don't need to worry about blocked IP addresses and you're not limited to just Netflix choices. The bigger issue is getting strong enough wifi to enable streaming of any type.

As for the Areca the last time I was there they still had CRT TV's, I hope to god they've replaced those by now!

At your suggestion I loaded kodi and the exodus add-on. Looks compelling, but I hesitate to use it too much here in the states without setting up a VPN. Hopefully WiFi in the room will be fast enough to watch a show now and then.

 

Even if kodi doesn't work, I have downloaded all available seasons of "Game of Thrones" to my laptop as mp4 files.

 

Since I'm not traveling half-way around the world to watch TV, these two options will keep me more than busy enough during those afternoons where I want to hang out in the room before hunting season starts.

 

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[SirL]

I often find with HDMI that the picture doesn't fit well onto the screen, ie there are black bars to top/bottom/sides or slices at the edge of the image are cut off.  I would adjust a home TV but can't be bothered with hotel ones.  I prefer VGA in these situations, even though it's a little old-fashioned, and I get the sound via a speaker or earphones.  I recommend you take a VGA wire as well as your HDMI one, if you've a spare.  That's assuming your laptop has a VGA output, which I think most still do(?)

[dirkdeee]

At your suggestion I loaded kodi and the exodus add-on. Looks compelling, but I hesitate to use it too much here in the states without setting up a VPN. Hopefully WiFi in the room will be fast enough to watch a show now and then.

 

Even if kodi doesn't work, I have downloaded all available seasons of "Game of Thrones" to my laptop as mp4 files.

 

Since I'm not traveling half-way around the world to watch TV, these two options will keep me more than busy enough during those afternoons where I want to hang out in the room before hunting season starts.

 

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Also load the Specto Fork add-on, this is identical to Exodus except you can save favorites which is handy for tv series and it has a download function so if you encounter buffering or slow connection just download the episode/movie overnight and watch it later.

Careful with the binge watching of Game of Thrones, you could go through all the seasons in a hurry as it is addicting.

[spidey]

In most US hotel chains, the HDMI port on TVs are disabled or not accessible to mortal humans. (Or I'm not smart enough to get them working.) I would like to connect a chromecast, or my laptop via an HDMI cable to the hotel TV so I can stream Netflix or movies saved on my laptop during downtime.

Does anyone know if TVs (and remote controls) at Areca Lodge and China Garden will accommodate a third party HDMI connection?

Sent from my SM-N920V using Tapatalk

The problem I've found with using the HDMI lead in hotels is the remote is specifically for hotels and doesn't allow you to change the source. I have a TV remote app on my phone which allows me to change the source.

[Scumbag]

I received the following response from China Garden. Looks like I'll be ok, at least for 7 out of 10 days:

 

Hi

All our TV's have HDMI input, but as I am no expert in these sort of things you'd have to set it yourself

Cheers

 

----

No response yet from Areca Lodge.

 

Sent from my SM-N920V using Tapatalk

I haven't done it in Thailand but I have done it in hotels in China, Malaysia and Azerbaijan. All you should need to do is to change the source. I have no idea why any hotel would need to disable the ports.

[maj_a_hole]

I often find with HDMI that the picture doesn't fit well onto the screen, ie there are black bars to top/bottom/sides or slices at the edge of the image are cut off. I would adjust a home TV but can't be bothered with hotel ones. I prefer VGA in these situations, even though it's a little old-fashioned, and I get the sound via a speaker or earphones. I recommend you take a VGA wire as well as your HDMI one, if you've a spare. That's assuming your laptop has a VGA output, which I think most still do(?)

I have a Surface Pro 4, so the only native video output is a mini display port. I have a cable that converts to HDMI, but not VGA.

 

If screen quality becomes an issue, I can always just watch it on the laptop and Bluetooth speakers, but would prefer the bigger screen if it works.

 

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[footix]

I have a Netflix subscription from the UK. I managed to link this from a laptop to TV's HDMI slot at Chada Thai hotel a couple of weeks ago. It worked fine. I can't understand why a hotel would disable the HDMI slot even if they knew how.

[SirL]

When we talk about "the HDMI port is disabled in US hotel TVs", presumably what is actually meant is that only one HDMI-in port of the TV is working - remember that whatever signal the hotel is providing into the TV is probably coming via HDMI.  Doesn't that mean that one option is to unplug the hotel's approved TV cable from the only working HDMI-in port on the back of the TV, and plug into that same HDMI port the HDMI cable coming from your laptop?

