Tv As A Computer Monitor

[hyperdimension]

I am thinking of buying a large full HD TV to use both as a computer monitor (most of the time) and also to watch high definition movies on my computer. My computer video card has 3 outputs (VGA, HDMI, DVI).

Normal computer monitors these days seem to only go up to 24" in diagonal width which is a bit too small to watch movies, whereas TVs that are around nowadays go up to over 50".

So I would like to weigh the advantages and disadvantages of using a TV as a computer monitor.

Advantages:

Can play high definition movies from the computer on a large screen

Disadvantages:

May need to sit 2m away from the TV, so would need to have another table or TV stand in front of the computer desk.

Can anyone add to the list of advantages and disadvantages, such as refresh rate and response time?

Has anyone seen 40" to 50" computer monitors around, and are they cheaper than TVs of the same size? It seems to me that it's cheaper to get a TV if I want a large display for my computer.

I came across the 30" Dell UltraSharp U3011 which is still a bit small but it costs 1189 USD which is almost 36K THB. In comparison, a Samsung 46" full HD LCD TV costs around 27K THB.

[dave_boo]

That Dell monitor is also 2560x1600 plus it is an IPS panel versus the usual TN that you'll find in TV panels. You can bet dollars to donoughts that you won't find a >30" monitor for less than a comparable TV if you can find one at all. My understanding is that InvadeIT (one of the forum sponsors) carries such models, but you'd better have some nitro pills ready when you price them. If you decide to get this one I'd be more than happy to help set it up.

If you are set on such a big real estate than you're going to have to go with a TV panel. Biggest problem is pixel density (1920x1080 stretched that far means the pixels either have to be big and/or have significant space between them). if you are planning on light 'real' (browsing, office work, image manipulation, etc) computer usage than you may get away with such a set up. But to get in nice and close is one advantage of having a slightly smaller screen with higher density pixels. Refresh rate is pretty much a non-issue on the new panels I've seen.

Another thing to consider is to simply run an HDMI cable from your video card to the TV panel and keep your current monitor for 'work'. Get a nice long cable and if your videocard supports sound over that pathway you can even pipe it through your receiver so you can simply turn your desk chair around and play your computer games or sit on the sofa/couch/futon while watch HD...

[Spoonman]

I run a 32" HDTV LCD (1920x1080 native) as my primary monitor and its crystal clear, I sit about 500mm away from it.

[Spoonman]

Isn't 500mm or 50cm a little bit too close Spoonman ?

No not really, I also have a 24" on either side but I rarely turn these on, actually 500mm might be an exaggeration, when I sit upright in my chair its more like 700mm.

[OlafStapleton]

Same here Samsung Series 5 32" LED also 1920x1080, but I'm about 1.5 meters away from it.

Isn't 500mm or 50cm a little bit too close Spoonman ?

I agree 32" very good, HDMI connection 1280 x 720, I sit very close, full HD text too small.

Edited June 30, 2011 by OlafStapleton

[Goshawk]

Not my main PC setup but we also use a Samsung Series 5 full HD 1080p 40" LCD TV (bought 2 months ago, only 20k baht) linked via HDMI to a Dell Inspiron 15R notebook.. which in turn has hooked up to it a Logitech wireless keyboard & mouse - can sit on the sofa, keyboard on lap.. mouse rubbing side of leg.

Works a treat, no lag with crisp, clear, stunning visuals. Web surfing, Games, DVD's etc & especially full screen HD YouTube vid's are absolutely superb on a 40" screen. Big is beautiful ....

[Prichard]

I am using a 32” Sony Bravia KLV 32EX400 with 1920x1080 resolution. I use VGA output from my notebook to PC input on Sony TV. This VGA connection gives me better visual display than connecting using HDMI. The 1920x1080 resolution matches both Sony TV and my notebook video system – this is the key for a crystal clear display. My Sony TV also has automatic screen adjustment option for PC connection to get the best full screen fit. I set my win7 custom text size (DPI) at 134% because I need a larger font size.

I am sitting up high on my recliner about 1.20 meters away from TV with keyboard on my lap and a mouse nearby. My display is superb!

