Using a TV as a monitor

bloodhunter

bloodhunter

bloodhunter

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As the title says, i am thinking of a 1080p LED TV for MS Flight sim, something like a 32inch with 100hz refresh rate.

Just wondered if there any potential issues.

Thanks.
 
i tried this for a couple of days and i really hated it - the screen was SO blurry compared to a monitor and both were meant to be running at 1080p

the reason for this is that the larger the screen, the more spaced the pixels are (comparatively at the same res) so if you were to sit close to a 32" screen you'd really want 1600p or something

if regards to your question, if you sit a decent way away and only play games (no fine text reading) then it should be good for your needs :)
 
As panyan said, obviously up close it looks like dog turd, but I wouldnt have thought you would be sitting up close anyway.

When sat back it looks great as long as you have a good TV and its set up properly
 
other sources

Here are links for two recent similar threads. I have replied to both with relatively long answers. Would still give the same answers/recommendations.

http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18367090

http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18374130

Btw, by 100Hz, do you mean 100Hz input or 100Hz output? With TVs 100Hz input pretty much implies active shutter 3D, and I'm not sure if it's even able to process 100Hz PC signals. The popular "100Hz" mark on modern TVs usually equals to motion interpolation. With these sets, the input is 50Hz, but the TV calculates extra frames between the actual frames, and thus creates a smoother motion than the source material.

I'm also still in search of a HDTV for a PC monitor, and I've become quite fixated on the Philips 32PFL7606, but haven't yet made the jump. If that model is of interest, there's a long (HUGE) thread on another site, but it's in Portuguese, so it's kind of slow to read (use of Babel Fish recommended). I'm on page 35, so 65 pages still to go. There's a link for the original site in the spoiler:

edit, IMPORTANT NOTICE:
It seems like the links given here are for the Brazilian market's 7606, which is NOT equal to the EU or US 7606. Therefore, you may want to skip these altogether.

http://www.htforum.com/vb/showthread.php/165297-Nova-tv-da-Philips-32PFL7606-série-7000.

Personally, I use Babel Fish full page translation, but it doesn't seem to know how to change pages with that, so you'll have manually change the page number from the address bar. You could also try other translation services. Haven't tried them, myself. Here's also a direct link for the Babel Fish translation:

http://babelfish.yahoo.com/translat...c8d1b0f907893a8f1&lp=pt_en&btnTrUrl=Translate

Oh, btw: there's sometimes a letter on the end of the model, like 32PFL7606H, which indicates the selection of tuners available. I think DVB-C and DVB-T are in every model, but K-model also has DVB-S, and so on.
 
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Hi there,

Unfortunately that AOC 27in uses a TN panel, not an IPS. You really can't get any 27in IPS PC monitors for that price, as they all tend to be 2560x1440 resolution and prices start at ~£450.

If you really do want a large screen with an IPS panel - and don't mind about large pixels then your best option is probably a 32in 1080p TV that uses an IPS panel and is known to have low input lag - as prices for these can be under £300. The threads aatu linked to above has some good discussion on some nice options for TVs to use as monitors.

Also, I wouldn't be too worried about getting "LED" as in this price range the PC monitors and TVs use only the "edge-lit" type of LED backlighting - with this tech there really isn't any image quality benefits compared to a traditional CCFL backlight. There are benefits in terms of power usage, thickness of panels and turn-on time - but if you just want the best image quality then I wouldn't restrict your choices to just LED monitors/TVs.

May I ask what make and model number 24in monitor you are coming from?
 
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cmndr_andi said:
Hi there,

Unfortunately that AOC 27in uses a TN panel, not an IPS. You really can't get any 27in IPS PC monitors for that price, as they all tend to be 2560x1440 resolution and prices start at ~£450.

If you really do want a large screen with an IPS panel - and don't mind about large pixels then your best option is probably a 32in 1080p TV that uses an IPS panel and is known to have low input lag - as prices for these can be under £300. The threads aatu linked to above has some good discussion on some nice options for TVs to use as monitors.

Also, I wouldn't be too worried about getting "LED" as in this price range the PC monitors and TVs use only the "edge-lit" type of LED backlighting - with this tech there really isn't any image quality benefits compared to a traditional CCFL backlight. There are benefits in terms of power usage, thickness of panels and turn-on time - but if you just want the best image quality then I wouldn't restrict your choices to just LED monitors/TVs.

May I ask what make and model number 24in monitor you are coming from?
Click to expand...

It is an Iiyama prolite B2403WS
 
I tried it agesss ago, with a 22" LG TV/Monitor... messed with the settings etc, but never looked 100% normal.
 
