External Flat Panel Display / HDTV?

[govtdog]

Hal9000 told me to post this here... so here goes...

I need a new HDTV for my office so I was thinking about buying a mid sized unit which would also double occasionally as an external display for my DV7 laptop.

HDTV size between 32-37".
Would like price to be less than $400... refurb okay.
The radeon video card in the notebook supports outputting resolutions up to 1920x1080 so I guess as a start, the HDTV must support that resolution via its' VGA or HDMI input.
The HDTV must also support at least 1080i resolution.
Also want onboard ATSC tuner for OTA HDTV.

Now for the spec questions:
Do I want/need 120Hz or will 60Hz do?
How fast response time is good enough(6,5 or 2ms)?
What else is a must have in an HDTV for use as a PC monitor?

Would this HDTV be acceptable for laptop monitor use via its' HDMI or RGB inputs? Vizio E370VA HDTV

Anyone have any suggestions on what to get?

Thanks for any advice and help you can offer!

[tijo]

I don't have a recommendation for the tv, however, i'll answer the rest of your questions as best as i can.

- You don't 120Hz unless you want 3D, it's just marketing hype for non 3D.
- Response times on a HDTV tend to be slightly slower than on monitors, but it shouldn't affect you unless you are a hardcore fps gamer.
- Any HDTV that supports it's native resolution through HDMI can be used as a monitor, however, you'll probably have to adjust the underscan/overscan setting in CCC a bit.

[govtdog]

Originally Posted by tijo

I don't have a recommendation for the tv, however, i'll answer the rest of your questions as best as i can.

- You don't 120Hz unless you want 3D, it's just marketing hype for non 3D.
- Response times on a HDTV tend to be slightly slower than on monitors, but it shouldn't affect you unless you are a hardcore fps gamer.
- Any HDTV that supports it's native resolution through HDMI can be used as a monitor, however, you'll probably have to adjust the underscan/overscan setting in CCC a bit.

Thanks tijo for the help!

I thought 60/120/240Hz etc was tied into fast action blurring somehow? Or is that response time?
One of the things that bugged me most when we moved from CRT based HDTVs to LCDs is fast action blurring. Being used to watching a good calibrated rear projection CRT and then moving to an LCD HDTV made watching sports unbearable for me. Things have gotten alot better in recent years but is there a spec I should look for with regard to reducing/eliminating fast action blurring on LCD HDTVs?

Thanks again for the help!

[tijo]

Blur is indeed due to response time rather than refresh rate, that is why hardcore fps gamers tend to go with monitors with 2ms response time when possible, for us common mortals, 5ms is usually good enough. The refresh rate is just the number of images that can be displayed per second.

[govtdog]

Originally Posted by tijo

Blur is indeed due to response time rather than refresh rate, that is why hardcore fps gamers tend to go with monitors with 2ms response time when possible, for us common mortals, 5ms is usually good enough. The refresh rate is just the number of images that can be displayed per second.

Thanks!
I don't even know if they make a 30-37" HDTV with 2ms response time? If they do, I probably can't afford it anyway.

[kent1146]

Originally Posted by govtdog

HDTV size between 32-37".
Would like price to be less than $400... refurb okay.

Sharp Aquos 32" 1080p HDTV. I did hours of research on this a few years ago. That is the brand to get.

Originally Posted by govtdog

The radeon video card in the notebook supports outputting resolutions up to 1920x1080 so I guess as a start, the HDTV must support that resolution via its' VGA or HDMI input.

You specifically want to output to a 1080p HDTV through HDMI (pure digital connection). Forget about using VGA (analog).

Originally Posted by govtdog

The HDTV must also support at least 1080i resolution.

You specifically want to look for 1080p displays (1920x1080), not 1080i / 720p (1366x768). Web browsing and text will look terrible on a 720p display.

Originally Posted by govtdog

Do I want/need 120Hz or will 60Hz do?

Definitely do not buy an HDTV because of its 120Hz feature. If the HDTV you buy coincidentally happens to support 120Hz, then that is fine. But do not make a purchasing decision based on this feature.

The term "120Hz" when it applies to HDTVs is a very different feature compared to "120Hz" in the world of computer monitors. Most HDTVs do not actually support true 120Hz. They do video signal processing to do motion interpolation, which is very different than "120Hz" when talking about computer monitors.

