Everyone I know has a Netflix account. It’s pretty funny if you don’t! For a small monthly fee, you get access to tons of streaming movies / TV shows, and you can also get all the new movies on DVD or Blu-ray.
Either way, it’s not about praising Netflix, but about teaching you how to stream Netflix streams to your HDTV. Luckily, there are tons of ways to get Netflix installed on your TV, some of which you already own the hardware but don’t even know about it!
In this post, I will try to list all the possible ways to watch Netflix on TV, not just computer. Netflix also has a page that lists all the devices that support their service.
Connect the computer to the TV
Probably the easiest and cheapest way to stream Netflix to your TV is to use a cable and just connect your laptop or desktop to your TV! Depending on the type of your computer, you can use a VGA, S-Video, DVI or HDMI connection for this.
I highly recommend using only a DVI or HDMI connection as the other two are very old and won’t look that good.
Be sure to read our previous article on how to connect your laptop to your TV to get started. Using this method also allows you to watch all kinds of web videos on your HDTV, not just your computer.
So if you watch a lot of videos from sites other than YouTube, Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon Instant Video, then this is a really good option.
HDTV Built-in
If you are planning to buy a new HDTV or have recently bought one, it might already support Netflix streaming! This means you simply enter your Netflix account details, connect your HDTV to the Internet, and you’re done!
Currently, Netflix streaming on HDTVs is supported by LG, Samsung, Sanyo, Sony, Vizio, Panasonic and many more. Just make sure your TV has a logo that says Instant Streaming Ready or Smart TV.
Plus, it’s currently the only way to watch 4K content on your 4K HDTV via Netflix. Note that you also need to upgrade your Netflix plan to Ultra-HD to get full 4K resolution on your TV.
Blu-ray player
In addition to HDTV, there are a number of Blu-ray players that support Netflix streaming. Of course, you either need to connect a LAN cable to your Blu-ray player or buy a wireless dongle if you want it to connect to your wireless network.
Almost everyone supports Netflix, including Insignia, LG, Panasonic, Philips, Pioneer, Samsung, Sony, Toshiba, Yamaha, and Vizio.
Google Chromecast, Apple TV, Roku Player, Tivo
If you already own an HDTV and Blu-ray player and none of them support Netflix streaming, you can buy a streaming player. You have many options here, and the prices are much lower than buying a new TV or Blu-ray player.
The new Apple TV (4th generation) comes with tvOS and costs $ 149 or $ 199. If you’re not interested in all the new features, you can still get the 3rd generation Apple TV for just $ 69.
If that’s not for you, try Google Chromecast, which costs $ 35 and works really well. Other popular Netflix-enabled devices include the Amazon Fire, NVidia Shield, and Nexus Player.
Another good alternative is the Roku streaming player, which starts at $ 49- $ 129. Finally, if you have a TiVo DVR, you can stream Netflix via DVR to your HDTV.
Other not as popular devices are the Seagate Freeagent Theater, Sony Dash Personal Internet Viewer, Sony Network Media Player, and Western Digital Network media players.
Microsoft Xbox 360 / One, Sony PS3 / PS4, Nintendo Wii (U)
Of course, if you’re into gaming, you really don’t need anything other than an Xbox, PlayStation, or Wii! All three now support Netflix streaming.
Apart from streaming Netflix, you can play tons of games, stream music, videos and photos from your computer to your TV, and more.
That’s all! There are tons of options for showing Netflix on TV, so this shouldn’t be a problem for most people. If you have a unique situation or cannot figure out how to set up any equipment, leave a comment here and we will try to help! Enjoy!
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