Monitors vs LCD TV

Well I am on the market, havent really decided on a size yet, not sure if I want to go 24" or 32" yet, still contiplating...

Anywho I was wondering, what is the difference between a LCD monitor and a LCD TV. both have 5ms refresh rates and 120 HZ. The tvs seem to be a better deal as you can get them on sale most of the time for a cheaper price, they come with built in speakers, which are perfect for my application.

so what is the big difference?

 

anyone

10 char

 

The tuner! At least the most significant difference. However, you've already hinted at some of the other advantages. Nevertheless, not all computer monitors have 120 hz; and some also come with speakers.

Aside from the obvious tuner, TV and monitors tend to differ in the number a type of port/connections they have. Obviously, if one is better it's because it's designed to handle what fits someone's application.

TV monitors certainly get a lot bigger (and expensive), but again, that can be a positive or a negative. The one you choose, depends on how you intend to use it.

 

We have a 37" Vizio here at home we got on sale from Wally World. It's 1080p and has excellent viewing angles. It's got ports up the yin-yang and the cool thing is I can plug my T400 into it and voila I have HD

We paid $599 for it that includes a 2-year warranty.

I can say that the picture is pretty nice and that a wireless keyboard and mouse would be a needed addition. Your best guide would be to actually go into the stores and compare the televisions and monitors. Play around with the settings for sure b/c the workers who set them up may not have the same tastes in custom settings you do.

 

It's almost a guarantee the worker will be clueless. But the ideal would be to make a side-by-side comparison using your preferred content (an unlikely scenario I know). But whatever you do, take your time--and do some research if possible--before making your decision.

There's nothing worse than buying a product then finding a better deal right after the return period is over.

 

If you look at a bunch of monitors, you're going to see that larger monitors have higher resolutions, often reaching past 1920x1080. TVs really top out at 1920x1080, no matter the size.

 

True, so if he wanted/needed to go higher, then computer monitor would be his only option.

 

for spending lots of time infront of, a good high res monitor is far superior to work on. HD TV's are rather mediocre resolution for their size. a good monitor at 1920X1200 is alot easier on the eyes and many even have tuners that will downsample to 1080. eg my samsung T240HD.

alot of it depends on your application though, if its going to be primarily an HTPC, get the TV, if you are going to game or do much work on it, get a proper monitor

 

and if you have the money, dual screens are much more fun than single screens... you tend to get more work done, especially if you do a lot of data-entry/programming work....

now, i'm trying to see if i have money for eyefinity... 3 screens

Dell had a good deal for 22" IPS screens for $230(22" TN screens usually $150).... usually screens are (cheap) TN(Twisted Nemantic), but they have poorer color production/viewing angles... screens like IPS, PVA(like the apple iPad) are much better for photoshopping/movie watching, but more expensive

 

AMEN, dual and tri screens are VERY efficient and fun too. I know there are lots of us on the forum here that use from 2 to 5 screens

 

That's the good part. The bad part is additional complexity, connections, ports, software, etc. All of which add extra expense, not to mention the additional space requirements. You've got to give the bitter with the sweet.

 

Not so much taste. The way I understand it, most stores are under guidelines from the manufacturer to make them bright and oversaturated, that way they "pop" when people look at them. They look like crap when you get them home, but in the store they look good.

 

depending on the OP's application, it might be worthwhile... most laptops have at least a VGA connector... the only problem is whether that VGA mirrors the original LCD screen or not.... you could get a dock to easily do the VGA/USB connections if it's a hassle

if you're looking at a desktop, then adding a PCIe x1 card is simple if you have the slot

and so... what's kwantz's needs? video watching? most speaker systems on a TV are not good(thats why some people get audio receviers and 5.1 speakers...)... do you have the space/money to get a dedicated sound system too?

don't go for 32" if TV/movie watching isn't needed... the resolution at that level is bad for general multitasking, and you need to sit a little bit further away to enjoy that 32 inches

 

That's exactly correct; and that includes the content the choose as well. That's why you must make sure the store you purchase from has an easy return policy. And that's also one of the remaining advantages of buying from a brick and mortar store as apposed to online.

Whenever I'm in the market to buy any entertainment equipment I test it out extensively: If I'm buying speakers, I take my favorite CDs. If I'm in the market for a TV monitor, I use my reference video content (including some of my homemade videos).

If the sales person refuses to cooperate (rare, since I usually deal with specific retailers), then I walk.