3 Ways to Play PlayStation 4 On A Laptop Using HDMI

The Sony PlayStation 4 has taken the gaming community by a storm since its release back in 2013. Ever since, it has established itself as the best gaming console in the market, giving tough competition to its rival, the Xbox One.

Although the PlayStation 5 has been launched, it has not made much of a call due to the Global Pandemic Covid-19. Therefore, the PS4 still retains its spot as the King of Consoles.

Now imagine you’re playing your favorite game with your PS4 on your TV. But now, all of a sudden, your TV just stopped working. Or maybe your television is always occupied by your family, not allowing you to get the best out of your gaming time.

This is when you will probably be wondering if you can play your PS4 on your Laptop screen. Well, lucky for you, YES, you can. Although it may seem a simple task from the outside, it is a little complicated. But don’t you worry. Follow this simple guide, and you will have your Laptop working as a monitor for your PS4 in no time. Let’s head in.

Contents

How to Play PS4 On A Laptop With HDMI

If you are wondering whether you can play your PS4 while using your laptop screen as a monitor, the answer to your question is Yes. You can connect your Laptop with your PS4 through an HDMI cable and play games through your Laptop. Although it does sound easy, hold on to your horses cause it is not that simple.

We will show you different procedures through which you can link your Laptop with your PS4 for gameplay. You can try whichever method you find feasible. So let us head into it. The following procedures can be used:

Playing PS4 On A Laptop Via Video Capture Card
Playing PS4 On A Laptop Via Remote Play
Playing PS4 On A Laptop Via PlayStation Now

1. Playing PS4 On A Laptop Via Video Capture Card

how to Playing PS4 On A Laptop Via Video Capture Card

You can use this method to easily connect your PS4 with your Laptop and use it as a monitor for playing games. You are going to have to purchase a video capture card for this.

Requirements:

Laptop
PlayStation 4
Capture Card
HDMI Cable
File sharing Permitted
Internet (Wi-Fi or Ethernet)

Process

Follow the procedure below step by step to link your Laptop with your PS4 using a Capture card.

Step 1: Enable File Sharing

First, you will have to enable File-Sharing on your PS4. To do that, go to your PS4 settings. Find your way to Network Settings. Here you will find Internet Connection Setting. Make sure your device is connected to the internet. If you are not using a wireless connection, make sure both the PS4 and Laptop are connected to the same router.

Step 2: Installing Software’s

Now it’s time to connect the video capture card to your Laptop. Make sure to get a high-quality Capture Card. Connect via the USB port of your Laptop. This will signify an S-Video connection. For the video capture card to function correctly, make sure you install the software that comes with it.

Step 3: Connecting PS4 and HDMI to capture card

Once that is done, we move on to the next step. Now is the time to connect the video card to the PS4 console. To do that, you will need an S-video connection cable. Insert the HDMI-IN in the capture card and HDMI-OUT in the PS4.

Step 4: Running the Software

Open the software application that came with your capture card and turn on your PS4. The software will recognize the PS4 and display it to you on your laptop screen. Now your console will start streaming on your laptop screen. Play it on the full resolution for best results.

That is it; that’s all you have to do to connect your PS4 with a laptop through a capture card.

2. Playing PS4 On A Laptop Via Remote Play

How to Playing PS4 On A Laptop Via Remote Play

Remote Play is an excellent feature in the PS4 that will allow you to play PS4 on any compatible device. So if you can’t use the television for some reason and want to use your laptop screen as an alternative, Remote Play is perfect. However, Remote Play does have some requirements for it to run.

Requirements

PS4
Laptop
USB Cable or DualShock 4 USB wireless adaptor
Intel Core i5-560M 2.67 GHz or equivalent
Windows 8.1 or later
2 GB RAM
Minimum 100 GB free storage
Sound Card
USB Port
PlayStation Network account
Stable Internet Connection

Process

Go through the steps below to get yourself hooked up with Remote Play. Before you can head in, you will need an LCD or a screen before you can stream your PS4 on your Laptop, as you will be tweaking some settings in your PS4.

