Do I Require an HDMI Cable For My Smart Television?

FACTS CHECKED BY  Jose George​

Do I Require an HDMI Cable For My Smart Television? Modern TVs can be classified into two categories: smart TVs and regular televisions. A regular TV must have an HDMI or video to function. However, you may wonder: Do you also need an HDMI cable for your smart TV? This article discusses everything you need to know about using an HDMI cable on smart TV. Keep reading to learn more!

Table of Contents

Do Smart TVs Need An HDMI Cable?

When you buy a smart television for the first time, you will realize it has HDMI ports at the back. Generally, most smart TVs have 2-3 HDMI ports. However, do smart televisions require an HDMI cable to work?

To exhaustively answer this question, you need to consider the following;

  • The functionality of smart televisions
  • How smart TVs differ from non-smart variants

For instance, while regular television can not connect to the internet, there is a viable reason why smart televisions have internet connectivity capability: they can run all applications directly installed on your television.

From Spotify to Netflix to Youtube, there are many fantastic applications that you can run on your smart television without needing an HDMI cable. You can even browse the web on smart TVs.

However, you will need an internet connection to connect your smart television to the internet to use these fantastic applications. You can accomplish this through the following;

Therefore, while internet connectivity makes smart TVs different from regular TVs, smart TVs can work without an HDMI cable.

However, you can still use HDMI cables to connect your smart TV to external devices, such as computers, decoder boxes, game consoles, etc.

HDMI cable for smart TV

HDMI cable for smart TV

The Reason Your Smart Television Has HDMI Ports

As mentioned above, smart TVs do not necessarily need an HDMI cable. This is because they have WiFi capabilities that allow you to connect them to your home network wirelessly.

However, you may wonder why smart TVs should have HDMI ports if they do not need HDMI cables.

An explanation for this is straightforward: your smart TV’s HDMI ports allow you to connect it to other external devices similar to that of non-smart TV.

Although HDMI ports and cords are among the latest video and audio transmission innovations, they have become common and mostly used globally. For instance, they allow for little to no signal interference and better refresh rates while transmitting high-quality audio and video.

Therefore, your smart TV’s HDMI ports will help you create high-quality audio and video connections to several external devices that you can connect to your TV. However, learning how to connect an HDMI cable to your smart TV’s HDMI port is vital.

HDMI port

HDMI port

Do Smart TVs Need To Be Cabled?

Smart TVs do not require cabling to work. For instance, most modern smart TVs have advanced capabilities, such as WiFi connectivity, that allow you to wirelessly connect these televisions to your home’s WiFi network.

This means that smart TVs only require a power cable to function.

However, most smart TVs have an ethernet port, allowing a more stable internet connection while streaming content via applications. Therefore, you can use an ethernet cable on most smart TVs.

Besides, smart TVs have HDMI ports that allow you to connect them to different external devices through an HDMI cable

For instance, you need a cabled connection to connect a digital decoder to your smart TV. 

Moreover, you can use gaming consoles, such as Xbox or PlayStation, on your smart TV if you have an HDMI cable.

Therefore, while smart TVs do not require cabling, several instances require you to cable your smart television.

If most of you use your smart TV for internet-based activities, you only need a power cable. 

However, if you are a gaming enthusiast, you might require to add some cords to your television setup.

Which Cable Type Do I Need For My Smart Television?

As mentioned above, smart TVs only need the following to function;

  • Internet connectivity
  • Power cable

However, every smart TV features multiple ports, allowing users to use specific cords to connect their TVs to external devices.

For instance, you will need an HDMI cord to connect your smart television to external devices, such as computers, decoder boxes, game consoles, etc. 

Fortunately, HDMI cables are highly universal as most modern devices feature HDMI ports and cables.

You can also connect your smart television to an older external device that doesn’t have HDMI ports. 

Doing this requires a suitable adapter, which allows you to alter one end of your HDMI cord and connect it to another port type, such as the VGA port.

Conclusion

Unlike regular TVs, you can connect smart televisions to the internet to browse and stream web content. 

So, although smart TVs have HDMI ports, they do not technically need an HDMI cable to function.

However, you can use an HDMI cord to connect your smart TV to external devices, such as computers, decoder boxes, game consoles, etc..

Finally, Cloom Tech got you covered for all your HDMI cable needs.