My system: Asus G53JW, I7-740QM, 6GB Ram, Nvidia GTX 460M with 1.5GB, Win 7 64-bit, and Sony Bravia KLV 32EX400 1920x1080.

[cougar52]

Something Like This??

[keeniau96]

I use both large (26") monitor and TV; two systems. The monitor is Samsung 2693HM, 1920x1200 resolution, 5ms, HDMI connect to computer. Excellent and about as large as you would want to sit in front of (lean back). Great for gaming (UT3, MW2 etc). Price was 14,500 baht a year ago. In the living room I have a HTPC and use the 46" Samsung, HDMI connection. Have so sit back a bit for computer usage but great for movies. Use a wireless kbd+mouse; check to make sure the wireless has enough range (some are very puny); i use Logitech MK 260. Both of those setups are dual-boot, the main is Linux Mint almost exclusively, the HTPC is mostly Mint but enough Win7 for some games when wife family kiddies visit.

[Prichard]

Something Like This??

Wow! Tremendous set up. Oh yes, I like it.

Mine is similar - but only one TV and minus those on the rack and those stacked on the side. You just gave me a great idea. Thanks and Cheers.

[tezzaaa]

Just fyi if you link your pc to tv via hdmi then you will not get sound from the tv itself and will have to use speakers instead..

[Goshawk]

Just fyi if you link your pc to tv via hdmi then you will not get sound from the tv itself and will have to use speakers instead..

that is totally incorrect..

HDMI sends both the video & audio signal to the TV

[dave_boo]

Just fyi if you link your pc to tv via hdmi then you will not get sound from the tv itself and will have to use speakers instead..

that is totally incorrect..

HDMI sends both the video & audio signal to the TV

If implemented on card. Older nvidia cards needed to be hooked up to SPDIF to send sound. ATI cards didn't get LPCM until the 4850. Intel has a pretty good write up of the state of affairs as of 2008. Hopefully the OP has a newer card than that era though!

And that's ignoring the HDCP compliance. Granted if you're sending the signal to a TV only than >2,0 sound is not important. If you have a run to the receiver first than surround sound is a bit important for games/movies and you need to make sure that your card supports HDCP.

[Johnniey]

Just fyi if you link your pc to tv via hdmi then you will not get sound from the tv itself and will have to use speakers instead..

that is totally incorrect..

HDMI sends both the video & audio signal to the TV

I have a LG 42" tv as my computer monitor with HDMI cable and don't get sound.

It's 100 times better than a computer screen.

[Johnniey]

..... full HD text too small. ....

That's why I love Ctrl + and Ctrl - in Firefox

http://support.mozilla.com/en-US/kb/Page%20Zoom

Edit: 1956 Changed Link

Thanks - that's great - I never knew that.

[Goshawk]

Just fyi if you link your pc to tv via hdmi then you will not get sound from the tv itself and will have to use speakers instead..

that is totally incorrect..

HDMI sends both the video & audio signal to the TV

I have a LG 42" tv as my computer monitor with HDMI cable and don't get sound.

lets be clear about this. I'm talking about 'HDMI out' (hence i said above, "sends both video & audio") on your PC or notebook to a HDMI port on your TV.

you will get sound...

[vel_tins]

I am using a 32” Sony Bravia KLV 32EX400 with 1920x1080 resolution. I use VGA output from my notebook to PC input on Sony TV. This VGA connection gives me better visual display than connecting using HDMI. ..........

Same here, LG 32". But i wonder why the "VGA-Dinosaur" gives ab "clearer" output than HDMI?

[Spoonman]

I am using a 32" Sony Bravia KLV 32EX400 with 1920x1080 resolution. I use VGA output from my notebook to PC input on Sony TV. This VGA connection gives me better visual display than connecting using HDMI. ..........

Same here, LG 32". But i wonder why the "VGA-Dinosaur" gives ab "clearer" output than HDMI?

I also use VGA due to a crisper pic than the HDMI.