Step 1: Installing the App

Download the latest version of Sony Remote Play on your Laptop from the official Sony website. This application will allow you to stream your PS4 games on your Laptop neatly. Once downloaded, run the installation wizard to complete the process.

TIP: Step 2 is only applicable to you if you have more than one PS4 at home. If not, go ahead and skip this step.

Step 2: Getting PS4 ready for connection

If you use more than one PS4, you will have to activate one of them as a primary console. To do that, power On your PS4 and find your way to settings. Select PlayStation Network settings, and then in Account Management, activate your PS4 as the Primary Console by finding Activate as Primary PS4 and enabling it.

Your PS4 software should also be updated to version 3.50. You can update it manually by going to settings and searching for System Software Updates. Here you can update your console.

Step 3: Enabling Remote Play

Now we must check to see if Remote Play is enabled. Go to Settings and then to Remote Play connection settings. Check to see whether Remote Play is allowed. Your console should be kept on or put into rest mode to use Remote Play on your Laptop.

Step 4: Check to see if Enable turning on PS4 from the network is activated

In Settings, go to Power save settings, and set features available in rest mode. Ensure the enable turning on PS4 from the Network feature is activated to allow you to stream PS4 on your Laptop.

Step 5: Setting the Settings

What you will do next is to open the Remote Play that was downloaded on your PC. Adjust the various settings such as Frames Per Second (FPS) and Resolution to your screen preferences for best gameplay. Remember, the powerful your desktop, the better graphic settings you can set.

Step 6: Linking the DualShock 4 Controller

You can link your controller with your Laptop using either a USB cable or a DualShock 4 USB adaptor.

To connect the wireless controller, hold the Share and PlayStation buttons on your controller till the lights bar starts blinking. Now plug the USB adapter into your Laptop. This will get your controller paired with it.

Step 7: Searching for PS4 Network

In the Remote Play app on your Laptop, click the Start option. You will now have to Login to your PlayStation Network. The Remote Pay will now search for the PS4 in the network and lead you to the home screen. Congratulations, now the console has started streaming on your Laptop. You can now enjoy playing games on your PS4 using your laptop screen as the monitor.

3. Playing PS4 On A Laptop Via PlayStation Now

PlayStation Now is Sony’s new service which allows you to play PlayStation games without buying any console. Although this feature is entirely Subscription-based ($99.99 per year), it had numerous incredible PlayStation games you can play on your Laptop without even having to buy a PS4.

Requirements

Intel Core i3 3.5 GHz or equivalent
Windows 7 or later
300 MB free storage
2 GB RAM

Process

Follow the steps below to get yourself set up with PlayStation Now:

Step 1: Download PlayStation Now

First, we download PlayStation Now. Go to Sony’s official website and search for PlayStation Now. Open the downloader page and download the file. Once downloaded, you can install it by following the steps through the installation wizard.

Step 2: Sign In

Launch the PlayStation Now application and click on Sign In. Give the credentials and choose your subscription plan. You can enter payment details according to the method you prefer.

Step 3: Playing Games

Once your Subscription is done, you can now start your journey and play any game available in the PlayStation Now Application.

Wrapping It Up

By now, you probably got the hang of how you can connect your PS4 with your Laptop. You can use any method which satisfies your needs. If you use the Capture card method, it will be costly as you will have to purchase a video capture card. A capture card can cost you from $100 to $200.

Another method that was mentioned was the Remote Play method. You will have to fulfill the system requirements already mentioned to be able to use this feature. If your system meets the requirements, this is the best option you can opt for.

Other than that, you can use the PlayStation Now application to play PlayStation games, but that will require subscriptions that some people would rather avoid.

In the end, the choice is totally yours. You can go for any procedure which suits you well. We recommend going through the steps carefully to get the job done perfectly. Hopefully, you would have found this article helpful, and you would have found a solution to your problem.