My PC has a 1080p screen resolution. My graphic card is a GTX 1070 (which I suppose should handle 4K video). I have a 4K smart TV (Hitachi 49f566w654). In my Nvidia config panel (right click on desktop), I can't go above a 1080p resolution.
I'd like to cast a 4K video file from my computer (Windows 10 Family) to my TV. I tried using an HDMI cable, but I feel like the output on the TV wasn't 4K (I don't know how to check though). I haven't tried playing the file while connected by Bluetooth, but when connected by Bluetooth it seems that my screen is also extended: I can choose duplicate screen and so on.
Alternately, is there a way to cast a 4K video in 4K from my laptop (HP OMEN 17 w101nf running Windows 10 Family) to my TV ?
Otherwise, do you know how I could play my files on the TV ? (I tried using an external drive but it wasn't formatted the correct way for my TV and was declined).
Best Answer
Different 4K TVs have different capabilities. I couldn't find any specs for yours, so I'll keep this general.
Video Direct Connection
On the laptop, you should get 4K output regardless of the multi-monitor settings because that's what it is supplying to the internal monitor.
On the PC, it appears that your main monitor is 1080p. Make sure you've selected a multi-monitor option that sends different content to the TV (extends rather than duplicates, otherwise, what you send will be limited to the resolution of the main monitor). If it sees the TV as an independent display rather than a duplicate of the main monitor, the config panel should show options higher than 1080p for it.
USB Drive
Casting
If you are having trouble getting a direct video connection to work, it may be easier to cast, and you can do it from either machine (the laptop or PC's video hardware doesn't come into play). There have been a number of casting apps and dongles for awhile, but Google Chromecast has simplified it to an easy setup and a mouse-click to cast.
If the TV has Chromecast built-in, you don't even need the Chromecast dongle (if you do need the dongle, get the newer Chromecast Ultra, which handles 4K; the non-Ultra version goes up to only 1080p).
For online content, you just need an extension for your browser. I understand it may even be built into current versions of Google Chrome. If you prefer not to use Chrome, there is a free open-source version of the extension in the Chrome Store that will work with Chromium (the open source code base for Chrome that doesn't include Google data mining), and Chromium-based browsers like Vivaldi. From Add Extensions, search the store for
Cast With MkChromecast
.After the extension is installed, you will get a Cast icon in your browser, and typically on the toolbar of the viewer. You use the viewer settings button to select the highest resolution format of the content and then click the cast button.