[Goshawk]

Fact : VGA sends an analogue signal.. DVI & HDMI are both digital senders of the signal(s).

anyone saying VGA is clearer than HDMI.. well, better check your settings because its an impossibility - can only assume you are not using native HDMI to HDMI, but rather a VGA to HDMI converter cable/box with the obvious loss of quality. If thats the case, then why even bother buying the converter in the first place..?

[vel_tins]

Fact : VGA sends an analogue signal.. DVI & HDMI are both digital senders of the signal(s).

...........................

- can only assume you are not using native HDMI to HDMI, but rather a VGA to HDMI converter cable/box with the obvious loss of quality. If thats the case, then why even bother buying the converter in the first place..?

Nope, I used a native HDMI cable, no Box/Converter or similar.

anyone saying VGA is clearer than HDMI.. well, better check your settings because its an impossibility

Not anyone, but some people in this thread. So nothing seems to be impossible...especially in Thailand :D

Edited July 2, 2011 by vel_tins

[Spoonman]

Fact : VGA sends an analogue signal.. DVI & HDMI are both digital senders of the signal(s).

anyone saying VGA is clearer than HDMI.. well, better check your settings because its an impossibility - can only assume you are not using native HDMI to HDMI, but rather a VGA to HDMI converter cable/box with the obvious loss of quality. If thats the case, then why even bother buying the converter in the first place..?

Lemme see, gtx460 vid card HDMI out connect to LCD TV HDMI in, no matter what settings I fiddled (TV or PC) with text font were fuzzy to look at, VGA out to VGA in everything was nice and crisp.

[astral]

Read here for info on the different versions of HDMI.

[vel_tins]

Read here for info on the different versions of HDMI.

But this doesn't explain, why the picture quality (especially fonts), is more "crisp" with VGA than with HDMI

I have a 9 mts old Gigabyte "ga-880ga-ud3h" Motherboard and a 9 mts old LCD TV.

So it shouldn't be a problem because of too old components...

[SurfRider]

.

After reading the reports here on using the Samsung Series-5 32-inch LED TV as a computer monitor, I checked that model out and was quite impressed. I'm looking at buying one.

Power-Buy is currently selling it for 19,000 Baht. The only negative I found was that it has a glossy screen which reflects lights that are in the vicinity of the unit. There's also a LCD model that has a matte screen, which does not reflect light, but the image is not as sharp as a LED unit. (That one might be a series-4). I also noticed that Samsung has just released a series-6 model.

Do the people using the glossy screen LED unit find the reflective surface to be a problem when using it as a computer monitor?

.

[bifftastic]

Something Like This??

That's nice, not enough guns though!

I use a Goodmans 37 inch hooked up via vga. Can't fault it, excellent for movies, youtube, photos etc.

Got a wireless keyboard too, I sit just over 1 metre away, used it for about 2 1/2 years now, would never use a 'normal' monitor now.

[muratremix]

I used to use 32" hdready lcd due to astigmat on my eyes (lower res is easier to read).

Now I'm thinking to buy 32" LG cinematv 32lw4500 to make primary monitor. Anybody have experience using 3D screen with laptop? My laptop has hdmi 1.3 output which limits 3D capability but...

[SurfRider]

Thanks MJCM - that's what I was hoping to hear.

I also looked at the largest "official" computer monitor that Samsung makes - 27" - and no doubt the image is spectacular - with a non-reflective screen for only 12,900 Baht at Power-Buy-- but I prefer something larger that can also double as a state-of-the-art TV.

I also noticed that LG has similar cheaper units to the Samsung series-5, but I haven't seen anything on how the screen image and specs compare to the Samsungs.

I was surprised to learn that the Samsungs carry only a one year warranty - hope that's not a bad omen . . .

.

[hyperdimension]

Thanks for the responses, guys, they have been helpful. I've been doing a lot of research since I made the original post.

