To watch your favorite TV shows or movies, you may need to connect your device to your TV with an HDMI cable. HDMI signals are transferred digitally. This gives you an excellent sound and picture. You may not only need an HDMI cable for your home entertainment. Something to consider is a surge protector. Surge protectors help divert extra electricity into other outlet grounding wires in the event of a storm. This helps prevent your electronics from getting fried. When shopping for accessories for your TV, Conn’s HomePlus has multiple choices to choose from.

How to Choose the Right HDMI Cable?

There are some things to consider when choosing an HDMI cable. These things include:

• • Connector type
• • Resolution and display
• • Distance between connected devices
• • How the cable will be installed

When thinking about the connectors, the three HDMI connector types are Standard, Micro, and Mini. The only difference is the size; they still function the same way.

Standard HDMI – often for TVs, gaming systems, computer monitors, desktop computers, and streaming sticks.

Mini HDMI - is often for DSLR cameras, camcorders, tablets, and laptops.

Mini HDMI – often for action cameras, notebook computers, tablets, smartphones, and media players.

Other things to consider are resolution, cable length, and high-bandwidth digital content protection.

Resolution - HDMI cables have different video resolutions, such as 1080i/720p, 1080p, 4K, and 8K. A standard HDMI cable will work fine if you replace an older 1080i cable or 720p. However, some HDMI cables are considered backward compatible. So, you may need to upgrade to a high-speed HDMI cable that will support your needs.

Cable Length - When looking at the cable length, the maximum length of an HDMI cable varies. Typically, cables tend to be about 50 feet for a 1080p cable and 25 – 30 feet for a 4K video cable. However, you may still find cables longer than 50 feet.

High-Bandwidth Digital Content Protection - It is always advised to choose an HDMI cable that supports High-Bandwidth Digital Content Protection (HDCP). Providers that provide high-resolution video and audio use anti-privacy copy protection to help stop illegal use and copying of content. When using an HDCP cable, an error will be given and lower resolution when copying content.

Choosing the Right Surge Protector

Are you concerned about what to consider when purchasing a new surge protector? The following questions will help you determine the best surge protector for your electronics and needs.

What are you protecting?

The value of your equipment is important when buying a new surge protector. Devices that are important to your work or home life need higher protection. So, you will need to choose a surge protector with a higher joule rating between 200 and 400. Computers and audio / video equipment typically need about 1000 joules, and anything over 2000 joule rating is considered maximum protection.

How many outlets are needed?

Determine the number of devices you want to be plugged into the surge protector and buy a protector with at least that many outlets. You will also need to consider if your devices have right-angle plugs or transformers because you will need a surge protector with proper spacing between outlets. Another thing to consider is if you will need to charge anything via USB, and some surge protectors offer USB-A charging ports for your phones or tablets.

Where will the surge protector be installed?

If the protection of your electronics becomes compromised, will you be able to see the LED light or hear the surge protector alarm? If you want your devices to continue to run when you are not close by, you may want to choose a surge protector with an auto-shutoff feature. If you need to mount your surge protector on the wall or alongside a desk, there are surge protectors that have mounting tabs or screw holes.

Shop Conn's HomePlus

HDMI cables are important when connecting your TV to other devices such as Blu-ray players, gaming consoles, and cable boxes. At Conn’s HomePlus, we offer a variety of HDMI cables and surge protectors. We have what you need, whether you need ultra-high-speed cables, 4K resolution HDMI cables, or an HDMI connector for your HD TV or gaming console. Stop by a local Conn's HomePlus store today and pick up the best HDMI cable for your TV and surge protector.