Transporter Pi turns your TV into an Android display

E.S.R. Labs recently showcased the Android Transporter Pi, which allows you to use an HDTV as an external display for Android devices – without plugging an HDMI cable into a smartphone or tablet.

First, though, you’ll need to order the cheap $35 Raspberry Pi bare-bones mainboard and a wireless USB dongle.

The hardware costs under $50, yet, as noted above, gives you the ability to wirelessly connect your Android tablet or smartphone to an HDTV. This might be the perfect setup for gamers who want to play their Android apps on a larger screen.

Of course, you can also use the system to stream movies and video to your big-screen TV in the living room.

Unfortunately, E.S.R. Labs hasn’t yet released the software for its Transporter Pi, but did manage to offer up a couple of YouTube videos demonstrating the capability. Frankly, it looks pretty sweet and slick to me, as lag is quite minimal with optimized video playback and gameplay.

And of course, this is yet one more reason why the bare-bones Raspberry Pi is such an interesting little device.