[Scumbag]

When we talk about "the HDMI port is disabled in US hotel TVs", presumably what is actually meant is that only one HDMI-in port of the TV is working - remember that whatever signal the hotel is providing into the TV is probably coming via HDMI.  Doesn't that mean that one option is to unplug the hotel's approved TV cable from the only working HDMI-in port on the back of the TV, and plug into that same HDMI port the HDMI cable coming from your laptop?

The signal is delivered via a coaxial cable rather than a HDMI cable. I don't believe that you can not change channels if the signal is delivered via HDMI.

[SirL]

The signal is delivered via a coaxial cable rather than a HDMI cable. I don't believe that you can not change channels if the signal is delivered via HDMI.

 

Do the new-ish TVs that US hotels use, still have coaxial inputs?  (Surprise!)  I thought coaxial inputs stopped a decade or two ago!  I thought all new TVs had HDMI inputs, a few also had VGA, but none had coaxial.  Is it possible to get the required rate of data for digital TV down a coaxial cable?

 

I thought the approximate evolution of TV input cables was, in chronological order, coaxial, SCART, VGA, DVI, HDMI.  Coaxial is ancient isn't it?

[jimpty]

Do the new-ish TVs that US hotels use, still have coaxial inputs?  (Surprise!)  I thought coaxial inputs stopped a decade or two ago!  I thought all new TVs had HDMI inputs, a few also had VGA, but none had coaxial.  Is it possible to get the required rate of data for digital TV down a coaxial cable?

 

I thought the approximate evolution of TV input cables was, in chronological order, coaxial, SCART, VGA, DVI, HDMI.  Coaxial is ancient isn't it?

Not to burst your bubble or anything but every modern tv set in a hotel/guest house in Thailand receives its cable/hd signal through a fucking coaxial cable (surprise!)

[Luv2Phuket]

interesting idea -- I use my laptop and my home Slingbox to watch some college and NFL football while in Thailand. 

 

Now I think I'll look into ways to hook my laptop up to the TV in my room so the games are more "watchable"

[jimpty]

interesting idea -- I use my laptop and my home Slingbox to watch some college and NFL football while in Thailand. 

 

Now I think I'll look into ways to hook my laptop up to the TV in my room so the games are more "watchable"

Its very easily done especially with the amount of input/output options on laptops these days, i dont travel with mine anymore but when i did id pack a vga cable and a hdmi and plug in using which ever was easiest to get at in the hotel

[rodo555]

I use the hdmi in many hotels in Thailand with no problems and my fire stick loaded with kodi has never let me down

[SirL]

interesting idea -- I use my laptop and my home Slingbox to watch some college and NFL football while in Thailand. 

 

Now I think I'll look into ways to hook my laptop up to the TV in my room so the games are more "watchable"

 

This is what I do all the time.  Remember that connection via HDMI often leaves the image on the big screen in the wrong proportions (I think that can be fixed by adjusting the big screen, but can you be bothered to find out how to do it to a hotel TV?), and connection via VGA or DVI sends only the picture to the TV, so you need to have some solution for listening to the accompanying sound direct from the laptop, ie the laptop's own speaker (often poor quality), head/earphones (need long wire?) or an external speaker bluetoothed or jackplugged into the laptop.  It's worth practicing at home to make sure you have all the hardware working properly before you try it in a hotel, and probably take both HDMI and VGA cables in case one doesn't work or the TV doesn't have the inputs on the back you're expecting.

[Scumbag]

Do the new-ish TVs that US hotels use, still have coaxial inputs?  (Surprise!)  I thought coaxial inputs stopped a decade or two ago!  I thought all new TVs had HDMI inputs, a few also had VGA, but none had coaxial.  Is it possible to get the required rate of data for digital TV down a coaxial cable?

 

I thought the approximate evolution of TV input cables was, in chronological order, coaxial, SCART, VGA, DVI, HDMI.  Coaxial is ancient isn't it?

This is how it works. There is a coaxial (of fiber) cable that enters the building from the provider. This cable may go directly to your TV or via a splitter box if they also provide internet. If you have a HDMI cable to the TV it will go to a decoder box located near the TV (which will have a coaxial cable connected to it). HDMI cable can not be very long or the picture quality suffers. In this arrangement you use the decoder box remote control to change channels.

 

Coaxial cable preforms a different function than the other connections you list. Coaxial cable can carry signals over a much longer distance than the other four.

 

I have a fiber connection. The fiber cable goes to a modem out of which comes a coaxial cable that travels to a decoder box. There is a HDMI cable from the box to the TV. The coaxial cable certainly does carry HD TV.