Does VGA look good on an HDTV?

[Leros]

I'm considering using an old laptop as an HTPC. It only has VGA output. I'm wondering if it would look good on a 37" 1080P LCD. I haven't used VGA since the CRT days so I don't know what to expect.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

There may be a limit to the resolution the LCD can accept over a VGA connection. If it can accept 1080p and the laptop can output 1080p, it should look good.

 

[tk149]

I hooked up my HTPC to my 52" 1080p TV. I used both VGA->VGA and DVI->HDMI. I was unable to tell any quality difference between the two different cables in terms of text or playing a DVD. The VGA signal, however, did extend the bottom menu bar (in WinXP) off the bottom of the TV screen, while the HDMI signal did not. This is probably fixable, but I'm too lazy to mess with it, so I just use the DVI->HDMI cable.

I use a Radeon 9800 outputting 1920x1080.

 

[ZetaEpyon]

If anything, I've found that the greatest impact on VGA quality for an HTPC is that on most TVs, the adjustment settings are very limited compared to other inputs. For example, on my 46" Samsung, a very small subset of the picture adjustment options are enabled when connected by VGA, but with a DVI to HDMI cable, I get the whole set.