How to turn your CRT TV into a Smart TV

Sure, HD and 4K TVs are great, but those just don’t have any personality compared to old CRT (cathode ray tube) TVs! They’re better for gaming, watching VHSs, DVDs, and more! If it has a digital tuner built in, you can watch local broadcast TV on those too (if not, get a DTV converter box)! But, if you want to stream something on those from Hulu, YouTube, Netflix, etc or even RECORD something from it onto a VHS, here’s what you do!

You’ll need

A CRT TV! 

If you don’t have one, these are easy enough to find if you look in the right places… most thrift stores quit selling those… they just go to the dumpsters! Working or not! But, some do! Your best bet is either an antique store, garage/yard sale, flea market, dumpster diving or Craigslist! Just DO NOT go to eBay! They are some of the most flipped things, being sold far more than they’re actually worth, and shipping is ALWAYS insane! So try find one in the wild. The most I’ve spend on one is $5, the lowest is $3! Just PLEASE be careful out there!

2 AV Cables (yellow, red, white, you know! Also if you don’t intend on putting anything onto a VHS, you’ll only need one!)

These are only a few dollars, but most likely you’d have a few already! 

HDMI Streaming Stick

You might already have one… Chromecast, FireTV, Roku, etc… but if you don’t, Walmart has a Onn x Roku HD streaming stick for $15!

HDMI2AV Adapter

Just a few dollars on Amazon… one of the few things you might not have on this list. They convert Digital HDMI signals into analog AV signals! DO NOT GET AN AV2HDMI Adapter… that’s for connecting an old DVD player or VCR to an HDMI Display!

If you wanna record stuff from the streaming stick onto a VHS, you’ll need a VCR and some tapes too (if you’re out of blanks, take a tape that you don’t really care about… on the spine, there’s this hole that prevents stuff from being recorded on it… put some masking tape on it and you’re golden (also make some labels)!

If your CRT TV only has an antenna input, get an RF modulator! Those are frickin expensive tho… so good luck! Or… try to find one at the thrift store like I did for just $4!

Directions

1: If your CRT only has an antenna input, install the RF modulator… This part doesn’t apply to you if your CRT has AV… if it does tho… connect the AV straight to the TV… if not, connect an AV cable to the modulator.

2: Connect the HDMI2AV to the AV.

3: Connect the streaming stick to the other side of the HDMI2AV. 

4: Plug everything in! The TV, the external power sources of the streaming stick, modulator or adapter! Turn on The TV, tune it to the right channel and set up the streaming stick if it wasn’t already!

If you want to record something on a tape, do steps 1-4 and connect the AV to the front of the VCR… then take another AV cable and connect it to the back of the VCR and into the TV! Tune the VCR to LINE. To record, make sure the recording tab is covered, insert the tape and hit RECORD. Play the content you want. At the end, hit STOP, REWIND and EJECT! Label as needed… I did this to put The Kids Are Alright on a VHS when Hulu said it was leaving!

Well that’s it! Have fun! Idk how to really end this… bye!