I'll recharge it just in case :-)
I use Plex, I have the movies on my Mac, and you can stream them to your Roku or Chromecast using your cell phone.
Good question. Even though I have Direct TV, I still have a connection via my router and have often wondered if there was a way to connect the output from my ‘puter to my TV.
I have a 2TB external hard drive that is shared on our wireless network as a media drive. Our TV is about 5-6 years old so it’s not a smart TV but our Blu Ray players have wireless network adapters. We can access the shared media drive wirelessly with our Blu Ray players and stream movies in both the living room and bedroom. Works great for us.
Older tv’s sometimes have a pc video input, that is, they essentially can be used just like standard monitor.
are you running windows on the laptop ?
does the laptop have an hdmi output ?
I saw something where you could get this google chrome stick that plugs into a USB port on your TV and picks up the signal from your laptop or cell hone.
Does your laptop support WiDi?..look it up.. you may already have part of what you need
Roku and YouTube through Roku along with Netflix or Amazon are the best overall if you have movies on your laptop just directly connect to TV.
whats your download speed. Are the usb ports on the tv usb3? until you post better details we’ll be stuck. Why must it be wireless? Likely the best option will be some form of 802.11 bridge connection to an upgraded router. There is a new gen 802.11 that’s much faster then N so your getting to gigabit speeds. 800mb
i would hard wire router to the tv. wire is fast.
A direct cable/wired connection from your HDMI out on your laptop to HDMI in on your TV would be the cheapest and easiest.
WiDi will work, if your laptop has it and you have a smart TV.
Intel Wireless Display technology, or WiDi, has become increasingly common among both laptops and HDTVs, and you might already have everything you need to wirelessly stream your display. Many connected HDTVs support WiDi and Miracast (wireless smartphone and tablet streaming that uses the same technology), and if yours doesn’t you can get a WiDi/Miracast adapter for around $50. You need a computer with WiDi built-in, and most current Intel-based Windows notebooks should already have that covered. This system works very well for playing movies and browsing the Web on your HDTV, but slight latency keeps it from being ideal for fast-action games.
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2390463,00.asp
I just got a Roku to do that - i like it so far
If you have a Mac or IPad, Apple TV is the way to go. It works seamlessly and with no wires or cables. We had the same dilemma last Christmas when my wife wanted to watch her favorite Christmas shows she had recorded on her Mac laptop on our TV. We looked into a Rube Goldberg array of cables and adapters, but the cost was nearly as much as simply buying an Apple TV box. Apple TV also allows you to get Netflix, Hulu and even other channels like Smithsonian