fellioth said:
I am building a computer and was just wondering, should I buy a
television screen or a monitor? The main reason I am worried is that I
am going to use the same screen for my computer and xbox 360 which
support 1080p. While I was looking at newegg.com I noticed that they do
not list whether their monitors support 1080p, and I was wondering if
they inherently do so there is no need to list it, or if it is not
supported at all or anything. So really all I would like to know is if
a computer monitors supports 1080p. Thanks!
OK, you are confused. Nothing wrong with that, that's why you are here.
Any computer monitor (mostly LCD style, currently) that can display
1920x1200 resolution can display 1080p format HDTV content (at 1920 X 1080).
The problem is getting the source material INTO that 1080p monitor. Some of
the latest ATI video cards advertise 1080i support, others just say
widescreen HDTV resolution (which would include 1080i, probably). On the
nvidia side, the 7 series cards state in no uncertain terms that they are
1080i compatible. That's helpful, but not what you are asking about.
On the TV side, the vast majority of programming available (from any source)
maxes out at 1080i, and that will be true for long enough that any
tv/monitor you buy today will be worn out long before you will need it to
display 1080p on a regular basis. If you see a 1080p program, it's probably
running off some kind of demo disk that is available in very limited supply,
currently.
It would probably be best for you to forget about 1080p and concentrate on
finding 1920x1200 native resolution. Although this won't do you much good
for 1080p use anytime soon, it will make a kick-ass computer monitor with
the right video card (512MB RAM on the video card is required, BTW...not
just suggested). And if the screen size is large enough (or if you sit
really close to it!), it should work OK as a television monitor, also. But
this varies by room size, obviously. Think BIG BUCKS if you are going to
put this thing in your living room.
Oh, and ignore brightness/contrast/response time specs. when shopping for
your monitor. They are all fudged intentionally to the point where they are
meaningless. You're going to have to trust your eyes for this purchase, do
not order anything before you've seen it (in use) with your own eyes. Look
for black to be BLACK (not gray), white to be very bright (almost painful)
and motion should not blur. Beyond that, just go by general impression.
You will know what you like. -Dave