Some of you claim that the picture looks much better using VGA than HDMI. I have read up on this in particular and many people have expressed the same problem. The solution has almost always been with the settings in both the TV as well as the video (ATI or nVidia) control panel.

e.g. I've read that by default overscan is set to a non-zero value in ATI Catalyst Control Center. If you want to use a TV overscan should be set to 0. There also must not be any scaling so that pixel mapping is 1:1. The resolution set on the computer display should match the native resolution of the TV. Some TVs are not full HD so you'd have to set the computer display resolution to something lower than 1920 * 1080 to get 1:1 pixel mapping in order to get closer to a perfect picture.

The refresh rate set in the video control panel should match the refresh rate of the TV.

You may also need to set the input type in the TV to "PC".

Here are some links to web pages that I've found useful in my research:

1080 p TV HDMI to HDMI connected to pc = bad quality

Tv Or Normal Monitor?

Bad Text on Toshiba LCD 40" 1080P

My main concern now is the quality of text even when all the above settings are done. In the last link the user states after fixing his "bad text" problem that "things got a lot sharper and the "fuzzies" went away" however the picture is "still not as sharp as a PC monitor and just a slight bit of "blurring"." So those of you who have got HDMI connection working perfectly with your computer, is the text as perfect as an ordinary monitor, and what size and brand is your monitor?

I would be using the TV most of the time for reading web pages and programming so perfectly clear text is important.

[SurfRider]

.

"is the text as perfect as an ordinary monitor, and what size and brand is your monitor?"

I went to the Samsung shop in Central Pattaya - they have a laptop hooked up to the 40 inch LED model TV and the text appeared to be very sharp at the 1080 native resolution setting. I tried several websites that I'm familiar with and also brought a video file on a thumb-drive, which looked better there than on my home LED monitor. I also reset it to the next lower resolution setting as a test and it still looked very good.

If there's a Samsung shop near where you live, you could probably check it out for yourself. Power-Buy had a similar setup, but the clerks there were not as technically knowledgeable as Samsung.

,

[hyperdimension]

I ended up getting the Samsung LA40D503FZR. It is an LCD TV with 40 inch diagonal width. The native (and therefore optimal) resolution is 1920 * 1080p at 60Hz.

I had a problem initially getting the TV to recognize a HDMI input even though a cable was physically connecting the computer to the TV. It's definitely not as straightforward as connecting the usual VGA cable to a monitor. After a few tries, which included plugging the cable out and back in, and plugging the VGA cable out and in from my old small monitor, it eventually found an HDMI input signal when I pressed the "HDMI" button on the remote controller.

I think a problem with using a TV as the only monitor is that you would not be able to see anything from the computer until after you have logged into the operating system, so you'd still need an ordinary monitor if you need to do anything outside of the operating system such as BIOS configuration.

I made sure to set the Input name to "PC" as I had read from other Samsung TV owners that it makes a big difference when using a computer as input.

I spent time checking the settings on my video card, making sure that all values were optimal to ensure 1:1 pixel mapping. Overscan was 0 by default. Catalyst Control Center shows a separate category called "My Digital Flat Panels" only for connected TVs, whereas "My VGA Displays" are for ordinary monitor settings.

I also enabled Windows ClearType which was available from the Display settings in Windows, and it seems to improve the text quality. I have now reduced the size of the font in my Firefox web browser (Ctrl -) and the text is still comfortably readable. It's great to be able to fit so much more information on one screen. I'm using the TV now to type this message and read ThaiVisa threads.

Some minor negative factors are:

Reduced privacy if there are other people around, such as when reading or writing email or chatting. But making font smaller can help.

If sitting close you can see the grid or mesh. 1m seems to be the minimum distance at which I do not notice the mesh, but I'd have to get another desk or TV stand to put in front of my desk to have it that far away. I don't mind it too much anyway.

BluRay video at full high definition (1920 pixels wide) look amazing. I routed audio to output over HDMI into the TV. For better movie experience I may get a 5.1 speaker system in the future as my computer has 7.1 speaker output (via 4 * 3.5mm mini jacks). So my computer would then be both my everyday workhorse and high definition entertainment system.

I hope some of you guys who claim that a VGA connection looks better can get your settings sorted out, as HDMI should produce a perfect picture.

I'm quite satisfied with my purchase. Thanks for all of your advice guys.