HTC Advantage X7501 and VGA out

Pocketables reader TP emailed me this afternoon with a question about the VGA-out capabilities of the HTC Advantage X7501: "How do you hook up the Advantage to a computer monitor? Could you maybe write a short guide showing me how to do it and take pictures of what it looks like in the end?"

Rather than keep our exchange private, I decided to answer TP's question here in case others were curious about how the VGA functionality worked or were just interested in seeing how the Advantage's 640 x 480 resolution looked on an external monitor (in this case, my aging 17-inch Samsung CRT). Plus, you know I'll take any excuse to put the spotlight on the Advantage whenever I can.

Connecting to a VGA display is quick and easy thanks to the proprietary 16-pin VGA-out cable included in the HTC Advantage retail box.

Step 1: Remove the protective cap and plug the connector into the VGA-out port located on the left side of the Advantage.

Step 2: Connect the monitor's VGA cable to the other end of the Advantage cable.

Step 3: On the Advantage, go to Start -> Settings -> System tab -> TV Out.

Step 4: Select "On" from the drop-down menu and "VGA-out" as the connection type.

And that's it!

Everything on the Advantage's 5-inch touchscreen is now simultaneously displayed on an external monitor. The process is the same for connecting to a projector or TV, though the latter requires the HTC Advantage 4-in-1 cable and the connection type in Step 4 to be "Composite & S-Video."

One of the most commonly cited benefits of hooking up the Advantage to a VGA display is the ability to give presentations without a laptop, but the functionality could also be used for watching movies, playing games, and other entertainment purposes. In terms of productivity, the setup could be used with a wireless keyboard and mouse to get a good deal of work done (e.g., writing documents, editing spreadsheets, creating presentations, blogging, checking RSS feeds). There's a lot of potential.

Here are some additional pictures of the connected duo:

Thanks for your question, TP!

Comments

[turn_self_off]

a off topic question, but are you planing to get hold of a redfly when they become available?

[Jenn]

I got some hands-on time with it at CES and still have the life-size cardboard cutout they were giving away at the table, but I'm going to pass on it when it comes out (in March?). The fact that it can't be used as a stand-alone device is what kills it for me. In light of the success of the Eee PC, I'm not sure if this will still be the case upon release, but the originally quoted $500 MSRP for the Redfly doesn't help with its appeal either. Are you interested in it?

I'd rather have a Foleo.

[turn_self_off]

sure, the price is over the top so to speak, and yes, the foleo would have been much nicer.

but i love the idea behind the redfly for some reason.

i guess its because i have had a similar kind of idea floating around in my head since the day people wrote about booting their computers using harddrive based mp3 players.

basically put all your personal files and stuff on a portable communications and entertainment device, and then have a standardized system of docks so that you can bring your "desktop" into action on any available "terminal", be it a desktop or laptop setup.

[Reynaldo Bayona]

conocer mas en mim ididoma español