Using a TV as a monitor at the moment. Its terrible. It doesn't like it when power saving kicks in. The image moves around, and it often goes out of sync and needs turning off and on.
 
I have seen this work so badly in the past.

* no pixel mapping
* colour enhancements even with most switched off in the settings
* colour accuracy so bad that even the average joe can see
* sharpness applied and no way to remove

However, I had a Samsung C4000 series TV (32" version) and I was impressed. It's LED Backlit with a 1366x768 pannel. Sending that resolution, even on a blue VGA cable looked fantastic. Of course the res is a bit low for all uses but perfect for web browsing, and watching youtube, in a group.

-Jonathan
 
You guys have no idea what you are talking about. I have been using 32" TV for last 3 years and picture quality is superb. You have to remember to connect you system with HDMI. On the TV it will be label HDMI(DVI) that is the only input you can connect your PC. They may be some settings like that in TV too. After setting this up picture will be one to one same as on PC monitor.

You say that because you will be sitting close picture will loose on quality but it will not as you cant sit too close, screen is too big for that. You have to sit far enough for the screen to not turn your head to see the whole thing.
 
Only few TV have DVI on then(if any), and all of them got HDMI. HDMI will allow you to stream audio too. HDMI and DVI is the same thing.. its a cable like any other..
 
I have a Mac for general computing and stuff, but want to put a gaming machine together. I'll probably use my TV for that mainly because I'll be able to hook it up to the receiver/5.2 set up as well as a projector. Obviously a monitor would be better, but I just feel it's more convenient - and it would be gaming only, not general browsing, which I'd never use a TV for.
 
himen256 said:
You guys have no idea what you are talking about. I have been using 32" TV for last 3 years and picture quality is superb. You have to remember to connect you system with HDMI. On the TV it will be label HDMI(DVI) that is the only input you can connect your PC. They may be some settings like that in TV too. After setting this up picture will be one to one same as on PC monitor.

You say that because you will be sitting close picture will loose on quality but it will not as you cant sit too close, screen is too big for that. You have to sit far enough for the screen to not turn your head to see the whole thing.
Click to expand...

Actually most people here do know what they're talking about. There are a number of issues with TVs as monitors. If you haven't experienced any of them, you got lucky, or you did enough research to know the specs of your TV inside and out.

Problems include:
no 4:4:4 chroma subsamping (think of this like the lossy compression on streaming video) - applies to most modern TVs
no DPMI (minor one this)
sometimes high input lag (compared to monitors)
sometimes incorrect EDID sent to PC
sometimes undefeatable picture "enhancements" (like dynamic contrast)
a lot of extra work to set it up
much higher power consumption
dead pixel guarantees much less stringent than with a monitor... and big pixels mean dead pixels can be easily seen.

TVs are mostly at the end of the day not designed to be used with PCs. The best thing, if you have the money, is to get a TV *and* a monitor.
 
just in case...

Just to clear out any confusion (seems like FoxEye beat me to it, but I'll add some more):

Actually, it's generally advised to use DVI-HDMI cable (DVI on PC side, HDMI on TV). This is because the PC will then assume to send video-only signal (as in non-audio), and it's the audio signal which is the common culprit for breaking the 4:4:4 subsampling compatibility, which is an important factor for a clear text. And some TVs actually DO have 1:1 pixel mapping. Like the Philips I mentioned earlier.

But the most important reminder: DO NOT BUY "HD-Ready" televisions, as they are actually nowadays 1366x768 natively, but will force-scale the signal for 720p or even 1080p (yes, this is really what's happening, it's quite sad). You can get the native resolution with VGA, but you will face even worse problems with that. And no, VGA-DVI adapter won't work here, because VGA is analog, and DVI is analog or digital (DVI-A and DVI-D). HDMI is digital. Digital DVI signal is incompatible with VGA, and Analog DVI signal is incompatible with HDMI. Therefore if you are in any way dealing with VGA, you are dealing with analog signal, which is always a compromise on quality when dealing with LCD panels, which by design are digital.
 
I agree that without 1:1 pixel mapping the picture will look worse. I used a PC a while back on a 46" 1080p panny plasma with overscan turned off and it looked pretty good to me - even putting it out at 720p it looked good (cos I needed bigger text).

I don't think I could ever use one as my main monitor though - too low pixel pitch.
 
If you only need bigger text turning up the DPI is a better idea than turning down the resolution. Does create issues with a few programs but usually just a minor visual glitch (ugly looking icons). Always do that on HTPC's :)
 
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