Lower Res on a 9400 w/ WUXGA...

Posted this in another forum but really need the extra input so I can act on whatever I decide ASAP.

Hey all,

I got a question for those who have the 9400 system with the WUXGA screens who play games.

We all know LCDs have native resolutions that look the best which is always the highest resolution. I am thinking of going through the trouble of returning my system for a better screen but I want to make sure I am doing the right thing.

I am just curious how does the screen look if you DO lower the res below the native/optimal 1920? How is it in games particually? I dont mind playing at max, but if perfomance suffers alot (FPS) I might want to lower the res and I just want an idea of what to expect.

I would be getting the EXACT same system below except the screen. I love the performance of my 9400 otherwise. How much would games be impacted by the higher res screen?

Thanks

 

You are right that the native resolution is the best, but when you play games at a lower resolution, it doesnt seem to have much difference. Most games right now are not even up to the native resolution like 1920. Unless you go under like 1024 or something low like that then you would notice that the quality might not have been as good as you would like. But overall, in gaming, ther won't be much lag if you push the settings all the way up or in a decent lower resolution.

 

Thanks for the reply. You've helped me.

So some games cant even go up to the max resolution of WUXGA screens anyway? i did not even know that. To be honest I am not even a gamer, I got this laptop mainly because my other one is 4 1/2 years old and i simply wanted a new one. I do play World of Warcraft and i just like knowing my laptop can play it IF I want to... you know?

Primarily this laptop will be for school, and I am an animation major using Maya. For that I suspect I will really benefit from the better resolution, would you agree?

I think I'm leaning towards returning for a better screen. I hate to do it... but I have a feeling I'm going to seriously regret it if I don't.

 

One more thing. Could somone explain to me or link me to a site that explains why LCDs are so particular about "Native resolutions" compared to other displays? I know there is a distinct different if you dont use native, my own eyes see it. But WHY is tha so?

 

I think right now, most of the new games are jut starting to hit the native resolutions. I think the game Fear and Half-Life 2(maybe) can be pushed up to the full native resolution. I think Age of Empire III also can be pushed up there.

And most people are so hyped up about native resolution is because it is the best resolution for that particular lcd. But one of the downside is that the font of certain things might be super super small and in time people complains that you can ruin your vision and put a lot of stress on your eyes.

I have the wuxga for my 9300 and i put it down a notch from the resolution. The quality isnt as good as the native, but at least I won't go blind. And the quality isn't that bad.

 

Well...it is kinda weird. If you play on say 960x600 resolution the monitor actually takes 2 pixels to make that same little spot on the screen...thus making the image less sharp.

If that makes any sense to you. Kind of a vague discription.