hdmi cable importance?

so my tv is a 27 inch widescreen hd tv but it doesnt have a hdmi port

does this affect picture quality much if i use a component cable?

It doesn't affect the quality much, HDMI is a full digital connection, and the Component is analog, they deliver pretty much the same quality, it'll start making a differrence if you use a very long cable to connect to your TV.

It only really makes a difference on a bigger screen. Once you get to something like a 42" - 45" and bigger you will see a real difference.

So for your TV it should be good enough.