As you may know, the recent Panasonic HDTVs come equipped with VieraCast, an Internet-based menu on your TV that allows you to get limited Internet content delivered right to your TV. Currently, VieraCast offers Stock Quotes, YouTube videos, Picasa, the Weather, and Amazon Video-On-Demand, which allows you to download streaming videos directly over the Internet to your TV.
So, how do you get access to this wonderful content?!
Easy, and not so easy.
The easiest thing is to hook your TV into an Ethernet port, using an Ethernet cable. This, of course, presumes that your TV is close to an Ethernet port, either in a wall, or in a router that your high-speed internet provider may have installed for you. If you happen to be that lucky, just plug one end of the cable into your Panasonic TV's Ethernet port, the other into an Ethernet port on your cable modem/router or wall, go into your TV Setup menu, find the Network settings area, and ensure that the IP Setting Mode and DNS Setting Mode are set to ‘Automatic’. Your TV should be assigned an IP address through your network router/cable modem automatically this way. Start a Connection Test to see if all is working as needed, and if so, congratulations! You can now start VieraCast and enjoy on-line content directly from your TV. Just hit the VIERACast button on your remote to get started
Wired Solution:
Difficulty: Beginner
Cost: less than $10.- (Ethernet Cable)
Requirements: High-speed Internet, cable modem/router with available port.
So, what if you don’t have a modem/router close to your TV? Not to worry, you can still connect to your wireless network, if you have one, it just requires an additional piece of hardware, and some more advanced configuration before you can get on-line with your TV.
I won’t go into all the details right now, I may put up a document with screenshots/pictures, or create a movie of how to do this (if I ever win one of those nifty Panasonic video cameras, that is), but in general, here’s what needs to happen:
You need to buy a wireless adapter, more specifically, a wireless Ethernet adapter, sometimes called a wireless gaming adapter. Check your favorite store (Newegg.com, Amazon.com, Buy.com are usually the cheapest solutions) for the most attractive option. First, you need to configure the wireless adapter. To do this, you will need to connect it to your PC or laptop using the (usually) provided Ethernet cable. Instructions will be provided with the adapter on how to access the adapter from your PC, which involves installing drivers, connecting to the adapter using a web browser, finding out your wireless network information, and setting up the adapter by inputting this information. Once you have configured your adapter properly, you should be able to connect to your wireless network using the external adapter. If you’re using a laptop, make sure you turn off your built-in wireless adapter to make sure your external adapter is actually the one getting the signal.
Great, so now that your wireless adapter is configured, remove it from your PC/laptop, and plug it into your TV’s Ethernet port. This is similar to the Ethernet cable described in the wired solution, and in fact, everything after this is exactly the same as described earlier.
Wireless Solution:
Difficulty: Intermediate/Expert (it can be challenging if things don’t work right away)
Cost: $60.- to $100.- (wireless Ethernet adapter)
Requirements: High-speed internet, wireless network
Note: I haven’t done this, but if you have an XBox or PS3 and want to set up your wireless adapter using a game console, I see how that might be possible as well, and potentially easier.
Good luck! It’s worth the effort, and I for one am looking forward to a lot more content from Panasonic. Once Skype is available on TVs, you’ll need to go through these steps to get on the Internet anyway, so you may as well practice now J Of course, by then, they may put a wireless adapter inside the TV.