# HP Pavillion Flat Screen Monitor, hook up to a Dell Tower?



## DigiGrin

I have a nice 19" flat screen monitor, it's a HP Pavillion that came with my HP.
Are monitors compatible with other towers .. like say a Dell, and would I have any issues?

It would seem that everything is compatible .. but I thought I'd ask here.

Thanks


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## beefers1

no problem. you can connect it to anything that has the appropriate connector. and, seeing it's 19", it probably has a VGA connector, which almost guarantees compatibility with all computers (except really high-end ones with DVI slots, but then you can get an adapter for $5).


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## DigiGrin

Thanks for the answer .. however, I just noticed it's really a 17" lol ..
I don't even know what a VGA connector is, so I doubt I have one?
It's an HP Pavillion, and the model # is f1703.

Reason I ask, is I wanna buy a dell tower .. I can get a good deal from a friend,
and I kina think I may need one soon, as my HP tower (model # a345c)
has kina seen better days lol ..

It's nice to know that this monitor (I love it) will connect to another tower ..
I'd like to be able to keep my mouse and keyboard, along with my Boston speakers
and just plug everything into my new Dell tower ..

Thanks again ..


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## beefers1

well, i did mean 19" or under. so yes, it most likely has one. the VGA connector is usually blue, with 15 pins. Here's a picture:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/92/SVGA_port.jpg


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## DigiGrin

YES! Thanks again beefers1 .. thats what I have .. I just turned off my comp
and unscrewed, then pulled the monitor plug off .. and thats what it looks like.
It's got 15 pins .. sooo

The plug itself is also blue, and it appears that if this is *universal* .. I can buy a new tower.

Thanks for your help ..


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## beefers1

yes. but one last thing: make sure the video card on your computer has a VGA connector. with most store-bought computers, the answer is usually yes. if not, you can buy a DVI-VGA adapter for about $5. but you don't really need to worry, as i have little doubt that it'll work.


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## DigiGrin

Ok .. so I have to be sure that the tower I'm getting has a video card VGA connector.
Think I can handle asking that .. lol ..
Sorry for such noobie questions, but I'm kina one of those people that just turns on a comp,
and goes to work, and never really bothers to know what it is I'm working with.

I'm a photographer, with Adobe 6.0 as a post production software, and I use a CF card
via a card reader that plugs into the back of my comp.

Til now, this computer has served its purpose, but I'm kina thinking of buying another tower
and using it strickly for editing purposes, and another for internet purposes.

I've been a member of this site for a short time, and have been reading and not really posting
so much .. many have said I should go into a Mac .. but I dunno .. I get great results
with what I have, and I guess I need to learn a bit more, before I venture out.

Once again .. thanks for stickin with me on this issue. It;s good to know that I can
interchange towers with this monitor .. it really has been good to me, and I dont really
wanna have to buy another one if I don't need to. They can be a bit pricey .. lol


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## beefers1

no problem. in fact, i'm pretty new here too. i'm not even an official here or anything, i just try to help whenever i can. although it seems like mostly only mods are doing the answering. but that's ok.

PS. with the processing power these computers have nowadays, i don't recommend buying 2 for different purposes. what you can do is use one computer, with a large hard drive with 2 partitions, one for your internet files, one for your photo editing (the latter partition will be much bigger, of course!). you can also create different user accounts, one for internet, one for photo editing. I'm not too familiar with Macs, but i've used them a couple of times before, and they're pretty good. hard to catch on, but easy to master. (direct opposite of Windows, which are amazingly easy to use, but sometimes infuriating if you need to do advanced tasks such as specific tuning or tweaking).

PPS. this is my 400th post. horray! (lol:grin


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## DigiGrin

Hahha .. congrats on the 400 :grin:


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## ebackhus

The computing industry has beeing using standardized connectors for over 20 years. Connecting two modern components together, despite brands, will work every time.


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## DigiGrin

Thank you .. see? I'm really not in the loop .. lol ..
Great news tho .. makes me feel alot better about my next purchase.

Thats also a great avi of the kitty .. I like kitties ...


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## ebackhus

There's been a surge of kitty loving lately here at TSF. 

If you have any other questions feel free to post again!


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## FrankTechAngel

quick question. my hp monitor has a dvi slot but my tower doesn't. how do i fix that? the owner of the computer doesn't have the best vision and small screens make it hard for her to read. so she really wanted to use the hp screen we acquired from a friend. any help would be highly appreciated!!


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## Phædrus241

Simply order one of these:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16812267001

Or pick up something similar at Best Buy or Radio Shack. Remember, you're looking for VGA to DVI, not the other way around. VGA: Male, DVI: Female.


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