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now cant decide tv or pc monitor

post #1 of 53
7/17/09 at 6:59pm
Thread Starter 
having possibly decided on a dell pc monitor, im now wondering if i can get a dedicated tv and use that as a monior instead,

i was looking at the samsumg 32" LE32B550

nowadays are these lcd tvs as good as a monitor? if so im wondering whether to go for this over a monitor
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post #2 of 53
7/17/09 at 7:08pm
The line that was once drawn between computer monitors and TVs no long exists. Just make sure that whatever you buy has the right connectors for whatever you need hooked up to it.

Do some spec crunching, and don't forget to consider plasmas! They have better color and bigger viewing angles... of course, if its primary use is as a PC monitor... viewing angles may not matter as much.

Good huntin'.
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post #3 of 53
7/17/09 at 7:17pm
Thread Starter 
thats what i was thinking, i dont think i can afford a plasma, would a plasma be unsuitable for a pc monitor?

this is going to be a major purchase so need to get it right, and wanna kill 2 birds [monitor/tv] with one stone, 32in is probably the best tv size, maybe to big as a pc screen tho
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post #4 of 53
7/17/09 at 7:21pm
i still find monitors are better at being a monitor then a tv does.. Tvs usually have limited resolutions. i find a 32 screen as a monitor is waay to big, but for killing 2 birds with one stone a hdtv is more then fine.
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post #5 of 53
7/17/09 at 7:44pm
Thread Starter 
i cant way up if i need [need is a bad word, want] the tv over the monitor or vice versa.. i was looking at a 24in monitor before, but is that big enough for my one big tv purchase? a second screen purchase will be a long time coming!
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post #6 of 53
7/17/09 at 7:47pm
i use a 20 inch hdtv and a 22 inch monitor with no issues. i think 26 inches is hte sweet spot for me and hdtvs with my setup... another thing to consider is how it'll be set up. for hd to be worth it on a 20 inch hdtv you have to be within like 5 feet of it.
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post #7 of 53
7/17/09 at 9:53pm
From my experience, TV monitors do indeed have limited resolution, but the color balance (especially with the white-ness) blew me away when I first hooked up my laptop to my humble Samsung HDTV.
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post #8 of 53
7/17/09 at 10:22pm
Thread Starter 
the monitor im looking at is a 1920x1200 perhaps i should go to see one in real life before buying? hmmm
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post #9 of 53
7/17/09 at 11:02pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Al4x View Post
thats what i was thinking, i dont think i can afford a plasma, would a plasma be unsuitable for a pc monitor?

this is going to be a major purchase so need to get it right, and wanna kill 2 birds [monitor/tv] with one stone, 32in is probably the best tv size, maybe to big as a pc screen tho
Though plasmas are coming down in price, they are heavy, and if they are laid on anything other than upright, you risk voiding your warranty and losing the gas that is in there. (I used to work for Tiger Direct). Also, contrast ratios, there at the time I worked there, were no industry standard for measuring. So the 10,000/1 ratio, can be as subjective as the MFG wants it to be. Also monitors work a lot like audio, it will never be better than your source, length of cable and losing signal can also make a difference. (televisions on the end displays may look worse, due to a weaker signal if all the televisions are being fed through the same source) Just something to keep in mind. Computer monitors are a bit higher res, however, I've been noticing a drop in res lately. The 20inch standard monitor I got a few years ago is 1200x1600, though not huge, it's higher than some modern 22-24 inch. Even if you take in account for it being a wide screen format. I think that is unacceptable. After all that, stay LCD/maybe LED if available, I would avoid plasmas.
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post #10 of 53
7/18/09 at 1:01am
I have my PC using a 40" 1080p Samsung LCD TV as a secondary monitor. Use it to watch movies and stuff. It works really well and I recommend it if it meshes with your setup. Definitely get a DVI-to-HDMI converter cable, since component out can be a little finicky. Avoid plasma for PC applications; you will get burn-in from your wallpaper, guaranteed.

Picture of my setup for reference.
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post #11 of 53
7/18/09 at 3:48am
Thread Starter 
yeah was always gonna use a dvi-hdmi that tv doesnt look too big either, these decisions are tough cause they are big and long lasting lol, thanks for the pic

i take the point about the tvs in the shop, plus they will probably want you to buy the most expensive :/

anyone have any opinions on the samsung 550 32 inch?
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post #12 of 53
7/18/09 at 2:29pm
remember the screens are calibrated for their showroom environment. not your houses.
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post #13 of 53
7/19/09 at 12:39am
Quote:
Originally Posted by deadly55 View Post
remember the screens are calibrated for their showroom environment. not your houses.
AVIA will help you fix that.
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post #14 of 53
7/20/09 at 5:59pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Al4x View Post
thats what i was thinking, i dont think i can afford a plasma, would a plasma be unsuitable for a pc monitor?

this is going to be a major purchase so need to get it right, and wanna kill 2 birds [monitor/tv] with one stone, 32in is probably the best tv size, maybe to big as a pc screen tho
Since you're using this as a pc monitor, I would avoid plasma. Though significant inroads have been made in to reducing burn-in, it will still occur if used with a pc for extended periods of times (i.e. a couple of hours). Also, while modern plasmas don't put out as much heat as the ones from the early 2000s, they still run quite a bit hotter than modern LCDs. If you have a small room and don't have AC, I'd avoid as your face will be only a couple of feet from the screen.

That being said, the sweet size for you to avoid buying a monitor and a tv may be a 32" but the sweet price is with the 40"-42" models. Depending on what you're going to be doing, I'd buy a cheap E-IPS Dell lcd for daily use and a 40"-42" for TV/Movie use. I'm a little biased though. I like big and have a 42" (Replaced a 24") hooked up as my daily monitor and I love it. I don't think I could enjoy watching movies on anything smaller than a 37".
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post #15 of 53
7/24/09 at 1:26am
I use a 24" monitor for everything. My PC has an OTA HD and analog cable tuner for TV and the monitor has inputs for my Wii and 360. The size is excellent and 4 people can comfortably see it for movies. You'll want something larger if you're going to be sitting back farther than a meter or two though.
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