When you're talking about computer monitors, 120Hz means that the display will actually accept an input of 120Hz, and output a video signal at 120Hz.

Skip 120Hz on your HDTV, and instead focus on an HDTV with a high-quality panel and video scaler.

Originally Posted by govtdog

How fast response time is good enough(6,5 or 2ms)?

Response time is irrelevant once you get a response time that is "good enough". And any HDTV that you buy these days will be "good enough"

Originally Posted by govtdog

What else is a must have in an HDTV for use as a PC monitor?

The three most important things:

1. The most important thing is to do your research, especially in the AV Forums. The enthusiasts there will be able to tell you good HDTV models that can be used as computer monitors.


2. Be aware of "cheap" panel technologies. You specifically want good color reproduction in your display. And the cheaper HDTVs will often use cheaper panels that will have poor color reproduction and poor color saturation. Panel quality is the reason why you will find one manufacturer selling a 42" HDTV for $600, while another manufacturer sells a 42" HDTV for $1400. The difference largely comes down to panel quality.


3. Be sure to look for a "gaming" mode in the HDTV settings. When you're talking about HDTVs, they can sometimes use cheap video scaler chips that can introduce up to 50ms - 80ms of lag to the video output. This time delay is irrelevant when you're watching video content. But when you're gaming, that 50ms - 80ms can be very noticeable. An HDTV with a "gaming" mode setting will bypass the video scaler, and just output the video signal from your PC as it was received.


If you want to save yourself several hours of research work, then just get a Sharp Aquos 32" 1080p display that I recommended, and call it a day.

[govtdog]

Thank you very much Kent!

Looked for the Sharp 32", 1080p Aquos and found some for $499 for refurbed units. Most other places have them listed as being OOS or discontinued.

One lingering concern I have is that about response time. I will not really be doing any online gaming on this HDTV, but I hate the blurring that I see on LCDs when watching fast action sports. I am used to CRT based HDTVs and they have NO blur that I can see. It was my understanding that in order to decrease fast action blurring of HDTV and DVD playback, you should get an LCD/LED with the fastest response time. How fast is fast enough... I have no idea? But when I look at the LCDs on the wall at the Best Buy and they show football or basketball... I see some blur in them all.

When I needed a new HDTV for my bedroom, I ended up with a DLP rear projector since it seemed like it had less blur than any LCD on the market at the time.

Is the fast action blurring just something I'll have to get used to?

[kent1146]

Originally Posted by govtdog

One lingering concern I have is that about response time. I will not really be doing any online gaming on this HDTV, but I hate the blurring that I see on LCDs when watching fast action sports.

I would consider anything under 8ms to be "good enough." Blurring / ghosting due to LCD refresh rates has really become a non-issue for at least the past 5 years.

If you see blurring / ghosting in video content, then it will not be because of the LCD refresh rate. There could be other reasons, such as poor source material (especially on cable & satellite HD broadcasts, which use a lot of compression to cram that HD video signal down a cable or satellite signal).

If you want to see whether this is a problem, go into any electronics store with your laptop and an HDMI cable. And then play back some video content or run some games on the TVs there. HDTVs usually have some kind of side-port for HDMI input, which should make it easy for you to test and verify that it is the source material (and not hte LCD panel) that is the cause of blurring you see in sports.

[govtdog]

Thanks again Kent!

My only inputted signals to this HDTV/Monitor will be from my laptop(1920x1080) via HDMI, an Upconverting DVD Player(1080i) via spoofed HDMI and a coax carrying digital OTA HDTV(1080i) to the HDTVs ATSC tuner.

Should I still be looking at the Aquos, or is that overkill for my needs? Should I still be considering some of the IPS panel units like the Pani Viera's?

I checked out BB, Walmart, Target and Fry's this morning and saw blurring on all their LCD/LED HDTVs when showing sports action. I guess it could be from the compression they use on their hard drive based demo looping signal senders?
Guess I need to head on back to BB and take my laptop and HDMI cable with me...

Thanks again for the help!
+1

[Krane]

Originally Posted by govtdog

Thanks!
I don't even know if they make a 30-37" HDTV with 2ms response time? If they do, I probably can't afford it anyway.

Keep in mind that there is always a compromise to make things marketable: A manufacture could make a car that would keep you save in a 100 mph crash but it would cost 2 million dollars.

The TV/monitor you want can be had, but not for $400!